How many businesses or government bodies can genuinely claim to be innovative in their use of technology?

For many boardrooms, IT innovation is seen as a risk. The first question many senior executives ask when confronted with a proposal for new business technology is: ‘Who else is using it?’ Government will generally recoil from IT products that are not well-proven.

In any industry, there are companies acknowledged as leaders in their use of IT. Many retailers would point to Wal-Mart or Tesco; finance firms might cite the big high-street banks. But one thing is certain: the UK does not innovate enough.

Let’s be clear what we mean here. Innovation does not necessarily mean research and development – our universities and entrepreneurs already lead the world in inventions and new ideas. But as our special report on innovation shows, it is the organisations that use IT for their everyday operations that are letting the UK down.

Innovative concepts and new ways to use technology are mainly left to IT vendors and startups, and introduced into business only when they become standard products and services.

There are too few firms willing to invest in trying out original or inventive uses of IT, creating new business processes or ways of working. Budgetary pressures means every pound must be justified and point back to the bottom line.

But there is surely an opportunity for forward-thinking IT leaders to invest a proportion of their resources in innovation. Google, for example, encourages staff to spend 20 per cent of their time working on new ideas.

The IT community is known for its expertise in making things work, and staff are trained in how to make best use of products that every firm uses. But their creativity is too often hidden behind a welter of jargon and geek speak.

IT directors need to create and lead an environment that stimulates innovation and allows the creative minds of the community to flourish.

What do you think? Email us at: feedback@computing.co.uk