!nnovateFest. Two weeks full of activities that bring insights, inspiration and encouragement centered around one key theme: innovation. Innovation is part of the Avanade DNA. I took part in our annual Avanade !nnovateFest and just like last year, it left me and my team motivated to challenge ourselves to innovate.

!nnovateFest made digital

Creating a large event during a pandemic? Yes, we did so at Avanade. One of digital nature, of course. !nnovateFest is now a digital event hosted in a custom made PowerApp built by our global innovation team. For two weeks, this digital event - open to all Avanade colleagues - took me through a series of industry-themed videos and podcasts about industry innovation trends. To get hands-on experience in order to tackle our clients' challenges and learn the tools for bringing innovative ideas to life. From the latest developments in retail, to examples of fin tech companies delivering a superb customer experience.

I was really inspired by our innovative work in healthcare over the last year and with nonprofit organizations which are helping people around the world. The content featured industry experts from Avanade, as well as guests from Microsoft, our clients, and startups to bring a well-rounded perspective on each industry.

Information and challenges on-demand

The !nnovateFest app was built internally by our Global Innovation Team using the Microsoft PowerPlatform, which brings together PowerApps, PowerBI and Power Automate. It was cool to see how we can use these products together to create a fun, interactive learning experience. The !nnovateFest app released new content every day, so I could watch it on-demand daily. Or save a few days of content and watch it in one go at the end of the week. For the industries that I am passionate about I could also take in-depth training to deepen my knowledge.

A healthy dose of competition

One thing is for sure. I wanted to watch all the available content. Besides learning about interesting industry trends and the innovative work we’re doing, I was also incentivized to complete all activities like watching videos, listening to podcasts and completing quizzes. Points were to be earned with each of the activities. And where there’s points, there’s prizes! Following this year’s Olympics theme, a spot on the medal stand, badges and prizes were at stake.

Next up – Avanade’s Global Innovation Contest

Joining !InnovateFest helped turbo-charge my knowledge about industry trends and innovation opportunities. But !nnovateFest is not just a stand-alone event. Our mission to be the leading digital innovator requires us to keep creating opportunities and challenges. Next up is our Global Innovation Contest where Avanade teams around the globe join forces to co-innovate with our clients. This year this event will be hosted in the virtual space, but if you’re interested to learn how we organized these pre-covid click here to read about my colleagues Jason’s experience. Though I will not be participating myself, I am curious to learn what solutions they come up with.

Re-imagine, to accelerate what’s next

Will you join us to accelerate retail or optimize manufacturing? Re-imagine banking, healthcare or nonprofit? Or, will you be bringing your passion to solve a future-of-work challenge? Take your shot at a place on the medal stand and innovate!