- Free Version: Available for teams of up to 10
- Pricing: Premium plan $24/seat/month (with free 30-day trial period)
- Platforms supported: Available as a mobile app (iOS and Android) or a web-based software
Why use SafetyCulture?
SafetyCulture is a top open innovation platform that empowers businesses to streamline their new product development processes and accelerate digital transformation. The platform facilitates seamless collaboration and knowledge-sharing between organizations and individuals, fostering a culture of innovation and creativity. Additionally, it has various features and tools specifically designed to support open innovation, making it the best platform for businesses looking to drive innovation and growth.
Features:
- Exchange ideas and communicate effectively and in real-time using Heads Up to facilitate idea development and team collaboration.
- Gather ideas, feedback, and insights from employees and external stakeholders using pre-made templates and AI-powered forms.
- Manage and track innovation projects, set milestones and deadlines, and measure progress from the platform’s robust dashboard.
- Generate custom reports and analytics to gain valuable insights into innovation processes, successes, and challenges, and securely store them in the cloud for easy access and sharing.
- Connect with a global community of innovators, experts, and partners to gain fresh perspectives, collaborate on projects, and exchange knowledge and best practices.
- Transfer data easily and seamlessly from one platform to another by integrating with other tools and services.
Why use Traction Technology?
Traction Technology is a cloud-based platform that helps companies quickly find and apply the latest, fast-growing technologies for their digital transformation projects. It’s a complete solution that supports you from start to finish—from discovering new tech to evaluating its fit and implementing it.
Features:
- Charting tools
- Customizable workflows
- Third-party integrations
- Free Version: Not available
- Pricing: Contact vendor for pricing (with a free 14-day trial)
- Platforms supported: Available as a web-based software
Why use SwitchPitch?
SwitchPitch allows large and small companies to collaborate. It gives organizations a dashboard to easily track tasks and interactions with startups they’re considering working with. SwitchPitch has tracking tools that help with their due diligence, making it simpler to pick the right startups to partner with.
Features:
- Startup search
- Custom CRM
- Auto-scouting
- Free Version: Not available
- Pricing: Contact vendor for pricing (with a free trial)
- Platforms supported: Available as a web-based software
Why use Wazoku?
Wazoku (previously known as Innocentive) is a cloud-based platform for managing ideas designed for midsize to large companies looking to innovate on a large scale. It allows users to create custom pages to submit ideas. Once submitted, these ideas can be voted on and followed through a process that uses gamification to make the journey from idea to innovation enjoyable and engaging.
Features:
- Gamification
- Reporting and analytics
- Collaboration tools
- Free Version: Not available
- Pricing: Custom pricing
- Platforms supported: Available as a mobile app (iOS and Android) or a web-based software
Why use Accept Mission?
Accept Mission is a platform designed for managing ideas and innovation, making teamwork more effective. It offers a clear, step-by-step method for gathering and choosing ideas from specific groups and carrying out innovation projects. With Accept Mission, clients can present challenges and discover the best solutions.
Features:
- Integrations
- Reporting and dashboard
- AI-powered innovation
- Free Version: Not available
- Pricing: Starts at €60 (~$64)/month, billed annually (with a free 30-day trial period)
- Platforms supported: Available as a mobile app (iOS and Android) or a web-based software
Why use Brightidea?
Brightidea offers a range of tools to support the innovation process, from developing and assessing ideas to incubation, monitoring, and reporting, ensuring the top ideas come out on top. It leverages crowdsourcing and crowdfunding to help companies efficiently manage large-scale innovation challenges.
Features:
- Microsites creation
- Whiteboarding
- Idea box
- Free Version: None
- Pricing: Starts at $59/month (with a free 30-day trial period)
- Platforms supported: Available as a web-based software
Why use Planview Platform?
Planview Platform helps enterprises integrate the business from ideas to effect, allowing them to accomplish things more quickly. The solution offers a platform to collect and manage ideas, bring them through an assessment process, and implement the best ones. It helps companies to innovate faster by streamlining the entire innovation lifecycle.
