Innovation portfolio management for the public non-profit research and development sector: What can we learn from the private sector?

Innovation Portfolio Management refers to the systems, processes and mechanisms to intentionally manage innovation investments and decisions within an organization against its mission or strategy. This approach to managing and optimizing innovation and scaling investments is rarely used by public non-profit R&D organizations. This study draws lessons from innovation portfolio management in private sector organizations. Private sector invests in innovation portfolio management to: (i) enhance transparent and evidence-based decision-making, (ii) strengthen organizational agility and mission-orientedness, (iii) facilitate monitoring, risk management and prioritization and (iv) improve overall organizational performance and learning. These innovation portfolio management benefits are equally relevant for the public non-profit R&D sector, where innovation performance and outcomes are for societal impact. Public non-profit R&D can and should manage their innovation portfolios more intentionally, and can learn from private sector successes and challenges. Embracing the opportunities, whilst managing the challenges and risks requires investment in methods, mechanisms and mindsets for effective innovation portfolio management.