Results

"The current rate of innovation is low considering available resources"

This article will discuss the results of my experience in addressing the problem of how "The current rate of innovation is low considering available resources" as well as their significance.

The Undergraduate

I entered college wanting to learn everything, major in everything and be everything. I even switched majors from biology to physics to chemistry not wanting to choose just one. I didn't find out until my fourth year of college that things make more sense when they revolve around a specific purpose that solves a problem.

It was through the Innovation Scholar Program that this was effectively instilled in my mind. I came to hear of the program through my participation in one of the newly formed campus innovation websites called SPARK that is focused on providing innovative solutions to various concerns across campus. The topic being addressed at the time dealt with increasing innovation among students. I submitted an idea that suggested the need of an award that students could receive for their participation in extracurricular activities that were deemed to be innovation inducing activities. I received feedback notifying me that this award already exists and the program is called the Innovation Scholar Program.

The Program was nascent and more than piqued my interest. The idea of focusing my efforts on a specific problem directed my scholastic pursuits in many aspects. Under the "Experience" tab I listed the various courses and extracurricular activities that I participated in. These classes were specifically selected as a means of aiding me in addressing my problem and were therefore combined in a clearly defined purpose to address a specific problem. This purpose began to expand beyond the defined program and pervaded my other classes. I noticed how content in my lectures of other courses began to stand out in new ways that normally would not have been considered. Suddenly my curriculum had a lot more in common than ever before and a bigger more meaningful image began to grow and fill my mind. In the very same way that I found my problem, my problem began to find itself around various scholastic aspects from core cirriculum, to peer interaction.

As I progressed into my senior year I found that the courses that I had selected for the Innovation Scholar Program would not accommodate my scheduled graduation date. Surprisingly, I found classes that were similar and satisfied the desired cirriculum. They were classes that I had already taken, but were entirely pertinent and covered topics that I desired to learn more about regarding the process of innovation. I find this significant because not only is the new information that I acquire adopted with purpose, but the information that I have already acquired, with some additional thought, can also become a well integrated part of my purpose. This is a ridiculously simple idea, but the implications are colossal. The kicker is that the previously acquired information requires additional thought within the context of the nascent purpose.

One of my extracurricular activities changed throughout my participation in the program. I originally planned to start a marketing club that would bolster student-directed innovation. This was actually intended to be a direct means of solving problems that I was experiencing while working on my business idea during my participation in the foundry. I was having trouble finding affordable labor, potential team members, and a diverse set of skills at my fingertips for marketing. The more I learned about marketing the more I liked it. So I conceived the ultimate marketing club.

The structure and function of the club's design was truly beautiful, but irony stared me right in the eye and hit me hard as I struggled to market my marketing club. Putatively, as a student that has never taken a marketing class, I had no business attempting such things, but as a delighter of physics and philosophy I enjoy solving intricate systems. I couldn't market my solution and so it was back to the drawing board. As silly as it sounds I needed a solution for my solution's solution. Eventually I reconceived the process of innovation and ideated a microcosmic implementation of my concept that could bring to fruition the very solution I sought. Firstly, the parts of the concept I developed were derived from my prior projects, and secondly each subsequent project seemed to peel away layers eventually leaving a pure core solution more specific to my original problem. This is the evolution that brought me to my current project... The Next Move

Beyond the Undergraduate

The benefits of my experiences within the Innovation Scholar Program are certainly not limited to my career as an undergraduate. My mind has been sculpted to an effective method of approach.

As I take my career to the job market there are many valuable applications to employ from my experiences in the Innovation Scholar Program.

While pursuing my entrepreneurial ventures I drove myself to learn as much as possible. Through my pursuits I have learned that I have limited abilities and skills in certain areas. There is much talent in many specialties that I do not possess and never will. This is okay as I am only one man. What's more is the importance of identifying and appreciating the skills of others, especially within a team. Interdisciplinary teams have a potential to accomplish things otherwise unattainable and this requires the effective collaboration of correctly organized skill sets. I recognize that extending beyond one's own perception and ability is a key to innovation as well.

Proper business management is necessary for not only a business, but many other aspects of life outside of the office and even at home. All of the classes and activities I participated in for the program revolved around this fact. As I mentioned, simply being problem minded or grand objective minded is key to enhancing efficiency. It promotes holistic thinking that critically supports business management, as all elements must be evaluated for their level of contribution to an overall objective. This is one of the reasons that I enjoy engineering because they evaluate, for example, mechanical systems to see how they can be more effectively enhanced and how laborers can be more successful with their workflow and operation of the machinery for a specific result.

