KEY

_________________________________________________________________________
UNIT 1
INNOVATION
___________________________________________

UNIT 1

INNOVATION
SECTION 1

READING TIME

● Before Reading

Let’s discuss (Answers may vary)

1. Have a look at these people, do you recognize them?

a.Mark Zuckerberg/b.Albert Einstein/c.Steve Jobs/
d.Walt disney/e.Salvador Dalí
2. Do they have any characteristic in common?
They developed creative and revolutionary ideas/They made key changes
in their areas/They had original ideas/ They are considered leaders in their
fields.

a. b.

c. d. e.

3. What ideas do these images make you think of?

They make me think of new/different ideas. For example, in
a.leaders/b.changes/c. and d. new solutions/ideas
4. Are they related to the people from activity 1? Why (not)?

9
 Yes, they are. Because the people in activity 2 proposed
original/new/different /creative ideas.

a. b.

c. d.

You can use these phrases to express your ideas. (Use these phrases to
answer the questions above)

I suspect that….
I’m fairly certain that …
It’s my opinion that…….
Perhaps it’s….
It looks like…..

5. Read the title of the following text. How can you connect it with the men
shown in activity 1?
The title “How to use your creativity to boost your career” is related to the
men in act. 1 because they had original ideas and worked on innovations.

● While reading

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1. Read the text quickly to check if any of the ideas you mentioned in the previous
exercises are present in this text. (Answer may vary)
2. What is the relationship between the title and the subtitles?
The subtitles show actions/strategies to develop “creativity” mentioned in the title.
3. Read the introduction and underline the answer to these questions
a. How can you boost your career opportunities and get success in your business?
If you are a creative thinker, solve problems easily and enjoy thinking laterally, you
can boost your career opportunities
b. What effect can creative individuals have on other people?
Creative individuals can be a breath of fresh air, inspiring others to “think outside
the box”
c. How can you convince possible employers that you are creative?
We can prepare some examples of how our creative thinking provided the
company with a great solution to a problem, backing them up with solid evidence.
4. Read the rest of the text and in each section underline the idea/s that explain/s
each subtitle.
5. Correct these sentences according to the information provided in the text

a. Creative thinkers have the same possibilities to succeed in different environments

as any other person.

a. Creative thinkers have the same possibilities to succeed in different environments

as any other person.
They have more possibilities.
b. It is not always useful to get everything ready before an interview, improvisation is
necessary.
There are workshops and courses which help you to improve your creativity
for these situations.
c. Your creativity will be quite profitable in your area of expertise.
Creativity can be useful in all areas.
d. Creativity and innovation cannot be taught, it is something innate.
There are different possibilities for creativity to be taught.
e. Team meetings tend to be quite useless to coach your mates in creativity.
Meetings are essential to coach your mates.

READING

How to use your creativity to boost your career.

Are you creative at work? No, we’re not asking if you’re a dab hand and
watercolour – we mean are you a creative thinker? Do you problem-solve easily
and enjoy thinking laterally? If so, you could be boosting your career opportunities,
and contributing to the success of your business. ⇒ (a)
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Companies that think and operate creatively tend to do better than those with little
or no imagination - and the same is true of individuals. A creative take on a situation
or a project can be a breath of fresh air, inspiring others to ‘think outside the box’. ⇒
(b) Creative people, therefore, hold a huge amount of power if they can exploit it
to its full potential.

Creativity fuels innovation, so demonstrating you’ve had this impact in your role can
really impress potential employers and boost your career opportunities. Before you
start work on your CV or head off to an interview, you might want to take a few
moments to prepare some examples of how your creative thinking provided your
company with a great solution to a problem. Be certain to back them up with solid
evidence, ⇒ (c) so you can prove you’ve also got the qualities to deliver tangible
results. It’s no good having lots of creative flair and good ideas if they don’t work in
reality – you need to communicate to your potential employer that you spotted an
opportunity, understood why it would be beneficial to all concerned and then
acted on your instinct to bring about change and success.

