Three ways to structure innovation

The structure of an organization can help or hinder its progress toward its goals. Independent of size and industry, organizations can achieve their goals by properly matching their needs with the structure they use to operate.

Structures become even more important when dealing with innovation, as this activity differs in many ways from business-as-usual. As Peter Drucker puts it: ‘Innovation is the work of knowing rather than doing.’

Innovations will always play the central role in companies’ long-term survivability. Hence the right structure can lead to sustainable growth. While at the same time the wrong structure can transform innovation in a money pit activity. In principle there are three main type of structures for innovation.