The Four Currents of a Culture of Innovation
by Mitch Ditkoff
I've been doing a lot of thinking these days about "culture of innovation" - trying to get down to the root of what the heck it's all about.
It's easy to wax poetic about the topic (and a lot of people do), but too much of the stuff I've been reading sounds like bad advertising copy for motherhood and apple pie.
So, at the risk of oversimplifying the whole thing, here's my blogospheric whack at boiling the mumbo jumbo down to the core.
If you want to create a sustainable culture of innovation, you will need to understand that there are always four forces at work - four currents that are always interacting with each other:
TOP DOWN: Although the "revolution" never starts with the King, it is imperative that top leadership plays their "culture-enhancing role" far more than they currently do.
The people in the trenches need to know that the head honchos not only care about innovation, but are willing to do whatever it takes to establish a company culture conducive to it.
I'm not advocating phony pep talks from the C-Suite. I'm advocating that senior leaders actually lead the effort. I'm advocating that all those wonderful people with three letter acronyms after their name walk the innovation talk... stir the soup... shake and bake... and do everything they can do to martial company resources in whatever way is necessary to transform "business as usual" to "I love this place and I can't wait to get to work." Yes, it's possible.
BOTTOM UP: If an organization wants to innovate, it will need to get everyone into the act. Not just senior leaders. Not just R&D. Everyone. Ideas - the fuzzy front end of innovation - can come from anywhere, anytime. When an organization really GETS this and finds new ways to tap the collective brainpower of the workforce, the culture starts changing for the better. People become more proactive. More energized. More passionate about their work.
Indeed, it could easily be said that the democratization of the workplace is one of the most important social movements of the 21st century. As power and decision-making trickle down, creative output ratchets up. People become self-organizing, self-directed and, on a really good day, selflessly committed to being a force for positive change.
OUTSIDE IN: Establishing a culture of innovation is only meaningful if the fruits of the effort yield the kind of results that are valued by your customers. Otherwise, the effort to "change the culture" will turn into some kind of weird, solipsistic ritual that will have no impact on the people you are serving.
Do you know who your customers are? Do you know what they want? Do you have any kind of process in place to track changing market conditions, demographics, and emerging trends? Have you figured out how to get real feedback and input from your customers - how to include them in your ideation process?
INSIDE OUT: Ah... now we're really getting down to it. If you want a culture of innovation, you will need to find a way to unleash the passion, fascination, and inspiration of your workforce.
Not by dangling carrots and sticks (read Dan Pink's new book, Drive, if you doubt me), but by finding a way to activate the innate desire for meaning, enjoyment, and success that is buried deep within the bones of every single person who shows up for work day after day.
Organizations don't innovate. People do.
If you can find a way to unlock the primal mojo of your workforce, you won't need to manage as much as you do. You won't need to rely so heavily on incentive plans, performance reviews, pep talks, frowns, and punishment.
That stuff only exists because your workforce is disengaged.
But when people are on fire with purpose, in touch with their own authentic desire to create, a culture of innovation will naturally evolve.
A big thank you to Val Vadeboncoeur, Tim Moore, Barry Gruenberg, Paul Roth, and Michael Pergola for their humongous collaboration, insight, creativity, and perseverance on this topic.
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Mitch Ditkoff is the Co-Founder and President of Idea Champions and the author of "Awake at the Wheel", as well as the very popular Heart of Innovation blog.
I've been doing a lot of thinking these days about "culture of innovation" - trying to get down to the root of what the heck it's all about.It's easy to wax poetic about the topic (and a lot of people do), but too much of the stuff I've been reading sounds like bad advertising copy for motherhood and apple pie.
So, at the risk of oversimplifying the whole thing, here's my blogospheric whack at boiling the mumbo jumbo down to the core.
If you want to create a sustainable culture of innovation, you will need to understand that there are always four forces at work - four currents that are always interacting with each other:
- Top Down
- Bottom Up
- Outside In
- Inside Out
TOP DOWN: Although the "revolution" never starts with the King, it is imperative that top leadership plays their "culture-enhancing role" far more than they currently do.
The people in the trenches need to know that the head honchos not only care about innovation, but are willing to do whatever it takes to establish a company culture conducive to it.
I'm not advocating phony pep talks from the C-Suite. I'm advocating that senior leaders actually lead the effort. I'm advocating that all those wonderful people with three letter acronyms after their name walk the innovation talk... stir the soup... shake and bake... and do everything they can do to martial company resources in whatever way is necessary to transform "business as usual" to "I love this place and I can't wait to get to work." Yes, it's possible.