Use creative thinking to maximise opportunities

Is there a sense of frustration within your team or organisation about a particular

project or process? If so, it could be the ideal opportunity to exercise your creative
thinking. Bring together an inter-disciplinary team to collaborate on streamlining and
improving the situation, then present your findings to the people who can make it
happen. Such an exchange of knowledge and ideas can shape future direction
and being involved in innovation is a sure-fire way to boost your career, on paper
and in practice.

Invest in ideas generation

If you have a budget for team-building in your current role, why not consider
activities focused on getting employees to step away from their usual way of
thinking, going beyond their comfort zone and seeing things from a different
perspective? If you don’t control a budget, why not suggest such an endeavour to
your line manager? There are plenty of organisations that specialise in innovation
workshops and training - such as arts institutions and theatre companies – and could
result in increased employee engagement, corporate growth and driving business
success. Great for flexing your creative muscles and great for your CV.

Make your workplace culture more creative

Something as simple as a less formal approach to meetings and presentations can

work wonders in encouraging creative thinking. We’ve all heard of writer’s block,
but it’s not just wordsmiths who can struggle to find creative inspiration. If team
meetings always take the same dull format, why not mix things up with a quick new
task to get everyone thinking more freely? If annual reports or presentations send
the entire audience to sleep, why not look at ways of better engaging with them,

12
perhaps through amusing visuals, off-the wall facts or short break-out sessions to get
everyone talking and thinking? Facilitating change in this way will demonstrate to
potential employers your ability to inspire and motivate others, which in turn adds
value to their business and boosts your employability.

Adapted for pedagogical purposes and retrieved from:

https://www.progressiverecruitment.com/en-be/blog/2015/12/how-to-use-your-
creativity-to-boost-your-career/

Glossary:
dab hand: someone who is very good at a particular activity
watercolour: paint mixed with water

● After reading

What do you think? (Answer may vary)

In groups, decide which of the actions to show creativity mentioned in the text could
have been used by the well-known people from the photos. You can infer this
through their famous inventions and works. Share your views with the rest of the class.

More useful expressions

We perceive that……
We’re quite sure that……
According to their performance/work, they could…..

RECALLING TIME

Have a look at these sentences taken from the text. What do the phrases in bold
type have in common?

a- Creativity fuels innovation, so demonstrating you’ve had this impact in your role
can really impress potential employers and boost your career opportunities

b- Before you start work on your CV or head off to an interview, you might want to
take a few moments to prepare some examples of how your creative thinking
provided your company with a great solution to a problem.

c- If so, it could be the ideal opportunity to exercise your creative thinking.

13
d- Facilitating change in this way will demonstrate to potential employers your
ability to inspire and motivate others, which in turn adds value to their business and
boosts your employability.

Modal Verbs
These phrases contain a modal verb and a main verb. When do we usually use
modal verbs?

As you may remember, we often use modal verbs when we want to express an
opinion or attitude about a fact. All modal verbs are about the speaker’s or
writer’s point of view.
In sentences a, b and c from the box above, can, might and could to
express POSSIBILITY
Another modal verb to express the same is may
The employees may collect an extra bonus.

PREVIOUS KNOWLEDGE
What about these sentences? Which ideas do they express?

1- OBLIGATION a- Your boss can fulfill different activities at the same

time.

2- PERMISSION b- We should pay more attention to details.

3- PROMISE c- Your mates have to write the latest report.

4- ADVICE d- We will increase their salaries

5- ABILITY e- The employees could work less hours.

1…c… / 2…e……. / 3… d……. / 4…b…… / 5…a…….

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 TO WORK ON YOUR OWN

A. Fill in the blanks of these mini dialogues with the correct modal. The intended
meaning is given in the parenthesis.
After filling in the blanks, think of which action of innovation each dialogue
represents. (Reading A)

1 A: Do you think you______can_________________complete all the activities and

bring the papers for that meeting? (ability) These are quite interesting and
challenging tasks, but we _____can______ (possibility) take a long time to solve
them.
B: I have no choice. I_________have to_________________do them, I hold all the
important papers to be discussed (obligation)

ACTION OF INNOVATION: ____make you workplace culture more creative_

2 A: John, don’t worry I________will______________help you with all this new stuff.
(promise)
B: Thank you. Are you sure you ________can__________do it? (possibility).
A: Absolutely! We _____should_____ think of different possible actions to tackle this
as soon as possible. (advice)

ACTION OF INNOVATION: ___use creative thinking to maximise opportunities_

3 A: Yes, because you _______should_________work with me and other workmates

to exchange imaginative ideas about how to deal with these new tasks. (advice)
B. Ah ok, thank you. Do you think our boss__________may__________be present in
these meetings too? (possibility)
A: I think so. Don’t you remember that he has hired a team of creative experts to
boost our innovative actions?

