Innovation is one of the most discussed about words of the decade. The most misunderstood, too, perhaps. What will it take to get beyond the buzzword and catalyze ‘true’ innovation, the kind that can transform businesses and continuously drive growth?
A leader’s role in taking innovation beyond
Leadership is about vision, execution, communication, transparency, and an open heart. Without such strong, informed leadership, there is no innovation. Lack of innovation leads to stagnation, and stagnation leads to death. Leaders must take charge to avoid this, instead of hiding their head in the sand.
This journey begins with the simple realisation that, in every organisation, a gap exists between where we are and where we want to be. The aspects of our jobs that we could all do better; there are initiatives that get lost, ignored or forgotten. Humble understanding that we don’t know it all, taking the pulse of the organisation, being honest and radically transparent about it is what builds trust, allows for an open dialogue and space for new ideas and culture to emerge.
Smart leaders realize that, unlike invention, solo innovation is a myth. Ideas can come from anywhere and nobody has a monopoly on innovation. We should understand that acting on that philosophy to democratize innovation and establish cross-functional innovation programmers is one of the major contributions to the company’s success.
Why do yardstick matter in innovation efforts?
We love metrics—as we are a firm believer in pragmatic innovation—and it’s all about a clear purpose with measurable results. When it comes to most organisations, innovation should almost never be undertaken for innovation’s sake alone. Your efforts must be geared towards creating an impact that is going to directly affect your business for the better. That’s where real goals and metrics come in.
If you can’t measure these efforts and show their clear impact, then they are probably not working. Without demonstrable and transparent metrics, you won’t improve anything, and “innovation” will lose all credibility, becoming just another expensive team building activity or publicity exercise—what we call “innovation theatre”. Metrics incentivise innovation. They hold leadership accountable and transparent, helping people understand what works, and what doesn’t.