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More YouTube Brilliance & Inspiration!
The next couple of posts will contain more words on the forms of leadership needed to champion innovation, and on collaboration, which is lifeblood for innovation. But first, here are some additional videos hosted through YouTube exploring creative thinking that will be sure to inspire and tickle:
- Think Again (ABC Training Video) (4:09): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3NPL2f0WVEM&playnext=1&list=PL16FEE0B9133286CC
- Be infectious (3:05): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=63onoo6JURg
- Using the stairs (1:48): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FRmifpeZO18
And finally, as much as I am an evangelist on behalf of creative thinking and innovation, I’ve got to hand it to IBM which hired some very creative talent to produce these lovable videos poking fun at the innovation movement. Well done!
- IBM Innovation Man (:31): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MudaxA80eI4&NR=1
- Innovation Man Drill Sergeant (:29): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xXrIoF-sVi8&feature=related
- Buzzword Bingo (:31): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cgeLY7CL5IE&feature=related
- IBM Innovation Station (:33): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6wqclq0dx3U&feature=related
- Ideating (:29): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ziOG_GHNVq0&feature=related
EnJOY!!
As discussed in previous posts, it is commonly held that there is creative genius in each of us. But, along with our innate curiosity (creativity’s inextricable partner) most of us found our creativity repressed by the tender age of thirteen by the pressure to “fit in,” not be seen as “weird,” [i] not ask too many questions, and as we got older, to go by “The Rules,” and do as we’re told if we want to succeed. I wholeheartedly agree with Langdon Morris of InnovationLabs who wrote that “It may only take only the right mix of context, curiosity, support, and environment for it come abundantly forth.” [ii]
And so, smart managers understand that good ideas come from everywhere in organizations. “Hence, the average Toyota worker, including those on the assembly lines, is said to contribute on average more than one hundred ideas each year.” Despite some of its recent troubles (and current tragedies in its homeland), Toyota is universally recognized as the most efficient auto manufacturer on the planet.[iii]
Gathering and Channeling the Collective Genius:
Referring back to the top layer of the cake as described in “Let Them Eat Cake!” a couple of posts ago, below are some suggestions I have found for creating an entrepreneurial environment throughout the organization, as recommended by the innovation leaders surveyed in the 2010 IBM CEO report. [iv]
Create and Communicate a Shared Vision of What Innovation Looks Like in Your Organization:
Use cross-departmental input to create a shared language and lexicon. (Jorge Barba) [v]
Go beyond the mission and vision to make innovation the responsibility of each and every employee (“50 Ways…”) [vi]
Involve as many people as you can at the beginning to get upfront buy-in. (“50 Ways…)
Co-create A Vision for Innovation with Everyone in Your Organization:
Help employees to present their ideas and make their cases:
- Establish an Entrepreneurial Environment: Ideas come from everywhere. Give every “intrepreneur’s” idea an objective hearing. Provide management support in building the business case* in presenting the idea. (“10 Crucial Elements…,” Jim Miller) [vii]
* I discussed this point in my 2/12/11 post on "A Shared Failure to Communicate".
- Ask employees what gets in the way of their ability to offer contribute creative solutions and innovation, and work to remove those blocks.
Create Efficient Systems for Collecting Ideas:
- Create formal opportunities for offering ideas: Intranet repositories using an idea
management software, internal conferences, etc. (“10 Crucial Elements of Building an Innovative Company,” Jim Miller & “”50 Ideas…, “)
Embrace the Numbers Game:
- “…Harness everyone’s creativity by involving them in the ideation process; generate lots of ideas, for only a few winners will result, and then broadening your view of innovation to not just technological, products, or services, but also innovate the business model.” (Jorge Barba)
- Have a number of ideas in the works. Short and long-term, incremental, and discontinuous.
- “The main difference between companies who succeed at innovation and those who don’t isn’t their rate of success – it’s the fact that successful companies have a LOT of ideas, pilots, and product innovations in the pipeline.” (“50 Ways…”)
Create Efficient Systems for Low-Cost, Rapid Prototyping:
- “Fail often to succeed sooner.” Tom Kelley, GM IDEO.