Features:
- Idea collection
- Stage-gate process management
- Portfolio management
- Free Version: Not available
- Pricing: Contact vendor for pricing (with a free 30-day trial)
- Platforms supported: Available as a web-based software
Why use Nosco?
Nosco assists organizations in digitizing their innovation initiatives, enhancing cross-organizational collaboration, and quickly turning their best ideas into reality. The platform finds and assesses opportunities for open innovation, defines the scope of the client’s project, including its focus and target audience, and organizes screening workshops, selection meetings, and brainstorming sessions.
Features:
- Idea campaigns
- Innovation challenge management
- Performance metrics and reporting
- Free Version: Not available
- Pricing: Contact vendor for pricing (with a free trial)
- Platforms supported: Available as a web-based software
Why use Qmarkets?
Qmarkets supports organizations in tackling various strategic business challenges such as employee innovation, continuous improvement, technology scouting, business transformation, and open innovation. The Q360 products from Qmarkets can be used independently or integrated as parts of a single platform.
Features:
- Idea management
- Trend management
- Technology scouting
- Free Version: None
- Pricing: Custom pricing
- Platforms supported: Available as a web-based software
Why use Ideanote?
Ideanote is designed to streamline the process of innovation by collecting ideas and ensuring the top ones advance. It helps users gather ideas for new products, run global innovation campaigns, push ideas through a tailored funnel, and measure the impact of these innovations. It’s a user-friendly platform for efficiently gathering, sharing, and evaluating ideas.
Features:
- Innovation Management
- Feedback Management
- Shark Tank Challenge
- Free Version: Available for up to 10 members
- Pricing: Starts at $49/month (with a free 5-day trial period)
- Platforms supported: Available as a mobile app (iOS and Android) or a web-based software
What is an Open Innovation Platform?
An open innovation platform is a collaborative platform that connects individuals, organizations, and businesses worldwide to collaborate on innovative projects. These platforms allow users to share ideas, resources, and expertise to solve complex problems and drive innovation.
Companies can use open innovation platforms for crowdsourcing ideas, collaborating with external partners, and accessing a global network of innovators. This open approach to innovation can help companies stay competitive, accelerate product development, promote continuous improvement, and bring new ideas to market faster.
Benefits
There are several benefits to using an open innovation platform, including:
- Engagement with larger audiences – Open innovation platforms allow companies to reach a larger audience, including customers, employees, and external partners. This approach can bring more diverse and innovative ideas.
- Increased pace of innovation – By tapping into a global network of innovators, companies can accelerate innovation and bring new ideas to market faster.
- Cost-effective – Open innovation platforms offer companies an affordable way to access external knowledge and resources without investing in expensive R&D processes.
- Access to diverse perspectives – Collaborating with individuals from different backgrounds, industries, and cultures can bring new perspectives and ideas.
- Improved problem-solving – Open innovation platforms allow for a diverse range of skills, knowledge, and expertise to be combined, leading to more effective problem-solving.
Key Features
When selecting an open innovation platform, companies should consider the following key features:
- Collaboration tools
- Data analysis and reporting tools
- Support for multiple project stages
- Scalability to accommodate growth
- Mobile accessibility
- Secure data handling and privacy settings
- Multilingual support
- Idea tracking and management
Choosing the Best Open Innovation Platform
Selecting your company’s open innovation platform depends on several factors, including your specific goals and needs. Some platforms may offer more robust collaboration tools, while others may have better data analysis capabilities. The following table concisely overviews the best open innovation platform, highlighting free versions, pricing, and mobile app availability to help with the decision-making process:
| Open Innovation Platform | Free Version | Paid Plan | Mobile App |
| SafetyCulture | Yes | $24/user/month* | Yes |
| Traction Technology | None | Contact vendor for pricing | None |
| SwitchPitch | None | Contact vendor for pricing | None |
| Wazoku | None | Custom pricing | Yes |
| Accept Mission | None | €60 (~$64)/month* | Yes |
| Brightidea | None | $59/month | None |
| Planview Platform | None | Contact vendor for pricing | None |
| Nosco | None | Contact vendor for pricing | None |
| Qmarkets | None | Custom pricing | None |
| Ideanote | Yes | $49/month* | Yes |
* billed annually
Rob Paredes