The Innovation Process at Pacific

Innovation defined at Pacific
There are three conditions that should be met for innovation at Pacific. Innovation is:

the introduction of a new idea or using something in a new way;
the idea is put into practice which creates change that has value; and
the change has a positive effect on student learning, service, or organizational performance.

Pacific is committed to innovation and creativity across the University. Pacific will seek to expand innovation in academic programs through an ongoing innovation process, support to pedagogy and research and new education and service delivery models and to enhance University administrative programs and services through innovation and creativity by targeting fundraising, increasing incentives and improving services and programs. The Strategic Action Plan outlines the specific actions planning for the coming years.

Innovation Grants
An Innovation Grant Fund was established in 2008 to support innovation among staff, faculty, and students. Mini-innovation grants of up to $10,000 are awarded each yet to impact student learning, service, or organizational performance.

Innovation Initiatives
A general innovation fund was established in 2006 to support the development of collaborative programs. The call for proposals required that the initiatives:

be linked directly to the University’s mission, values, and planning criteria
increase distinctiveness
build on current strengths
involve two or more disciplines and engage a range of stakeholder inside and outside the University
generate new revenue

The initiatives activities were focused on curriculum, research, and service in new and collaborative ways. They were focused on academic programs and included directly connected co-curricular activities.

The Collaborative Vision Teams (CVTs) brought together ideas from many disciplines and used what was created at the intersections of the disciplines. The following is a brief timeline of the CVTs:

eighteen clusters emerged from the planning retreats of 2005 and 2006
sixteen original CVTs with conveners existed in January of 2006
twelve original proposals were submitted through 2006
additional proposals were considered and added
eight initiatives are currently operational
others have been integrated to various degrees into existing programs
five have ended

The Innovation Initiative fund was depleted in FY10.

Stages of Innovation Development

Stage--1	Staging	The CVT is formed, key roles identified, objectives established, and team is prepared for the journey.
Stage 2--	Aligning	The CVT envisions the strategic frontier, the focus, and the scope of the initiative. Senior management sets expectations for proposal development.
Stage 3--	Exploring	Novel and useful insights from the periphery are collected that form the basis of new, value-producing opportunities. The CVT seeks ideas that are innovative, connect to the Universities values and mission, and capitalize on market place dynamics. Funding for proposal development may or may not be required.
Stage 4--	Creating	Using the new insights gained, the CVT will create a future vision to pull and refine a portfolio of new opportunities. First draft of proposal is written.
Stage 5--	Mapping	The CVT will create a strategic road map outlining key events, trends, external opportunities, and milestones to move Pacific into this new strategic future. Proposal is strengthened.
Stage 6--	Filtering	Based on the initial proposal drafts, the Provost's Office and Institutional Priorities Committee consider which innovations are likely to pass to the next stages towards implementation.
Stage 7--	Recommending	The recommendation for funding will be determined based on the plan for assimilating the innovation into the University's current structures and budget. Proposals plans will consider likely new funding and unit reallocation.
Stage 8--	Piloting	Approval as a planning/pilot project, typically with a planning/pilot grant, recommended by the Institutional Priorities Committee and approved by the President. During this planning stage, each proposal will be reviewed by an appropriate committee of the Board of Regents.
Stage 9--	Funding	Approval by the Cabinet and the President of a proposed multi-year budget plan recommended by the Provost that identifies income and expenses for sustainability. This approval process should be completed prior to the end of the planning/pilot stage of development. A fundraising plan will be developed and reviewed for selected Innovation Initiatives recommended by the Provost to the Office of University Advancement prior to Stage Nine approval. For a proposed new academic major or degree program, the standard faculty approval process will be followed, culminating in a decision by the President to present the proposed program to the Board of Regents for final action.
Stage 10--	Sustaining	Once approved by the President, the initiative may proceed with next steps in implementation. Within three years of Stage Nine approval, the initiative will be administratively reviewed for continuance, modification, or discontinuance.

University of the PACIFIC

The Innovation Process at Pacific