ACTION OF INNOVATION: _______invest in ideas generation_

B- Complete the following ideas related to work environments using the

corresponding modal according to the intended meaning written at the end of
the sentence.

1- All the employers are reading these CVs because…have to…………(obligation)

2- This office is too dark, we…………………should…………………………(advice)
3- The new employee was too sorry for his late arrival, he said
……will………(promise)
4- The rules in this company are very flexible, the
employees……could……(permission)
5- According to the results of the latest research, many
employers……can……(ability)

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 SPEAKING TIME

Elevator Pitch - an innovative strategy to give a successful speech.

We are all aware of the importance of transmitting any message in a successful

way, mainly in the work environment. When a professional wants to let the others
know about his/her idea, product, innovation or any other type of message it is
essential s/he does it properly. Currently, many companies ask their employees to
prepare short but effective presentations, called elevator pitches, to upload them
to the company’s social media for all the others to watch and listen to their mates'
proposals.

The elevator pitch is the perfect example of an innovative action to develop, in

just a few minutes, a strategy that will help your interlocutor to discover a little
more about you or your project.
In a world where everything is moving faster and faster, you have to adapt. 30-
page PowerPoint presentations don’t sell anymore, and potential clients don’t
have that much time to offer you. A concept that interests them must be
summarized in a clear and persuasive argument in just a few minutes. Here, we
show you how.

Elevator pitch: what is it?

The elevator pitch, also called a sales speech in English. The principle is simple. You
are an entrepreneur, a salesman or simply a project carrier and you want to
convince a high-ranking person to invest in it.

A pitch is a presentation, always oral, of a project or an idea intended to convince

an interlocutor whose validation will generally come to weigh in the balance.

Elevator pitch is an English expression. It refers to a short presentation of a project to

a financier or a superior, in order to get their attention and approval. The important
point of this concept is that the speech must be concise. It should not exceed the
time needed for an elevator ride.

Elevator Pitch: How to organize it?

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The structure of an elevator pitch is quite easy to remember, then you just have to
practice to make a good presentation pitch.

You can be a salesperson or just somebody that really needs to convince people to
believe in your projects (recruiters, bosses, team), that sales speech is for you.

These pitches have a very simple format. They generally consist of four steps.

1- The speaker introduces the CONTEXT

2- The speaker introduces the PROBLEM
3- The speaker provides a possible SOLUTION
4- The speaker talks about the ADVANTAGES of his/her proposal.

A. Now, read this example structure of a typical elevator pitch (1-7). Can you
spot the different steps in the structure? Write the numbers in the boxes
below.

CONTEXT PROBLEM SOLUTION ADVANTAGES

1 2-3 4-5 6-7

Source: https://blog.waalaxy.com/en/elevator-pitch-example/

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 VIDEO TIME

Let’s watch this video about the different steps of an elevator pitch and notice the
expressions used by the narrator in each part of the pitch.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z3gwFIvE87Y

A. Watch the video again and decide which of these expressions and/or
connectors is used to introduce the different parts of a typical elevator
pitch. Careful! One is not provided by the speaker in the video.

SO THAT - BUT- ACCORDING TO - THEREFORE

Context: _ACCORDING TO_ the latest medical research, thanks to new radiation
therapies, patients with neck cancer have managed to survive.
Problem: _____BUT_________ Patients with neck cancer often develop swallowing
problems after treatment
Solution: _THEREFORE,_____ with your research you can help those patients by
training their mouths, tongue and throat muscles.
Advantage: __SO THAT____ these patients can enjoy their meal again.