I have also learned through my experiences, particularly through my involvement in the Foundry, of the critical nature of accountability and how to employ it. A project manager requires proper accountability techniques in order to enhance their efficiency. This includes the basics of setting realistic deadlines and the creation of effective progress reports in order to analyze performance and resolve any problems in a timely manner. As I worked on my business idea I quickly found that the more clear documentation I had, the easier it was to progress and share project status. This skill is clearly not limited to a specific field and is useful for any project whatever the organization or company may be.

Another important skill that I have been able to develop is the ability to not only resolve problems, but to identify them. Many people accept a conventional flow that has been established no matter how silly it might appear to someone with a holistic perspective, yet it goes unquestioned. My brother is an electrical engineer at the largest electrical engineer enployer in Utah and is constantly being forced into large scale project management because of his ability to identify problems and resolve them. Just this last week, his boss pulled him into a meeting regarding a large project that had failed. My brother was disgusted that the lead engineer of the project was throwing his team under the bus and quickly identified the key issue that was costing them a difference of over 80% work hour efficiency. He proposed a solution shortly after. He is a shining example of the value of this skill. We enjoy brainstorming together with the same method of thinking. We converse about various aspects of life with the same excitement for identifying problems and proposing solutions. We recently discussed a novel that I began writing that portrays some societal and political issues that I have identified and how they might be resolved. Without the ability to identify problems, positive change cannot occur.

As a scientist, I believe that these holistic skill sets described are particularly valuable for me to possess as I have a base understanding of the natural and physical sciences and have the potential to bridge gaps between operation management and technology development. Regardless of the workforce context, there will always be a project that I am involved in that will benefit from these skills.

The Next Move

Amongst my current projects I am currently developing a web application that promotes student-directed innovation. After reconceiving the process of innovation I sought for a good place to implement my concept. My initial idea was to resolve barriers that I was experiencing with my prior business ideas and I determined that other student innovators could also potentially benefit greatly from my solution. The application is currently called P^3.

Innovation is directed by the faculty of universities across the nation and many students are allowed to be a part of it. Most university resources and programs at universities are directed towards faculty-run innovation. Students that are pursuing their own innovative projects, be it an idea for a business, club, or product are isolated from peers and resources needed from diverse departments of which they do not belong. The intent of P^3 is to connect like-minded student innovators with the people and resources that they need while focusing on project accountability.

P^3 facilitates the process of innovation for students by directing them through a three phase process starting with the problem phase, progressing to the proposal phase, and proceeds with the project phase. Problems are posted, categorized, and accompanied by a forum where peers and attentive faculty members can provide open feedback and discuss potential proposals. All proposals and projects that emerge from that problem are linked and readily viewable. The proposal phase provides specific fields that offer an effective way of articulating the student’s idea and allows for progress parameters to be entered and monitored within an accompanied widget. These progress parameters include initial resources and team members required to start the project.

The proposal phase’s open forum helps provide valuable feedback from the community for locating the required resources and facilitates contact with potential team members. Once the project startup requirements are met the idea transitions to the project phase. The project phase focuses on accountability and revolves around a project timeline. As problems and needs arise the project’s open forum allows for an assisted resolution by interested peers and faculty. Students may search for resources and barter services with other students as a way of acquiring what might be otherwise unattainable.

These features and more are intended to bolster student-run innovation across campus by helping them locate the resources and people that they need while promoting the accountability needed to see their projects through.

I am currently developing a business model and securing funding for prototype production. This project is a source of much excitement for me and I look forward to my continued experiences that I will receive from it, because succeed or fail, there is always something to learn. If nothing is learned, nothing is gained and success cannot therefore be propagated.

Amongst the courses and extracurricular activities in which I participated I gained many valuable skills that support a holistic perspective. With versatile skills including the business management of accountability and team analysis to problem identification and resolution there are a myriad of systems and projects that I look forward to tackling. Not only was I able to learn about them, but I was able to apply them to hands on experiences that have shaped my method of thought and my form of action.

After a life of student invoked poverty I am ready to start experiencing financial success. As I secure a suitable job I plan to address my whole queue of business ideas one at a time. My skills and talents will not be wasted and I will forever be grateful for the knowledge gained from my experience in the Innovation Scholar Program.