WMG FTMSc Blog Collection

Before starting my degree in Innovation and Entrepreneurship, I was wondering how is it like to study innovation? Will it be some tools about how to apply creative thinking? Will it be some success stories of edgy startups? Or it will be about breakthrough inventions and patents? But actually, the biggest question was “is innovation something that can be taught?

It didn’t take me much time to find the answer to these questions as the Innovation module was my second module for the first term of my studies. The module lasted for a whole week which I consider one of the most exciting weeks in my experience in WMG. Let me give you a glimpse of how it was like.

Few weeks before the module start date, we received the pre-module work which warmed up our minds and put us into the module mode. It had two main parts; first, some readings and videos based on the book “Entrepreneurship in emerging and developing economies” which is co-authored by the Innovation course leader Ali Ahmad. The book discussed a different aspect of enterprise and entrepreneurship with lots of cases from different markets.

The second part of the pre-module work was to complete our “Belbin profiles”. Belbin is a powerful team formation tool in which students answer some questions individually about their way of work and the results indicate their work style and their role as team players. Each student completed their profile and by the module start date, we were allocated into five teams.

For me, the module has two different sides a theoretical one and a practical one. On the theoretical side, the module takes us through different practices and concepts of innovation such as dark innovation, disruptive innovation, open innovation and innovation in corporates& the public sector. We had the chance to understand those concepts through many case studies and examples.

On the practical side, which was the most exciting for me, we went through "Stratsim simulation" which is a software simulation for our five competing student teams representing five automotive companies. Each company has a different mix of technology, products, distribution dealerships and marketing strategies. For six consecutive years, we needed to study the market opportunities and threats then take decisions upon our analysis. The decisions types varied between investment, new products, new facilities and emergencies. After six tough rounds, my team could achieve first place with the highest market value and net income!

I liked the high amount of interaction throughout the module which made a whole load of information easier to digest through competitive gamified quizzes and group work. The course had different tutors which enriched the discussions and the module output.

Now, to be back to our big question of whether innovation can be taught or not. And the answer is innovation isn’t just a theory or a tool that can be given with a spoon to the student. It is a mix of knowledge, practice, experience and creativity and as a student, you will get access to many resources, but it is your turn to benefit from those resources to have your own innovation mix.