As we build and nurture innovative, agile, and entrepreneurial behaviour among our A-People, it is no secret that innovation is a major driver in our quest towards our Great Transformation and becoming the first Philippine techglomerate. No doubt that one department that would be at the forefront of this challenge is the AEV  Information Technology (IT) Team.

After the ADEA Innovation Program was launched, the IT team instituted the IT Genius Hour. The IT Genius Hour is a depiction of Google’s innovation practice. This program allows IT team members to use 10-20% of their work week to explore innovation projects of their choosing that will benefit the organization.

In an effort to foster the value of innovation,  continuous collaboration and employee engagement within IT, we had two running programs, BFF (Beer Friends Forever) and GT Sharing (Great Transformation) . These two programs were avenues for our team members to connect and share ideas on topics relevant to our functions. Seeing an influx of innovative ideas and purposeful ideas during these sessions, we decided to streamline the activity and refine the process in line with ADEA. Thus, the IT Genius Hour was born.

The IT Genius Hour, done during C-Focused Fridays, is composed of 6 Ps namely - Passion, Pitch, Probe, Plan/Project, Product and Presentation. These steps are aligned with ADEA’s recommended design thinking process of idea generation and co-creation, experimentation, implementation and communication, engagement, and sharing of lessons learned.

This year, we are targeting the achievement of a 5 rating on our Innovation KPI and 100% team member participation in all our activities. We are glad to have developed this safe space where all team members feel comfortable to speak up about their ideas and have provided an avenue for the team to enhance their presentation skills.

We also put great focus on providing and accepting feedback, and continuously striving for improvement after both success and failure.

Let us think like a scientist and encourage creativity.

Together, let us unlock our innate genius!