In summary:
- The Exchange event brought together senior leaders from public, private, and defence sectors to champion open innovation and collaborative culture for shared progress.
- Open innovation is vital for organisational transformation, enabling partnerships and external expertise, with culture as the cornerstone of success.
- Key discussions highlighted leadership commitment, psychological safety, and structured processes as essential enablers for a thriving innovation ecosystem.
Convening leaders for collective progress
On November 20th, London played host to the 2nd Edition of The Exchange – an exclusive, invite-only gathering of senior leaders and innovation champions from across sectors.
The event, curated by Sopra Steria Next, was designed to break down silos and foster a vibrant culture of open innovation. It was inspiring to see such a diverse group exchange ideas and identify opportunities to drive collective progress; with public, private and defence sector leaders exploring the challenge of how to build an innovation culture.
Why open innovation culture matters
Open innovation is more than a buzzword - it’s a strategic imperative. In today’s rapidly evolving landscape, organisations can no longer rely solely on internal resources. Instead, they must look beyond their boundaries, leveraging the knowledge, capabilities, and expertise of ecosystem partners – whether hyperscalers, industry, academia, or startups – to drive meaningful transformation.
The 2025 Open Innovation Report, launched at the first edition of The Exchange in April, highlighted a crucial insight: while fostering an innovative and entrepreneurial culture is a top reason for engaging in open innovation, it remains one of the biggest barriers to adoption. Yet, the opportunity is immense – organisations that actively promote a culture of innovation are 3.5 times more likely to outperform their peers (McKinsey, 2022).
What is open innovation culture?
At its core, open innovation culture is about creating an environment where new ideas are encouraged, collaboration is the norm, and learning is continuous. It’s not just about the “what” of innovation, but the “how” – the behaviours, mindsets, and enablers that make innovation possible.
As Jonti Dalal-Small, Behavioural Science Lead at Sopra Steria Next, explained in his keynote, “Culture is the engrained patterns of behaviour that are encouraged, discouraged, or permitted over time. For a ‘culture of innovation,’ it needs to be about how we learn, evolve, and create something new or improve what already exists.”
Exploring the three themes: outcomes, behaviours, enablers
The heart of this edition of The Exchange were three critical themes – outcomes, behaviours, and enablers – anchored by Jonti’s keynote, enriched by panel discussions and explored in roundtable sessions.
1. Outcomes: defining success in open innovation
Participants discussed how successful open innovation must be aligned to wider organisational goals or strategic outcomes. It’s not just about launching new products or services, but about creating lasting value through those innovations.
This was made clear in the panel discussion. Representing NATO DIANA, Heather Buisman who implements the Alliance’s Accelerator Programme, made clear that NATO does not innovate for the sake of innovation but to deliver critical security capabilities.
2. Behaviours: the human side of innovation
Culture is ultimately about people. The session delved into the behaviours that underpin a thriving innovation culture – curiosity, openness, psychological safety, and a willingness to experiment and learn from failure.
Panellist Suzanne Davies leads the innovation team at the Ministry of Justice. She spoke about how the active participation of colleagues in the annual, government-wide ‘One Big Thing’ initiative helps people to collaborate and act in new ways that build confidence and psychological safety.
3. Enablers: creating the right environment
Finally, the discussion turned to the enablers that make open innovation possible – leadership commitment, clear governance, structured processes, and the right tools and incentives. The roundtables surfaced practical strategies for overcoming barriers, such as embedding innovation into performance metrics, investing in capability-building, and fostering networks that span organisational boundaries.
Speaking on the panel, Dr Angela MacOscar, Head of Innovation, Northumbria Water described the annual Innovation Festival that the company has run for over 10 years. This weeklong event not only frees people up – giving them time, space and structure to be creative – but also sends a powerful cultural message that innovation is prioritised.
More than just a discussion
Feedback from attendees was overwhelmingly positive…
"The Exchange was more than just a discussion – it was a genuine meeting of minds, with leaders from every sector openly sharing ideas and challenges. I left feeling inspired and equipped to start to improve the culture of innovation in my own organisation."
“Jonti’s keynote was a real highlight. His insights into the behavioural science behind innovation culture were both thought-provoking and practical. It set the tone for honest conversations and gave us actionable strategies to foster creativity and collaboration”
“Hearing real-world examples and diverse perspectives helped translate theory into practice. It was invaluable to learn how other organisations are tackling similar challenges and to walk away with fresh ideas I can apply in my own work."
As Tom Staley, UK Innovation Lead for Sopra Steria Next, noted, “As convenors, we believe conversations like this are essential – they’re where shared challenges become the basis for collective progress. We’re facilitating knowledge exchange while simultaneously building a community of change-makers to explore how we can build the right environments for innovation to thrive.”
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Do you want to be a part of the next cohort to The Exchange?
Stay tuned for updates on the next event, where we’ll continue to explore the frontiers of open innovation. If you’re an innovation or transformation leader interested in joining the conversation, reach out to Tom Staley at thomas.staley@soprasteria.com.
For more insights and highlights from the first event, check out the write-up here: Innovating Together: Highlights from our Open Innovation Roundtable.
And for those interested in a deeper dive, our 2025 Open Innovation Report offers a comprehensive overview of the state of open innovation and practical guidance for organisations at every stage of their journey.