Innovation competitions aka innovation challenges are effective tools organizations use to access and connect with expert communities, with the aim of collaborating to develop the best sustainable ideas and solutions, these solutions are hard to reach depending on internal resources only.

That’s why many companies are using innovation challenges to access external resources and engage startups, customers, students, universities, etc. in their innovation processes. For example, general electric launched GE Fuse, an open innovation platform to solve technical problems engaging engineers from all over the world.

So whether you are looking for a new idea, a creative concept, a solution for a technical challenge, or a talented candidate, innovation challenges are the answer.

Below are six reasons why you should consider innovation challenges for solving your biggest problems:

• 1. Fast way to find ideas
  You can control the timeline applicants will have to brainstorm, conceptualize, and submit their proposals.

• 2. Cost-efficient
  Sticking to your preassigned resources and still managing to reach out to hundreds and sometimes thousands of innovators, add to this using a submission software to save some staff time and get the screening and judging work done quickly and smoothly.

• 3. Creates Focus
  An online innovation challenge allows you to focus on one problem at a time and direct all internal and external resources towards it. When you reach a final solution and while the winning team is executing their idea, you can redirect the focus to another challenge.

• 4. Generate Insights
  In addition to the solution you select to implement, you will also access some valuable ideas and perspectives, innovation challenges will give you insightful remarks on the problem and a number of approaches to look into.

• 5. Build a community
  Get the best out of innovation challenges by compiling a database of innovators to use for outsourcing and/or hiring.

• 6. Create a Competitive Advantage
  Innovation creates competitive advantages and sustainable growth by producing unique products, creating efficiency, and/or adding value to an existing product or service.

With innovation challenges you are not just creating value for your organization, you are also reducing costs, the cost of being replaced or left behind, moreover the cost of not leading the future, these are the costs you pay when you do not innovate.

Streamline your innovation using Untap compete ‘s solution for innovation challenges.