Innovation Methods

Today we are flooded with the term “innovation” everywhere -- in magazines, journals, conferences, books, blogs, boardrooms, and news. Yes, with this level of attention being paid to “innovation”, it feels like “innovation has arrived!” It has made a big splash in the world, especially in the world of business!

But, what does this really mean to an organization? How does this energy and enthusiasm impact a person’s daily activities at work?

Innovation wins customers, creates competitive advantage, and increases profit for organizations. But it’s also a notoriously risky venture to enter into, resulting in extremely low success rates and reluctance on the part of investors and decision-makers to support it. Does innovation have to be so risky and unpredictable?

We need to take on these challenges head on by articulating repeatable and structured approaches for driving innovation in our organizations.

In addition to a variety of methods and skills needed to practice good design, innovators need additional competencies to become effective leaders. Some of these competencies for producing smart innovative thinking are non-negotiable and well-known: managing teams, efficiently producing good results, and the ability to lead innovation projects.

But in addition to these practice-oriented leadership skills, innovators also need competencies that are more oriented toward shaping thought leadership within—or even across—organizations, such as successfully inspiring teams and other stakeholders to frame a diverse set of ideas as valuable, real-world solutions.

In other words, good practice leadership is necessary, but only half the challenge helping those ideas come together, and helping teams to support successful implementation of innovative solutions in the real world, also demands that we be thought leaders who can foster innovation through the use of trustworthy and well-informed thought frameworks.