Lead Inventor - Strategy

Description

About ?What If!

We are innovators who ask and answer the ?What If! questions that help organisations imagine new futures and make them a reality. We have been ‘doing’ innovation for the past 25+ years, working with Fortune 500 clients across sectors.

We use an experimentation-led approach to define the strategy, create the inventions and change the culture to turn organisations into human powered experimentation engines.

Our values are embedded in our DNA and inform all of our decision making, not the least of which is recruitment.

Never stop asking ?What If!

Lead Inventor

While role modelling our creative behaviours and values, Lead Inventors strategically lead innovation projects while blending a creative approach to solving problems with real commercial grounding. They possess strategic acumen, are insight savvy storytellers, and idea generators with fabulous facilitation skills. Lead Inventors are able to drive an iterative approach to innovation, applying our relevant tools and behaviours of experimentation to all challenges. They are passionate about owning and cracking our clients’ innovation problems and are smart, provocative thinkers with a human approach to business.

Lead Inventor Skills:

Knowledge and IP

• Ability to sell a point of view, not just have one
• Happy, comfortable and successful working in an iterative way, without a heavy reliance on standard process
• Encourages project team to try new things (through their own actions)
• Ability to redirect and course correct a project as needed
• Generates new ideas, process and structures to help us grow
• Go beyond smart strategy documents to develop real-world solutions positioned for growth
• Great story teller – collects, creates and shares stories (own and ?!)
• Razor sharp insight intuition and quick discrimination of insight and ideas
• Ability to be an intellectual juggler and operate on multiple levels on a project and on the inventing team considering the past, the task at hand and incorporating their knowledge of organisation, people, politics, etc
• Experienced and confident in designing day plans, setting up and leading workshops, moderating consumers, using stimulus and managing the necessary quantity and quality of ideas.

People

• Motivates and inspires their project teams
• Helps develop the skills of the people around them (on project and beyond)
• Can make tough calls and have tough conversations with clients and ?!
• Ability to clearly see business opportunities and articulate them convincingly
• Is diplomatic but firm (embodies appropriate levels of bravery)
• Can manage their own energy and others and brings passion to their work

Clients

• Writes and owns the POV and approach for new business pitches and proposals
• Creates, leads and grows long lasting client relationships
• Owns day-today project needs and client management
• Manages most senior clients plus any big issues throughout their projects

Money

• Can scope and cost a project accurately and in the moment
• Understands and helps support revenue management
• Delivers against their set annual new business targets
• Ensures they and their teams are working profitably

Requirements

• Lead Inventors require a minimum of eight years of business experience in strategic consulting & innovation as well as a track record for developing new products, services and solutions to business problems.
• Lead Inventors need to be idea generators comfortable working in an iterative way: they are constantly curious about the world and must be able to draw on their experience and also our own ?What If! tools and techniques to solve innovation challenges.
• Lead Inventors must have experience leading innovation initiatives, including expertise in design thinking, consumer insight and user experience in both corporate and consulting environments.
• As natural leaders, our Lead Inventors must possess the demeanour, business maturity, intellect and integrity required to establish immediate credibility with key stakeholders within the company.
• ?What If!ers are united by 5 core values - Adventure, Impact, Passion, Love & Audacity and these come across in every project we produce as well as everyone we recruit.

?What If! is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

Benefits

Never stop asking ?What If?