What influences the innovation environment in BPO companies?

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to present the factors that form the innovation environment in the Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) sector, from a case study in a Brazilian multinational company operating in the Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) and BPO segment.

Design/methodology/approach

Minnesota Innovation Research Program (MIRP) questionnaire was adopted, aimed to environment conducive to innovation. It was applied to a sample of employees, from different hierarchical levels, who participated in an innovation training program developed and implemented by the organization. The data were analyzed to verify, in a simplified initial diagnosis, the influence of internal and external factors defined by MIRP in the company's innovation process.

Findings

Innovation management process focuses predominantly on processes (71.4% of occurrences). As impact of the factors: results (88.9%), autonomy (76.3%), leadership (74.9%), resources (74.6%), internal relationship of the innovation group (73.1%), formalization (68.4%), processes (64.5%), relationship effectiveness (63.7%), external relationship of the innovation group (63.2%) and dependence on external resources (52.6%). There was confirmation that the innovation program of company is effective and that the culture of innovation is institutionalized.

Research limitations/implications

A crossing of supplementary information could reveal some significant difference in the perception of the innovative culture and performance of the innovation processes between distinguished profiles.

Practical implications

Better guidance for management of ICT/BPO companies in an Open Innovation paradigm.

Social implications

Better relationship among the actors of an Open Innovation industry arrangement.

Originality/value

Improvement of the innovation process can occur through a greater focus on Open Innovation.

Citation

Ponciano, E.S. and Amaral, C.S.T. (2021), "What influences the innovation environment in BPO companies?", Business Process Management Journal, Vol. 27 No. 1, pp. 106-123. https://doi.org/10.1108/BPMJ-03-2020-0129