👉Have a look at the appendix with the links to get more ideas about how to
make pitches (page 35)

SECTION 2
VIRTUAL

TASK: Getting ready to prepare your elevator pitch

Imagine you are the writer of this article, and you need to convince an editor to
publish it in an important best-selling magazine.

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 1. Let’s analyze how to get information from a text to produce the pitch you
would use to convince him/her.

Why Innovation Isn’t Everyone’s Job

I hear it far too often: innovation should be part of everyone’s job. To that point,
when I searched “innovation isn’t everyone’s job,” Google returned only four results.
All of them directed to the same article, which made the point that while innovation
isn’t everyone’s job, it should be. Executives are constantly lamenting that new ideas
only come out of “the labs” or “Product” when, in fact, the company is made up of
thousands of people with great ideas. I understand why this can seem foolhardy or
disheartening. But in the same way that I don’t want just anyone fixing my plumbing
or representing me in court, I don’t want just anyone being responsible for
innovation. CONTEXT
Most people acknowledge that innovation is a process. We even continue to hire
dedicated Innovation teams. Yet we still try to make innovation everyone’s job.
There are countless articles telling us why to do so and how to do it.
PROBLEM So, before I get to my advice for building a culture of innovation and
capturing ideas from outside your Product and Insights teams, I want to highlight five
reasons why we should stop trying to make innovation part of everyone’s job.
SOLUTION

It devalues the process and the role of your Innovation function. The more we
propagate the idea that anyone can innovate, the less we value a formal
innovation process. Without that process, there’s no way to ensure that your efforts
will be fruitful or repeatable. While the idea of a Eureka moment may be inspiring,
companies can’t survive off them. Innovation needs to be about consistently
generating solutions in a way that advances the organization’s defined strategic
objectives. Just because there’s a great idea, it doesn’t mean your business is the
right team to pursue it.

It negatively impacts morale. Having a great idea that makes the company a ton
of money sounds wonderful. Unfortunately, that’s far from the norm. Instead, I often
see companies set up a digital platform for employees to submit ideas. There’s an
initial wave of excitement, employees submit tons of ideas, the company realizes it
has no way of sorting through or evaluating so many ideas, and nothing happens.
After months of hearing nothing, employees get discouraged and go back to their
day jobs. They take away a single learning — the company’s passion for innovation
is nothing more than lip service. While there are ways to get a broader group of
employees involved in innovation, traditional idea banks can be outright harmful to
your innovation culture if not implemented carefully.

19
It over-emphasizes product innovation. When companies try to get everyone
involved in innovation, they often skip the crucial step of explaining the different
kinds of innovation. Things like business model innovation and process innovation are
overlooked while employees work to come up with new features, products, and
services. While product innovation is important, it’s also the most common. It’s rarely
what sets the most successful companies apart, and it’s generally what the
company is already well-equipped to handle. If the goal is to get more people
involved in innovation, it’s important to have an organized way of identifying how
their skills and ideas can translate into different forms of innovation.

It decentralizes crucial learnings. Like any good business function, innovation needs
to be managed. When innovation becomes part of everyone’s job, it’s difficult to
keep track of what’s happening. Similar work may be happening on different teams,
and there is limited opportunity to learn from the mistakes and research of others.
While it’s possible to broaden the scope of who’s involved in innovation efforts, it
takes a full system of governance, processes, metrics, and tools to ensure that that
new breadth is productive.

It drains resources. Making innovation part of everyone’s job means forcing

everyone to take on a second day job. For some, the challenge will be exciting and
energizing. For others, it will be draining. Those who end up reluctantly participating
— or even those who are willing but lack the right skills — will invariably produce
output that isn’t very good. At scale, the resources spent on failed innovations —
particularly if there is no system in place to capture learnings — can add up quickly.
And having too many innovation projects at one time can spread companies too
thin, making it hard to focus great people and limited resources on the big initiatives
that will really move the needle. Companies that excel at innovation use their limited
resources more effectively. They devote the bulk of their time and money to the
most promising projects. Then they earmark remaining funds for trendspotting and
primary customer research, or they pay to bring in outside experts with varying
viewpoints.

