Innovation Specialist at Vodafone Global Enterprise

Your responsibilities will include:

The main functions of the Ideation Specialist are as follows:

Ideation programmes:

• Processing, analysing, reporting, and operationalising of the internal and external-facing ideation programmes 
• Challenges: Coordination and execution of challenges and convert these to applicable online challenges and hackathons. Build and maintain blueprints of the various challenges. Support BUs running their own challenges, for example the Vodacom Hackathon. This includes but is not limited to building and formulating the business problem, problem questions and associated score cards as well as coordinating and facilitating scoring, support and judgement.  
• Innovation Academy: Coordinate and build the content on the #1MoreSkill program. Once ideas are received, facilitate formal processes to help improve and build on the quality of ideas submitted into the Innovate! Programme and ideas sent to the Vodacom Incubator. 

Culture:

• Spirit: Closely integrate and support the Spirit programme from an innovation and ideation perspective. 
• Communications: Develop and execute a strong group-wide communications plan for the ideation programmes, its activities and achievements. 
• Learning programmes: Support the various ALPs (Advanced learning programmes) in order to ensure that ideas are developed to align with Vodacom’s strategy.
• Evangelise Innovation: Continuously canvas the Innovation function at town halls, inductions and other Vodacom business unit event.  

Stakeholder engagement:

• Stakeholder landscape: Develop and maintain a landscape map of the various internal and external stakeholders.
• Innovation Champions (~100 BU Innovation representatives) community: Support and engagement of Innovation Champions and representatives per BU and OpCo. Manage the community, foster, and maintain relationships and ensure vibrancy and engagement with ICs across Vodacom Group. 
• Coordinate and facilitate Innovation Champion workshops and conferences and liaise with Business Managers to support the Innovation Champions. 
• Ideation reporting: Operationally report on ideation activities, and programme statuses. 
• Internal/external engagement: Continuous engagements with the Innovation stakeholders (Opcos, Vodafone, Innovation Hubs, etc.), including daily interactions, monthly sessions, etc. 

Ideation/Innovation projects: Execute ad-hoc projects to further the Ideation and Innovation processes, including – but not limited to:

• Innovation rebrand: Support the launch of the new Innovation brand. 
• Innovation Index: Facilitate the measurement of the Innovation index (including Innovation surveys) across Vodacom group, to ascertain where Innovation can provide assistance.
• Digital platform: Build and maintain innovation challenges on the Innovate! digital platform.  This includes active bug and system enhancement tracking,  liaising with the vendor and all internal parties (e.g. supply chain, and IT). 
• Innovate! CEO awards: Sourcing candidate ideas and drafting list of nominations to be considered for annual CEO Innovation Awards

Key accountabilities and decision ownership: 

• Idea management and operationalising (processing, reporting and administration) of the ideation programmes as per the defined processes and KPIs.
• Engaging and supporting of key stakeholders for Ideation and Innovation across Vodacom Group (i.e. Innovation Champions, Idea Originators, etc.)
• Innovation evangelisation, training, and communications 
• Facilitate and execute Ideation services such as Challenges,  Hackathons, Innovation Days  to the various BUs in Vodacom Group.
• Executing Ideation and innovation initiatives.

The ideal candidate for this role will have:

• Matric/Grade 12 (or SAQA Accredited equivalent) is essential.
• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent is a requirement
• Strong administrative and reporting skills with the ability to work well with others and individually 
• Idea generation and ability to facilitate idea generation in others
• Project coordination and management 
• Communications skills including interpersonal skills, presentation skills, training and facilitation skills, negotiation skills, relationship building ability, etcetera.
• Good networking and engagement skills