Hiring those with 'energy and talent' key to promoting internal innovation: Game Changers forum

Hiring the right people is one of the most important factors in promoting an innovative internal culture in major corporations, attendees at the second South China Morning Post Game Changers forum heard on Thursday.

In a panel titled "Introducing entrepreneurship mentality to promote intrapreneurship in organisations", speakers agreed that corporations must diversify and hire people from non-traditional backgrounds if they want to inculcate a culture of disruption and experimentation.

"Corporations are having to find new ways to meet new customer demands and the pressure to innovate is very high," said Natascha Jacobovits de Szeged, partner with executive search firm Egon Zehnder.

Creating an environment where innovation can occur within a huge organisation can be difficult however, she added, particularly at public companies more used to focusing on short term stock goals. "Innovation is a long term game."

One means by which corporations can promote innovation is to build "teams of diverse people with diverse backgrounds", said Robert Jesudason, a senior executive with the Commonwealth Bank of Australia.

"When you give them permission and a platform, people are capable of doing amazing things," said Steve Monaghan, head of the Edge innovation unit at insurance giant AIA.