Innovation Management Program - FAQ and Inspiration
How do we turn words into action? Here, you’ll find answers to common questions and inspiration to take the next step in innovation management, whether for yourself or your organization.
What is innovation management and its system?
Innovation management has become a way to create favorable conditions for individuals, teams, businesses, and organizations to be innovative—to develop and renew themselves.
Since the 2000s, innovation management has emerged as a professional discipline for driving business and organizational development. This can be compared to the historical emergence of other disciplines such as project management, quality management, and environmental management.
The definition of the innovation management system according to the international standard ISO 56000 is:
- A set of interrelated or interacting elements of an organization to establish strategies, policies, objectives, and processes to achieve those objectives.
Innovation management involves setting goals and methods for innovation while building routines, behaviors, and competencies to explore and create value based on insightful knowledge.
Simply having documents that outline goals for systematic innovation work is not enough. Innovation management requires dedicated time, budget, and resources across multiple interconnected levels. It’s about leading, organizing, and implementing processes and routines that create unique value — whether through products, services, experiences, or processes — that benefit both the organization and its customers as well as society and the world.
How have the innovation management standards and personal certifications developed?
In 2019, the world’s first guidance standard for innovation management, ISO 56002, was published. This standard was developed over 10 years of international collaboration, with Swedish participation through the SIS/TK 532 Innovation Management Committee.
In parallel, the possibility for individuals to become Certified Innovation Management Professionals was also developed. This internationally leading initiative for personal certification in innovation management was developed through collaborative dialogue between industry experts, organizations, and standardization bodies, ensuring global alignment and recognition.
The certification was developed by Innovationsledarna - The Association for Innovation Management Professionals in Sweden, and RISE Research Institutes of Sweden, Sweden’s research institute and innovation partner, with funding from Vinnova, Sweden's innovation agency.