- Prototype using videos and models or other quick and cheap methods early on to visualize which projects to further develop and which to discard. (“Get Creative,” Bloomberg Businessweek [viii] and “50 Ways…”)
Support Cross-departmental Collaboration:
- Reroute reporting lines and create physical spaces for collaboration. …collaboration requires more than lip-service to breaking down silos… team up people from across the org chart.
- ‘You have to…get down into the plumbing of the organization and align the nervous system of the company.” (J. Andrew, BCG) [ix]
- Provide “Skunkwork” spaces with visual tools like white boards everywhere, even on ceilings and floors. (“50 Ways…”)
- Encourage informal, cross-functional networking and exchange of ideas through shared space, social activities, etc. (“10 Crucial Elements…,” Jim Miller)
- “Innovation requires no fixed rules or templates – only guiding principles. Creating a more innovative culture is an organic and creative act… Don’t make your innovation processes so rigid that they get in the way of informal and spontaneous innovation efforts.” (“50 Ways…”)
I’ve only scratched the surface here regarding employee partnership in innovation. Please, share your ideas, experiences, and success stories!
[i] Get Weird! 101 Innovative Ways to Make Your Company a Great Place to Work, John Putzier. AMACOM, 2001.
[ii] Langdon Morris, “Creating the Innovative Culture: Geniuses, Champions, & Leaders,” InnovationLabs. (2007).
[ix] Boston Consulting Group, “Innovation 2010: A Return to Prominence and the Emergence of a New World Order”
It seems to me that, along with demonstrating a humbling range of strengths and courage, the Egyptians just showed the world what can happen when people use divergent thinking to focus on open-ended possibilities — versus limited, convergent "That's just the way things are" thinking.
Collective creative problem solving and innovation are inherently egalitarian, if they have any chance of succeeding. It may have not been their intentions to start with, but the "stand-out" leaders in the IBM study found themselves flattening their organizations, backing away from "command and control" management styles, removing unnecessary layers of communications that had been barriers, and streamlining processes in order to be responsive to rapidly changing conditions and opportunities.
The Egyptians at Tahrir Square would know something about being prepared and responsive to rapidly changing conditions. I don't know the extent to which it remained the case afterwards, but according to the NBC Nightly News report on February 1st, much of the organizing for the demonstrations was coordinated by a small office of ten volunteers led by a soft-spoken single mother in her 30's (Girl power! 🙂 ). Volunteer coordinators using collaborative brainstorming and creative problem solving; mobilizing armies of volunteers serving on teams as medical personnel, security people, food and tea vendors, sanitation people, and leaders reinforcing the practices of restraint and non-violence among the thousands; and cell phones — It can't get much flatter than that!
Here was the combination of collective wisdom, need for self-expression, and human integrity at their very best.
- Adapting to Change & overcoming Fear
- Ambiguity and embracing the Unknown
- Apple and/or Steve Jobs
- Business Reports: 2010 IBM CEO & 2010 BCG
- Changing Cultures to become Innovative
- Collaboration vs. Silos
- Continuous Improvement or Process Improvement
- Creative Arts & Innovation
- Creative Genius among Staff
- Creative Problem Solving
- Creative Thinking Practices & Exercises
- Creativity/Innovation
- Critical Thinking
- Curiosity & Asking Questions
- Divergent vs. Convergent thinking
- Employee Engagement
- Fun and innovation
- Hierarchy vs. Innovation
- How to Think Like Leonardo da Vinci
- Innovation & the Economy
- Innovation in Government
- Innovation in History
- Integrity; Following own drummer
- Langdon Morris
- Leadership & Management Best Practices
- Learning from Mistakes
- Lifelong Learning and innovation
- Mentoring and innovation
- Model Innovative Organizations
- Podcasts on innovation
- Processes and Structures for Innovation
- Redefining Innovation
- Scenario Planning
- Six Sigma and LEAN vs. innovation
- Social Change and Innovation
- Spirituality in Workplace and innovation
- Trust and Respect in Engagement and Innovation
- Types of Innovation
- Weirdness and Creativity
- What-iffing
- Whole Brain Thinking
- YouTube Videos