Overview
Wipro Technologies and Knowledge@Wharton have teamed up to conduct a global "Innovation Tournament" which will solicit, judge and select the most innovative managerial "tools" that companies can use to improve their business by increasing revenues, reducing expenditures and improving customer experience.
Based on the newly released book, Innovation Tournaments, by Wharton professors Karl Ulrich and Christian Terwiesch, this tournament is designed to identify innovative managerial tools that organizations can use to increase efficiencies, cut costs and/or streamline operations. (For the purpose of this contest, a "tool" is defined as a method, approach, template, process or software.) The tournament is open to all individuals and/or groups from around the world who wish to submit a tool for consideration.
The Innovation Tournament is structured in three phases as follows:
Phase I:
Participants will submit tools via this website in one of the following formats: Word document, PowerPoint presentation, PDF file or Excel spreadsheet. These submissions will be reviewed and judged by a panel of experts determined by the Wharton School and including key members of the Wharton faculty, the Knowledge@Wharton team and the Wipro Council for Industry Research. From these submissions, 25 leading tools will be chosen based on the judging criteria. The deadline for submissions to the Innovation Tournament has been extended to December 31st.Phase II:
A live, online webinar event will be hosted by Wipro Technologies and Knowledge@Wharton, during which the 25 leading tools will be presented with two minutes allotted to each. From these 25 presentations, the top 10 finalists will be selected and those individuals/groups will advance to the final phase of the tournament.Additionally, following the webinar, these top 10 finalists will be assigned a "mentor" who will provide two hours or more of advice and consultation (via e-mail, by telephone or in person) to help the finalists refine their idea for presentation at a live event at Wharton, on the University of Pennsylvania's campus.
Phase III:
A presentation by each finalist will take place at a live event at the University of Pennsylvania, during which the Innovation Tournament winners will be selected by a panel of judges. The judges will determine, using a neutral balloting format, the top three presentations/tools, and those finalists will receive prizes. Finalists must be present in Philadelphia for this event to be considered for the top awards.Additionally, finalists will be interviewed for a podcast about their tool, and these podcasts will be made available on the Knowledge@Wharton and Wipro Technologies' websites. (Knowledge@Wharton will own the rights to these audio recordings.)
About the Sponsors
Wipro
Wipro is a global IT services company that leverages comprehensive
business and technology solutions across diverse domains. Applying
grassroots thinking, we address real world challenges that lead to
successful transformations.
Knowledge@Wharton
Launched in May 1999, Knowledge@Wharton, the online research and analysis journal of the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, has evolved into a network of websites. The goal of the Knowledge@Wharton Network is to disseminate business knowledge and insights to readers around the world.
The Knowledge@Wharton Network includes three regional editions. Universia Knowledge@Wharton, launched in January 2003, is published every two weeks in Spanish and Portuguese. China Knowledge@Wharton, first published in March 2005, appears every other week with articles in simplified and traditional Chinese. India Knowledge@Wharton, also published bi-weekly, was launched in November 2006.