BOTTOM UP: If an organization wants to innovate, it will need to get everyone into the act. Not just senior leaders. Not just R&D. Everyone. Ideas - the fuzzy front end of innovation - can come from anywhere, anytime. When an organization really GETS this and finds new ways to tap the collective brainpower of the workforce, the culture starts changing for the better. People become more proactive. More energized. More passionate about their work.
Indeed, it could easily be said that the democratization of the workplace is one of the most important social movements of the 21st century. As power and decision-making trickle down, creative output ratchets up. People become self-organizing, self-directed and, on a really good day, selflessly committed to being a force for positive change.
OUTSIDE IN: Establishing a culture of innovation is only meaningful if the fruits of the effort yield the kind of results that are valued by your customers. Otherwise, the effort to "change the culture" will turn into some kind of weird, solipsistic ritual that will have no impact on the people you are serving.
Do you know who your customers are? Do you know what they want? Do you have any kind of process in place to track changing market conditions, demographics, and emerging trends? Have you figured out how to get real feedback and input from your customers - how to include them in your ideation process?
INSIDE OUT: Ah... now we're really getting down to it. If you want a culture of innovation, you will need to find a way to unleash the passion, fascination, and inspiration of your workforce.
Not by dangling carrots and sticks (read Dan Pink's new book, Drive, if you doubt me), but by finding a way to activate the innate desire for meaning, enjoyment, and success that is buried deep within the bones of every single person who shows up for work day after day.
Organizations don't innovate. People do.
If you can find a way to unlock the primal mojo of your workforce, you won't need to manage as much as you do. You won't need to rely so heavily on incentive plans, performance reviews, pep talks, frowns, and punishment.
That stuff only exists because your workforce is disengaged.
But when people are on fire with purpose, in touch with their own authentic desire to create, a culture of innovation will naturally evolve.
A big thank you to Val Vadeboncoeur, Tim Moore, Barry Gruenberg, Paul Roth, and Michael Pergola for their humongous collaboration, insight, creativity, and perseverance on this topic.
Don't miss an article - Subscribe to our RSS feed and join our Continuous Innovation group!
Mitch Ditkoff is the Co-Founder and President of Idea Champions and the author of "Awake at the Wheel", as well as the very popular Heart of Innovation blog.Labels: culture, Innovation, Leadership, Management, Mitch Ditkoff
posted by Blogging Innovation at 12:05 AM
3 Comments:
Mitch - Very astute summary.
Senior executives have to create the framework around which they want to support innovation. It's a loose wireframe that others can then build on.
Ironically, I believe a grass-roots culture begins at the top and works it's way down.
An executive who is a dictator with his or her team will see similar behavior in the management ranks.
An executive who encourages input, supports ideas other than his/her own, and instills clarity and transparency in decision making will see more innovation throughout the organization.
Very nice post.
Fantastic post!
You mentioned that you've been thinking and reading a lot about a culture of innovation, and your timing is funny. About the same time you were writing your material I was putting together a 3 part series on the topic. I think I've tried to summarize a lot of my experience over the years with producing a culture of innovation, or, what used to be called a "learning organization." I would REALLY be curious about your thoughts and feedback if you get a chance to read these:
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Striving for a Customer Focused Approach to Innovation 1 of 3
http://www.r3now.com/striving-for-a-customer-focused-approach-to-innovation-1-of-3
Categorizing and Defining the 3 primary types of corporate innovation. I've dubbed them "Stoic" (minimalist or continuous improvement); the "Stretch" (striving for a known future state); and the "Maelstrom" (directionless chaotic storm of ideas). The names you use really don't matter, but these are the 3 types of what companies call "innovation" that I have seen.
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Striving for a Customer Focused Approach to Innovation 2 of 3
http://www.r3now.com/striving-for-a-customer-focused-approach-to-innovation-2-of-3
Explaining the use of an "innovation narrative" in the "Stretch" type of innovation. This method produces a future state narrative which may not be achievable but provides a customer and market focused direction to aspire to for new products or services. That narrative acts as a future state blueprint for product or service development to move toward.
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Striving for a Customer Focused Approach to Innovation 3 of 3
http://www.r3now.com/striving-for-a-customer-focused-approach-to-innovation-3-of-3
Practical ideas and practical application of some methods of moving toward an innovation culture. Some specific examples around how SAP (the big ERP vendor) has been very successful at integrating their customers, vendors, and their internal organization into an extended development dialog are explored. Includes an overview of how this all ties into the collaboration model I started in a post entitled "From Collaboration to Innovation to Market – Toward a Working Model".
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