Building a culture of innovation is a worthy pursuit CONTEXT. But taking the

next step and making everyone an innovator is a step that may ultimately cause
more harm than good. PROBLEM Instead, it’s important to build a centralized
structure for managing innovation and to empower members of your Innovation
team to be champions. Train them to reach out to other employees to elicit ideas
that reflect management’s strategic goals. Teach them how to act as shepherds for
employees who want to participate in targeted innovation challenges.
SOLUTION Your trained innovators and your large workforce are both assets that you
can leverage. ADVANTAGE But that doesn’t mean that everyone needs to
be doing the same thing.

Adapted for pedagogical purposes. Retrieved from:

20
https://medium.com/new-markets-insights/why-innovation-isnt-everyone-s-job-
69c9e0afc48f

2. Complete these ideas

a. Innovation shouldn’t be part of everybody’s …job….

b. Every sector could devote to a specific aspect so…they earmark
remaining funds for trendspotting and primary customer research, or
they pay to bring in outside experts with varying viewpoints....
c. Some people’s morals may be affected because…the company’s
passion for innovation is nothing more than lip service..…
d. Different forms of innovation have to…be explained by companies....
e. The challenge of innovation will be exciting if…making it part of
everyone’s job means forcing everyone to take on a second day
job….

FORUM: After reading

Can anybody innovate? Why (not)?

1. Read the article again and leave your contribution in the Forum thread in
which you will have to stand your point about the advantages or
disadvantages of forcing everybody in the company to be innovative.

2. Mention one idea of this writer you agree or don’t agree with. Account for
your answer with information from the text.

Remember that you are expected to comment on your classmates’

contributions in the forum thread using the expressions of participating in a debate,
agreeing and/or disagreeing. You may want to consult them at the end of this unit.
(Page 28)

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 SPEAKING TIME (Answer may vary)

Look at this headline and image

Facebook Has an Innovation Problem

FARHAD MANJOO
Feb. 10, 2022

Credit by New York Times

a. What’s your opinion about the idea stated in the title, why is this social media
facing an innovation problem? Can any of the following facts be the reason?

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 Possible facts OUT OF DATE COMPETITION
CONTENT

TIK TOK
UNORIGINAL VIDEOS STOCK VALUE MARKET

b. Visit the following site and read the complete article to check if your ideas are
similar to the ones expressed in the first five paragraphs from the original article.
As you read, take down notes about the reasons for lack of innovation in
Facebook.

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/10/opinion/facebook-stock-meta-
innovation.html

c. Do you think this is happening on other social media?

d. Mention the differences and the similarities between the article and your ideas.

e. Which parts of the article can be used for the different parts of a pitch (context,
problem, solution, and advantages) in which you may have to speak about
Facebook reality.

HANDS-ON PRACTICE

Describe the context for a possible pitch that derives from the article “Facebook has
an innovation problem” you can also include ideas from the different readings.

CONTEXT:

Useful phrases to use in the first step of your pitch

- Introduce yourself, greet and tell your name.

Good ………. My name is………
- Provide a summary of what you do.
I work in …….
- Explain what you want.
I have several (patients/clients/…) with …….
There are certain cases of ……

23
 VIDEO TIME: MFORM (Link will be sent by your teacher via MIeL)

Watch this video and decide if these ideas about innovation are mentioned in it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tnigsq8ppOo

Talking Point for next class (Answer may vary)

Innovation in your future professional life.

According to the Department that your program belongs to, answer this question:
Which innovation strategies can be most frequently applied in your future
profession? Can you provide an example?

Department Innovation Example

Strategies

Political
Science

Engineering

Humanity

Health

Economics

DEBATE

Stand your point, agree and/or disagree with others.

24
These useful phrases for the different steps of a debate can help you to leave your
contributions in the forum threads from now on.

25
SECTION 3
LITERATURE
26
 BRAVE NEW WORLD. Chapter 1

AN INNOVATIVE OR A PERFECT WORLD?

