New UK institute launches to professionalise innovation

A new professional body that aims to set standards and formalise the practice of innovation management has launched in the UK with backing from several corporate and industry partners.

The Institute of Innovation Management (IIM) will operate as a cross-sector organisation. It will focus on standards, best practice and professional development for innovation leaders in the UK and internationally.

London-based innovation firm Wazoku has joined energy company E.ON, standards organisation BSI Group and innovation design consultancy Magnetic as founding partners. Wazoku is known for its work with organisations including NASA, the UK Ministry of Defence, Enel and the Executive Council of Dubai.

The new institute responds to concerns among practitioners and academics that innovation remains central to competitiveness and public policy but lacks a codified profession. Many organisations still treat innovation as a loose collection of initiatives without shared frameworks, measurement systems or agreed roles.

The IIM intends to create a recognised professional community of innovation managers. It plans to promote structured learning, accreditation routes and the adoption of methods that emphasise discipline, strategy and measurable results.

The organisation will align its work with ISO 56001, the international framework that applies management system thinking to innovation in a similar way to safety management. It aims to link practitioners, researchers, policymakers and industry bodies around a common set of principles.

"Innovation matters now more than ever, yet the profession has historically lacked a common language, recognised standards, and a clear pathway for capability development," said Victoria Milne, Director of The Institute of Innovation Management. "The IIM has been created to address this gap and with the support of founding partners such as Wazoku, we will build a community that equips innovation leaders with the tools, evidence, and professionalism needed to deliver real outcomes."

Milne's comments reflect a wider push to align innovation work with measurable organisational performance. Many organisations continue to assess innovation through counts of ideas, pilots or events rather than financial and strategic contribution.

Founding partners

Wazoku joins the institute as a founding partner with a background in innovation software and advisory work. It has developed the Expected Value, or xV, innovation methodology, which the company positions as an example of standards-aligned practice.

The xV framework separates innovation assessment from more traditional activity-based metrics. It uses four variables: Confidence, Estimated Value, Time Sensitivity and Strategic Fit. Organisations can use these variables to prioritise and track innovation work against strategic and financial expectations.

Wazoku has promoted xV as a way to move away from what some practitioners describe as "innovation theatre". This term refers to visible activities such as hackathons or idea challenges that generate attention but limited business impact.

"The launch of the IIM marks a watershed moment for the profession," said Simon Hill, CEO, Wazoku. "Innovation is integral to economic growth, public-sector effectiveness, and societal progress. But too often it lacks rigour, standards, and shared frameworks that allow organisations to consistently deliver results. That's why we're proud to be a founding partner of the IIM and we look forward to contributing to the Institute's mission of raising the standards of innovation management."

Standards push

The IIM positions itself within a broader standardisation trend in management disciplines. Fields such as project management, risk management and information security already have widely adopted bodies of knowledge and certification schemes. Supporters of the new institute argue that innovation management now requires similar structure.

The institute will promote values of integrity, inclusivity, professionalism and service. It plans to link these values to practical frameworks for how organisations govern innovation, make investment decisions and measure outcomes.

Founding partners are expected to contribute case studies, methods and tools that align with the institute's focus on evidence-based practice. The IIM also intends to engage with universities and research centres that study innovation systems, as well as with government departments that commission innovation programmes.

For Wazoku, involvement in the IIM builds on its work with large public and private sector organisations. The company has supported innovation programmes at NASA and the UK Ministry of Defence, where measurement and accountability requirements are stringent.

The institute's backers say they expect demand for formal innovation skills to grow as organisations face pressure on productivity, sustainability and digital transformation. They argue that clearer standards and accreditation routes will influence hiring, promotion and budget decisions for innovation roles.

The IIM plans to expand its membership base and develop its learning and accreditation offerings over the coming years as it seeks wider recognition in the innovation community.