creating our strategic direction for 2015 innovating our way to a successful and sustainable future:

CREATING OUR STRATEGIC DIRECTION FOR 2015

Innovating our way to a successful and sustainable future:

MORE THAN YOU IMAGINEwww.sit.nsw.edu.au

•A strategy that is driven by our belief in education and training that changes lives

•A strategy that validates that education and training is created with and produced for our partners: customers, industry, communities, governments, other education providers

•A strategy that identifies and strengthens our points of difference

•A strategy that creates competitive advantage and ensures a sustainable future for us

•A strategy that builds our economy and reaches out beyond Australia


AN ALTERNATIVE ROUTE TO DEVELOPING SOLUTIONS AND INCREASING SYSTEM PERFORMANCE

Innovative thinking to create our strategy


Background

We have used a concept called Systems Thinking

oIt categorises us as a complex system. Complex because our VET environment is unpredictable as its directed by governments and because our organisation and business is built on human interactions

oIt categorises us as an adaptive system – so we have remarkable resilience in the face of efforts to change

oThe impact of these two things means that Sydney Institute only exists in the experience of the individual – there are many different Sydney Institutes and we have resisted change by essentially reproducing ourselves


BackgroundWhat does this mean for creating a business strategy for a complex and adaptive organisation?

o Systems thinking leads us to use the methodology of a messy problem – where there is no clear agreement about exactly what the problem is and uncertainty and ambiguity about how improvement can be made

o So rather than using a reductionist approach to our problems, where we separate them into rationally manageable components with simple targets, we have begun to seek a strategic direction where most of our partners and stakeholders can agree on a broad agenda for moving forward

oTo move forward we will focus on innovation and experimentation

oThe success of our directions will be judged by our customers


HOW WILL THIS THINKING HELP US CREATE A STRATEGY FOR COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE?

Innovative thinking to create our strategy


1. It provides us with a more mature approach to our desire to be customer focussed

2. It reinforces the need for a significant customer and stakeholder input into the strategy, its improvement goals and its implementation strategies

3. Our success will be judged by the clients and users of the system

4. It gives us a methodology to tackle the adaptive parts of the Institute that resist change

5. We will focus on accelerating the spread of innovation


FIRST STEPSInnovative thinking to create our strategy


Back in March we asked our Institute Director to set our vision and to identify up to 5 areas where we need to focus in order to move forward.

His vision is:•For Sydney institute to be recognised as the premier VET provider in NSW

•To provide skills and training to a wide range of customers in a way that meets their learning and industry needs

•To ensure that our training aids customers to gain employment and enhance their career opportunities

•That we build strong economies and enhance productivity through training


These were the 5 areas that he identified where we should focus and develop in order to move forward:

•Students

•Staff

•Internationalisation

•Corporate Governance

•External engagement


Seeking input and feedbackWe asked all our staff, ambassadors, alumni, industry and customers for feedback and the Executive spent time this week at a 2 day planning forum providing their strategic thinking.

We asked you and them questions about how we can move forward

We are going to ask this group today to help us in two ways:•To validate whether we have listened to feedback and •to give further input and help us shape our vision and performance statements


Task 1On your tables we are presenting you with the emerging themes from the feedback

1.Please read all the themed feedback and as an individual consider what vision statements would you expect to be set from this feedback? What are the big directions our stakeholders are telling us we should be setting?

2. Secondly, what things would be changing or happening if we achieved the things that our stakeholders told us? Again consider your own ideas.

You can then ask and listen to the breadth of opinion at your table, please be mindful that we want to hear a variety of voices.


WHAT MAKES PEOPLE COME WITH YOU ON A JOURNEY

Ted’s talks – innovative thinking


Task 2Being placed on the table now are the responses of the

Executive team to the feedback and their strategic leadership on our future.

Original 5 areas

• Students• Staff• Internationalisation• Corporate Governance• External Engagement

Renamed 5 areas

• Our customers• Our teams• Our world• Our business• Our partners


Task 2

Please review the vision statements and performance statements on your table.

1.Validate where you think our ideas met the feedback

2. And identify if there are gaps, where do you think we did not listen to feedback and what are the gaps?


Strategies to culture and foster Innovation at SI


Five Myths• Innovation is normally about individual

breakthroughs from special people• Innovation is about having brilliant ideas that work

the first time• The best ideas are complex and come from the

centre, the highest performing, richest with the most funds, parts of your organisation

• Innovation can be mandated • Innovation is by adding technology or having really

sexy ideas


Five Strategies1. As leaders, in all areas, we need to absolutely focus on

challenging the norms that stifle innovation and look for new ways to open up space for people to feel absolutely free to try new things to experiment and to push the boundaries

2. Set purpose and direction. Leaders who really use innovation to drive their systemic agenda, to really push for what they want to do, both create an overarching purpose for where their staff can get in and innovate and they give quite specific direction so that staff know what are the areas to innovate on

3. Harness interdisciplinary collaboration. Ask yourself how can I purposely bring in diversity here

4. Give permission for innovation through conditions 5. Find ways to de risk failure


The Continuum

• Where are we on the Continuum for getting started?

• What steps do we need to take now?


Where are we on the Continuum to

• be able to challenge the norms• be able to set purpose and direction• harness multi disciplinary approaches• be able to give permission for innovation

through conditions• be able to foster a culture of innovation

creating our strategic direction for 2015 innovating our way to a successful and sustainable future:

Documents

business strategy

usa strategy

aua strategy

thinking help us

innovative thinking

changes livesa strategy

points of differencea

adaptive system