Innovation Culture What works, what doesn’t
Establishing or changing a culture is not something that happens overnight or with a couple of quick meetings or a “Kumbaya” team retreat. Some tactics to avoid include:
· Dictating a value system. Values cannot be forced on people, they have to be adopted. People need to see everyone else (especially the leaders) living core values.
· Trying to enforce accountability just from the top down will result in resentment and completely undermine the innovative spirit as people will just ‘fall in line’
· Not clearly establishing a Framework (boundaries) will lead to chaos as individuals and small teams take off in directions inconsistent with the company vision and/or other teams abilities to support ‘out of bounds’ ideas.
· Taking unnecessary risks. It is foolhardy to blindly allow change without considering the possible scope of failure. For example, if a team has an idea for a radical change to a service offering, don’t ‘test drive’ it on your biggest/best customer all at once. Rather, try new ideas in on small clients or a friendly sub-part (i.e. department) of a larger client.
When people have a common belief system and clear vision of what the company is trying to do, great things can happen. Some strategies that work:
· Values should be written and reinforced by everyone living them every day – starting at the top.
· Personal accountability has to be bottom up and peer to peer – coach and observe individuals holding each other accountable
· The framework includes communicating what business the company is in – the overall vision and strategy should be crystal clear
· Make sure people are trying new things. Accepting failure is also important - Promote the successes and failures frequently
Within an innovation culture, creative thinking and action are not only encouraged, but promoted through personal accountability at every level of the company within the boundaries that are clearly understood. People are energized by the knowledge that they absolutely make a difference to the clients and to the toward the overall company success. With this kind of energy, the organization will not only survive an economic downturn, but is certain to emerge stronger when it is over.