In today’s fast-paced global economy, there’s so much pressure to innovate. However, innovation isn’t something that happens on demand. It’s magic that happens in the right environment. That environment doesn’t necessarily have to exist within a startup; it can grow in a company that’s been around for a long time. Some of the best ways to encourage creativity within a company, according to Jeff DeGraff, a professor at the University of Michigan Ross School for Business, include:
- De-emphasizing data. Stop overanalyzing data, and start experimenting instead.
- Welcoming failure. DeGraff writes, “Fail early, often and out of sight.” Take multiple shots at the problem to see what works.
- Getting more comfortable disequilibrium. DeGraff compares new ideas to abnormal cells or organisms within the human body. The body will scramble antibodies to attack abnormal elements, and the same may happen within the organization as employees venture outside of the environment to which they’re accustomed.
- Encouraging constructive conflict. Let team members duke things out in a respectful manner. Take all ideas into consideration instead of expecting everyone to be in lockstep.
- Accepting the cyclical nature of creativity. Think of innovation not as a linear climb but as the process of circling the project. Each circle helps people become smarter and see the problem in a way they hadn’t before.
Perhaps you’re sold on DeGraff’s suggestions, but you need to convince you’re employees to give change a chance. Take your time, and understand that resistance is inevitable. Consider hiring a Leading Authorities innovation speaker who can validate the changes you’re trying to make. Also, show them how other companies are making innovation happen. Here are three examples to get you started.
As the cost-per-click, or the price that companies pay when customers click on their ads, has continuously declined, Google has found new ways to be relevant. The company has been focused on a wide range of new projects including driverless cars, Google Glass and a separate company called Calico focused on extending the human lifespan.
Google is famous for its non-traditional working environment, which features free bikes for getting around the campus. It’s also famous for its 20-percent principle, in which employees spend 20 percent of their work weeks working on passion projects instead of their usual work. Neither the workday nor the environment is typical, which gives people the flexibility to innovate.
Tesla
Tesla has edged its electric vehicles into the consumer space thanks to outstanding engineering, but its greatest strength is CEO Elon Musk’s understanding that failure is part of the creative process. When his third attempt to launch the Falcon 1 SpaceX rocket failed on August 8, 2008, Musk reminded employees just how many times other countries had failed before having a successful rocket launch.
He had anticipated the failure by seeking out extra investment capital, which would give SpaceX two more shots at a launch, and he asked his employees to stick with him. On September 28, 2008, under two months after the third failed launch, the company had its first successful rocket launch. Musk didn’t just understand that failure could happen; he planned to fail. The same philosophy applies at Tesla.
Johnnie Walker
Johnnie Walker shipped over 20 million cases of Scotch whiskey for the first time in 2013. What’s interesting about Johnnie Walker’s marketing strategy is that it didn’t involve gathering consumer data through endless surveys and remote analysis. The company sent teams to emerging market areas to understand the psyche of these local markets.
Brazil, for example, takes pride in its economic growth, so Johnnie Walker tailored its “Keep Walking” campaign to the Brazilian psyche. It produced a commercial depicting a mountain that transformed into a giant and walked away. The message stated, “The giant is no longer asleep.”
In South Korea, to celebrate the region’s penchant for exclusivity, the company opened three “House of Walker” establishments to host art, dinner and Scotch tastings. Because they were willing to throw away remote data collection and give their advertising a human touch, 80 percent of Johnnie Walker’s 2013 growth came from emerging markets.
Innovation means different things to different companies, but innovative companies do things differently. The quest for standardization, automation and efficiency is a worthy one, but it doesn’t always lead to innovation.