Making innovation part of everyone’s work life
A successful organization makes innovation part of everyone’s work life. Innovators collaborate, question, observe and experiment. Two-thirds of executives recently polled believe innovation is critical to their long-term strategy. Innovation is one of the most challenging issues for credit unions. Overcoming obstacles to innovation requires leadership and insight. An HBR article written in 2009 at the depths of the Great Recession, Innovation in Turbulent Times, is informative now in its exploration of the characteristics of successful collaboration. Accenture’s 2012 Innovation Survey of over 500 executives, Why Low Risk Innovation Is Costly, provides helpful data on achieving a return on investments in innovation.
Lack of collaboration is a major obstacle to innovation. HBR examined successful collaboration in the fashion industry between pairs of “right-brain” creative and “left-brain” executives. Fashion requires continual innovation in order to reinvent the “brand” and create products that “consumers didn’t know they needed”. Many “right brain/left-brain” duos lead fashion innovation. Creative directors are imaginative, constantly generating new ideas and brand managers are adept at analytical decision-making. These successful collaborative pairs are aware of each other’s strengths and weaknesses, have complementary cognitive skills, work in a trusting environment and have a willingness to put the team’s interests ahead of their own. When combined with insightful observation skills, applying relevant knowledge, and strong communication skills that are comfortable with questioning, a winning collaboration is created. These skills can be applied to any collaborative team of any size or industry.
More than half of the executives polled in Accenture’s Innovation Survey were disappointed by the returns they received from their innovation investments. Only 18 percent of CEOs believed that their strategic investments in innovation were paying off. The primary obstacles to higher returns were: a focus on product line extension, rather than a broader portfolio of bold, big ideas; and an over-emphasis on the innovation process itself without a focus on bringing ideas to market using a strategic business model that concentrates on the customer experience.
Organizations with a comprehensive approach to innovation have better results. Top management support is essential. The CEO can create and support an innovation department, deploying a “chief innovation officer”. Multiple divisions of an organization can share “capability platforms” that might include internal and external experts, innovation-focused intranets and social media and the exchange of professionals within departments.
85% of surveyed executives thought customer personalization was essential. Speed to market and flexibility were emphasized. Lateness to market is a top reason for innovation failure. Instead of waiting for perfection, in success innovation examples, ideas are put to test fast, fail fast, and then the process is repeated. Learning from failures and successes are applied.
Collaborative cultures of engagement and a comprehensive, systemic approach to innovation creates value by making innovation part of employee’s everyday work life, leading to a greater engine for growth and increased value for to members.
