Grace, place and space: fostering employee technological innovation in the new normal

Abstract

PurposeThe ongoing shift to telework has brought about tremendous opportunities for employees to reimagine their use of technology. Opportunities abound for both discovering new technologies and new uses of existing technologies. However, opportunity alone is not enough to turn ideas into action. This opinion paper aims to identify grace, place and space as key concepts that can help managers navigate challenges and opportunities for technological innovation posed by telework.Design/methodology/approachThe authors provide a concise review of related research and events that inform the selection of conditions necessary to foster employee technological innovation.FindingsThe authors identify three primary conditions necessary to foster employee technological innovation – grace, place and space. “Grace” refers to employee autonomy, “place” refers to networking and “space” refers to a reduction of overload. While telework may create opportunities for innovation, it also presents difficulties. Therefore, for each condition, the authors discuss inherent tensions and advise managers regarding how they can resolve those tensions and bring about innovation with a decentralized workforce.Originality/valueThe authors situate the discussion on facilitating conditions that foster employee technological innovation in today's current environment, one in which a rapid expansion of telework among employees is creating difficulties for managers. This paper addresses the “new normal” that managers will face for the foreseeable future.