Ducks In A Row: Sparking Innovation
by Miki SaxonAre you looking for a good way to make your company or group more innovative? To move it from where it is to where you want it to be?
A good place to start is by encouraging your people to question the fundamentals (QF) of the company.
QF is one of the best ways to overcome the “…but we’ve always done it that way” school of thought and foes a long way to overturning “not invented here” syndrome; both are major stumbling blocks to innovation, productivity, retention and a host of other positives moves.
QF also goes a long way to attracting Millennials and other creative types, because there are no sacred cows—everything is open to improvement and change.
However, making an announcement isn’t going to do it.
Start by identifying your company’s fundamentals, not so much the official ones (although they can also be problematic) as the unwritten/unspoken ones your employees deal with every day.
It’s easy to find them, just ask—but ask knowing that you may not like the answers. (One client found that, contrary to its stated policy, their people believed that quality wasn’t as important as shoving the product out the door.)
Depending on your current culture the identification process can be anything from a public brainstorming session with a whiteboard to some kind of “suggestion box” that’s truly anonymous.
You may be very surprised at some of the perceptions that turn up.
Once you start on a list of fundamentals you want to open them up to debate—the more passionate the better—using a combination of technology (forum, wiki, etc.) and in person discussions. The object being to decide whether to modify/jettison/keep each one, as well as what to add.
Unless your MAP dictates a company that functions in Dilbertland, this is an ongoing, proactive management task to encourage employees to question, rethink, revamp or even dump the company’s fundamentals.
Even when QF is deeply embedded in your culture you can’t assume your people will keep doing it and new people coming from other cultures will need assurance that QF is indeed part of your company’s DNA.
Your comments—priceless
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Image credit: ZedBee|Zoë Power on flickr
June 16th, 2009 at 1:23 pm
[…] Ducks In A Row: Sparking Innovation – Miki Saxon ‘ Are you looking for a good way to make your company or group more innovative? To move it from where it is to where you want it to be? ‘ […]