If We Do What We Always Did, Then We Will Get What We Always Got: the Case for Ambidextrous Innovation in an Educational Organization.

Abstract

Education First is a national, mission-driven, for-profit organization that provides policy and strategy services to states, districts, policymakers, and practitioners in K-12 education. From 2006 to 2018, the organization grew from a five-person startup to a 60-person consulting firm with influential client relationships across the educational landscape. In an effort to continue this growth and remain competitive in an increasingly busy market, the decision was made to develop and implement a strategy for innovation. To that end, I was brought in to Education First to build an Innovation Unit within the existing structure of the firm. This Capstone examines my work at Education First to design and embed that Innovation Unit. It follows my efforts to create the organizational conditions for innovation, and tracks our journey towards devising new products, services, and ways of delivering value to the firm and the field of education. My work is influenced primarily by Charles O’Reilly and Michael Tushman’s model of Ambidextrous Organizations and is supported by an exploration of the broader role of innovation in organizational change. I reflect on my experiences of creating and capitalizing on the conditions necessary for innovation, as well as the successes and challenges I faced, before concluding with implications for my own leadership, for Education First as an organization, and for the education sector as a whole.