Overcoming Barriers to Innovation
How can my organisation become more innovative?
The term ‘innovation’ is so overused within organisations that it has started to lose all meaning and impact. In many organisations ‘innovation’ has become a buzzword, frequently used in mission statements, marketing materials, and organisation strategies. However, rarely is the word backed up with a clear purpose definition or actionable plan. There is a lack of understanding of what innovation is and how organisations can create a culture that truly fosters innovation.
Innovation for the sake of innovation
In his book, ‘Innovation for the Fatigued: How to Build a Culture of Deep Creativity’, Alf Rehn discusses how the constant push for innovation can lead to fatigue. This makes it difficult for individuals and organisations to engage meaningfully in creative processes. When organisations pursue innovation without a clear goal or purpose, it can lead to initiatives that are more about appearing cutting-edge than about creating real value.
To foster true innovation organisations must create an environment that nurtures creativity as opposed to superficial approaches. There needs to be a cultural shift to move away from innovation for its own sake and instead create environments where creativity is genuinely valued, supported and nurtured.
The way to foster innovation is to focus on the 4Rs – Respect, Reciprocity, Responsibility, and Reflection. These four pillars underpin a healthy, innovative organisational culture. Here's an explanation of each:
Respect
Respect in an organisation isn’t just about people’s rights or their level of seniority, it involves taking people’s ideas and contributions seriously, regardless of their status. This means actively listening to and engaging with these ideas, and asking powerful questions that can help refine and improve them.
Organisations can demonstrate their commitment by making the connection between ideas and resources. This involves allocating people, budgets and integrating ideas into current research or projects to enable innovators to advance their ideas.
Additionally, organisations should reward those who show kindness and nurture ideas, it creates a positive ‘petri dish’ in which ideas can flourish and grow. Having idea generators work in an environment in which productive criticism is welcomed and kindness and tolerance abound increases the quantity, quality and robustness of ideas.
Lastly, to really embed respect, people should be considerate of their colleagues and be mindful of how they interact. What may have felt like a long meeting for some people, may be the culmination of critical work for the presenter. A poorly timed yawn could kill an idea and discourage the speaker, and others, from sharing.
Reciprocity
Reciprocity in innovation is understanding the balance between what you ask for and what you offer. If your organisation expects innovation, consider what support your employees expect in return. Do they need innovation or facilitation skills development? Do they need streamlined processes or a different tone for business case presentations? Do they need time and budget to get innovation off the ground and keep it moving? It’s all about give and take.
It's so important to promote and reward those who contribute ideas, even if these ideas don't lead to immediate success. Organisations need to recognise the courage it takes to propose something new and consider everyone’s preferred form of recognition – what motivates one person may differ from another. This approach acknowledges the courage of the innovator even when there is a time lag between idea and tangible success.
Punish indifference – ideas don’t get killed (except maybe with a badly timed yawn!) they simply wither and die. A positive innovation culture engages all ideas, and indifference should be penalised, for example by reallocating budget, attention or headcount! By doing so organisations send a clear message that people and departments who engage with innovation are acknowledged and supported.
Responsibility
The withering and dying of ideas in an organisation are a red flag – it means that people don’t feel innovation is their responsibility. It’s a call to action to create a culture in which innovation can flourish and be seen as everyone’s responsibility. No one is off the hook – ask yourself is innovation part of your values? Is it part of people’s annual objectives? Is it what you measure? Is it part of the rhythm and drumbeat of your organisation’s daily life? Is innovation and the nurturing of innovation woven into the fabric of your organisation’s way of working?
It's important to recognise that expertise and experience, while valuable, can lead to a conservative mindset. People who have invested years in their careers to reach expert status will naturally want to defend it. Change is hard and no one wants to be disrupted. The challenge lies in how to shake up the status quo and make curiosity more valued than expertise. How can you reward the responsibility for innovation, making it a recognised and sought-after aspect of the organisation’s culture?
Reflection
Innovation flourishes in organisations that adopt reflection as a core value. A reflective organisation is one that recognises insights, acts on them, and generates change and innovation. It's a place where questioning, challenging, and curiosity are accepted, celebrated and rewarded. This encourages the sharing of insights and invites comments from colleagues, creating a cycle of continuous learning and improvement.
Encouraging intelligent self-doubt is key because an expert who staunchly defends their expertise is blind to new ideas. Equally, an expert who is crippled with low self-esteem or self-doubt cannot move forward positively. The balance to strike is intelligent self-doubt – where an expert intelligently and deliberately self-analyses and is curious about what they know and don’t know. They listen to their inner voice and intuition that highlights what is new, unusual or previously unconsidered. It takes a self-assured and confident person to be open to unfamiliarity and eager to evolve and adapt their views.
A culture of always testing and experimenting should be the norm and with the outcome being validated learning. This involves creating a hypothesis, identifying what you want to find out, and constructing a test that uses a minimum viable product to seek that learning. A minimum viable product is designed to gather maximum learning with minimal effort. Then repeat; this provides a lean, efficient approach to innovation.
In this culture, success or failure is no longer part of the discourse – it’s about validated learning and iteration.
Reframing Innovation with the Four Rs
Innovation is often shrouded in myths and clichés, leading to misconceptions about its true purpose. It is sometimes confused with general improvement or change but not all changes or improvements are innovative. It is all too often assumed that innovation must involve rapid and ground-breaking changes. However, glamorising radical or disruptive innovation can lead to undervaluing incremental innovation, which is more subtle but powerful. It focuses on making small but continuous improvements which are essential for long-term success and sustainability.
Together, the Four Rs provide a framework for creating a culture that is deeply rooted in sustainable innovation. They emphasise the human qualities of the innovation process, advocating for a more thoughtful, ethical, and collaborative approach to creativity in the workplace. By adopting these principles, organisations can foster an environment where innovation is a consistent and evolving practice. In essence, the Four Rs guide us towards a more inclusive and thoughtful approach to innovation, ensuring it's not just a buzzword but a meaningful, integrated part of your organisation’s culture.
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