INDOT's Innovation and Process Improvement Division was established in 2019 to support the agency's core value of innovation.
Our Mission
We gather information and input from ALL levels of INDOT, focusing on solutions while fostering an environment of idea-sharing, testing and implementation. We will recognize and celebrate the contributions that move INDOT to the NextLevel.
Annual Innovation Competition
The Innovation division at INDOT hosts an annual competition that invites employees of all levels across the agency to submit ideas. All employees are encouraged to submit innovations that make their jobs safer, more efficient, and/or more effective. Submittals are vetted by councils of their peers in each district and central office. The top ideas from each district for that year are taken to a statewide summit for final voting. Once the winning ideas are decided, the innovation team begins the systems engineering process toward implementation.
Featured Innovation Winners
- Who can submit an idea?
Any INDOT employee regardless of tenure, position, or location can enter an idea in the portal.
- Who determines the annual winning ideas?
Ideas are vetted by innovation councils within each district and central office. A scoring rubric is utilized based on AASHTO Innovation Management criteria.
- What do winners receive?
Each person receives $500 individually and the unit, location or department they are a member of gets $500 for equipment etc.
- Is there a set amount of winners each year?
No. We have had a different number each year. It depends on the scoring from the leaders at our year end meeting. So far each year there has been a pretty obvious break in scores to determine which ideas win.
- What are the criteria that submitted ideas are evaluated on?
The categories are based on AASHTO criteria below. The weight of each category is shown as the percentage. Each category is rated on a 1-5 scale.
Development 40%
- Prototype is fully functional and yet to be piloted.
- Prototype demonstrated successfully in a pilot environment
- Technology has been deployed multiple times in an operational environment
- Technology is ready for full-scale adoption
- No Prototype idea is concept only
- Innovation is a Process no prototype possible.
- Ideally the innovation is successfully deployed in at least one unit, sub unit or district. The selection process may favor innovations that have advanced beyond the research stage, at least to the pilot deployment stage, and preferably into routine use.
- How ready is this innovation for implementation in an operational environment?
- What additional development is necessary to enable routine deployment of the innovation? What resources—such as technical specifications, training materials, and user guides—are already available to assist with the deployment effort?
- Has any other district or outside group used this innovation? Yes or No: If so, please list organization names and contacts. Please identify the source of this information
Payoff Potential 30%
- Improved Quality
- Improved Safety
- Improve Operation Perf
- Organizational Efficiency
- Shortened or Improved Process
- Payoff is defined as the combination of broad applicability and significant benefit or advantage over other current practice (baseline).
- How does the innovation meet customer or stakeholder needs in your State DOT or other organizations that have used it?
- What type and scale of benefits have your DOT realized from using this innovation? Include cost savings, safety improvements, transportation efficiency or effectiveness, environmental benefits, or any other advantages over other existing baseline practice. Please identify the following benefit types:
- Please describe the potential extent of implementation in terms of geography, organization type (including other branches of government and private industry) and size, or other relevant factors. How broadly might the technology be deployed?
Market Readiness 20%
- Exec Leadership Support
- Perf. Measurement
- Tech Improvement
- Legal
- Change in current SOP
- Other
- Cost
- Level of Effort
- Time
- The AII selection process will favor innovations that can be adopted with a reasonable amount of effort and cost, commensurate with the payoff potential.
- What specific actions would another organization need to take along each of the following dimensions to adopt this innovation?
- What is the estimated cost, effort, and length of time required to deploy the innovation in another organization?
- To what extent should the implementation of this innovation require the involvement of third parties, including vendors, contractors, and consultants? If so, please describe. List the type of expertise required for implementation.