One of the methods many organizations use to determine where they stand in comparison to their competitors and peers is a concept called "benchmarking." By definition, benchmarking is the process of comparing one's business processes and performance metrics to industry leaders and/or best practices from other industries.

In the innovation management space, this involves identifying the leaders in innovation management discipline, and other business disciplines where similar processes exist like Lean or Business Process Management, and comparing the results and processes of those studied to one's own results and processes to learn how well the targets perform and, more importantly, how they do it. 

In order to get started, however, organizations need to know where they score along a standardized selection of key innovation management attributes...their "baseline."  This will tell them how "mature" they currently are across a spectrum of best practice leaders in innovation management.  With this baseline analysis in hand, the organization can then begin to compare where they are against other organizations who score higher on the "maturity model" or simply where they would like to grow in the future regardless of how it may compare against other organizations.  It is this resulting "gap analysis" work that innovation management professionals engage with organizations to improve, or mature, their processes, procedures, tools, techniques and cultures.

In 2005, Think For A Change, LLC. developed a comprehensive Innovation Maturity Model to provide a standardized assessment framework for just such benchmarking activities.  This Innovation Maturity Model, or IM2, has become the "de facto" standard innovation management maturity measurement tool for a number of different organizations and market segments.  This Model includes six (6) distinct levels of innovation management maturity across eleven (11) different key attributes for innovation success.

A visual of the IM2 model is shown below...please click on the model graphic to download a PDF version for closer examination.



Please note that the corresponding "best practices" within the matrix are a representative sample of the kind of activities an innovation management discipline would be expected to have at each maturity level.  There are many other "best practices" to consider within each maturity level.

Additionally, in 2007, Think For A Change, LLC. published an eBook further describing the usage and purpose behind the IM2-Innovation Maturity Model matrix tool.

Please click to download a complimentary copy of the IM2-Innovation Management Maturity eBook .

Once you have measured your organization's innovation management maturity, and understand how that measurement (or score) compares to others within your specific industry segment or innovation leaders in general, you can begin to create your benchmarking action plan:

1. Define your baseline position
2. Determine your goal
3. Analyze best practices associated with increased maturity
4. Analyze, interview, visit and engage with organizations already at this goal level
5. Develop a strategic road map to reach the goal
6. Execute upon the strategic road map
7. Re-define your new baseline position
   • Did you meet the goal?

This exercise will help you be a "fast follower" in the innovation management space.  To truly be a "next practices leader" you need to make this exercise a repeatable process within your organization.  You also need to extend the research and learning associated with finding new processes, plans, tools, techniques and cultural activities that chart new levels of success. 

If you treat Innovation Management as a true business discipline, as you should, and give it the same resources, rigor and focus that you do for similar disciplines like Lean and Continuous Improvement, as you should, and you focus on constantly learning, improving and maturing in how you lead, manage and execute that discipline, as you should, you will become a leader, not just in your industry space, but in the larger business environment.