(Answers may vary)

Have a look at this image
a. Who can you see in the picture?
b. What calls your attention?
c. Does this look like a perfect world? Why (not)?
d. Do you think there is much innovation in this picture? Why (not)?
e.

GROUP WORK

In groups, think and give your opinions on these ideas related to “A Perfect World”
Do you agree or not? Why?

a. Human beings are worried about their freedom of thought, governments

have to attempt to control our minds.
b. Science and technology will solve all our problems.
c. Many times, being isolated as a human being is positive.
d. Happiness is the main goal of life.
e. Dating should be fun and carefree.
f. Being a consumer is a very important aspect of our life.

Use these phrases to express your opinions:

What we are more concerned with is…

We strongly believe that…
In this sort of situation…
Bearing in mind…

27
 Aldous Huxley, in full Aldous Leonard Huxley, (born July 26, 1894, Godalming,
Surrey, England—died November 22, 1963, Los Angeles, California, U.S.), English
novelist and critic gifted with an acute and far-ranging intelligence whose works are
notable for their wit and pessimistic satire. One of his most prominent novels is Brave
New World (BNW) which is a dystopian novel. Dystopian novels imagine that
“progress” might have terrible results. In other words, striving for utopia might result
in horrific dystopia.

LET'S DISCUSS

Dystopian Novels

a. Have you ever seen or read any of these novels?

b. Which ones(s)?
c. Did you like it/them? Why (not)?

28
 PAIR WORK

1. After reading this information and looking at these images, what do you think
BNW could be about? Which topics do you think this novel will deal with? You
can choose the combination of topics you want. Account for your choices.

o Morality
o Society
o Politics
o Ecology
o Economy
o Religion
o Technology
o Feminism
2. Which of these topics do you associate with the different Departments from
UNLaM?

HEALTH HUMANITY

LAW ENGINEERING
ECONOMICS

GROUP WORK

1. Group with the students who are taking programmes from the Department
you belong to.
Read this name and motto

NAME OF THE CENTRE: CENTRAL LONDON HATCHERY AND CONDITIONING CENTRE

MOTTO: COMMUNITY, IDENTITY AND STABILITY

2. Guess if these sentences are related to this centre or not.

a. The centre is related to people’s health.

b. The scientists work for the improvement of society.
c. Equality is one of the main goals of this organization.
d. All the groups are represented in this organization.

29
 e. The heads of the centre are extremely powerful people.

3. Let’s read the first chapter of the novel and check if your previous ideas are
right or not. Account for your answers.

These phrases can help you to express your ideas:

To start with…,
We should mention…,
What’s more…,
That raises the problem of…,
It seems as if…

4. In this chapter, the Director shows how people are grouped according to their
characteristics.
Which of these words do you associate with ALPHAS, BETAS, GAMMAS, DELTAS and
EPSILONS? Why?

clever/ bosses/narrow-minded/trained/obedient/workers/ servants

SECTION 4
VIRTUAL
LITERATURE
BRAVE NEW WORLD. Chapters 1 - 4

AN INNOVATIVE OR A PERFECT WORLD?

MFORM (Link will be sent by your teacher via MIeL)

● Read chapters 2 to 4 from BNW and choose the correct option.

Talking Point for next class

● Find aspects of innovation mentioned in the unit present in Chapters 1- 4

from the novel BNW.

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APPENDIX

● https://youtu.be/pnzbdOI9Bw0
● https://youtu.be/G6BVhuBvzQY
● https://youtu.be/r3It-abzU6s
● https://youtu.be/3RgUR2nVcjs
● https://www.semrush.com/blog/creating-a-pitch-
deck/?kw=&cmp=LM_SRCH_DSA_Blog_EN&label=dsa_pagefeed&Networ
k=g&Device=c&utm_content=622526975908&kwid=dsa-
1753200734093&cmpid=18364824154&agpid=146618538212&BU=Core&ex
tid=60163102506&adpos=&gclid=Cj0KCQjwn9CgBhDjARIsAD15h0AAXDz1
HVRRLlDQzULedJ9fiMV56QUuNMAu0LVl_VsoID-
UWdJU3c4aAvKgEALw_wcB

31