The practice of innovation which is now widely sought after in Canadian society has many faces – but its essence is best represented by the concept of a “Culture of Innovation” in which imaginative but disciplined experimentation is a key value. Creating a culture of innovation depends critically on the development of leaders who demonstrate a particular set of Knowing, Doing and Being Skills plus a capacity to choose and use appropriate technologies to tackle complex tasks and build high performing organizations.
An Innovation Equation to Support the Theory
This theory is best represented by the following equation: I=(CIT)3 in which
- I represents Innovation
- C3 represents Courage, Commitment, Collaboration
- I3 represents Imagination, Integration, Ingenuity
- T3 represents Trust, Tolerance, Technology
We are not using the equation in the widely recognized conventional sense to mean that “I” is exactly equal to (CAT)³.
We are using the equation in the manner that it has been used by scientists involved in exploring a whole new way of approaching a challenge. For these exploratory scientists a good equation is not simply a formula for making computations. Nor is it merely a confirmation that different items are exactly equal to each other.
Since the beginning of the modern age scientists often have used the equals symbol (=) as a device for directing thoughtful people’s attention to new ideas.
Review of Our Innovation Process Model
Stage 1: Find the Courage to Begin the Innovation Journey
This speaks to leaders finding the courage and willpower to undertake an exploratory journey aimed at undertaking some significant change even though this may initially be risky, demanding, controversial and distressing.
Stage 2: Explore the Environment: Discover New Realities
This exploration involves a serious look at a changing environment to discover new realities that present both new challenges and new opportunities. This helps an organization to have a real sense of its socio-political, economic, and technical environment.
Here one needs to draw upon a new mind-set that is open to seeing things in a new way and to avoid being trapped by old realities and conventions and by a sense of limited options.
The explorer is challenged to exhibit a high tolerance for ambiguity and a willingness to suspend quick judgment for a period of time.
For most leaders this step presents an immediate and significant challenge to begin to function as an entrepreneurial, collaborative innovator.
Stage 3: Synthesize and Integrate the Learning: Understand the Implications
At this point participants need to review and reflect on the information gained through the journey and try to synthesize it into patterns which generate meaning and can be used to shape group strategies and behaviors. The potential impact of these learnings can be used to examine the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats implied for an organization in moving on this Change.Stage 4: Imagine a Collaborative, Integrated, Clean Energy Innovation Program
With a clearer sense of the new, fast changing realities and their implications, there is now a need for a creative act in which one draws on their imagination as the foundation for developing and describing a potential innovation.
Stage 5: Take Ownership for the Innovation
Now leaders and their teams are required to take ownership of their emerging innovation by building it into a flexible action plan and by publicly committing themselves to the innovation. This requires a serious effort to share all aspects of the innovation with key stakeholders and to build a solid basis of trust among those who are about to commit to a collaborative effort that still exhibits many unknowns and ambiguities.
Publicly declaring commitment to a breakthrough innovation and taking some responsibility for its implementation, is another act of courage that poses some risks for individuals and their organization. This however can serve as a powerful vehicle around which other fast adaptors can rally and provide support.
Stage 6: Act Out the Innovation
This step moves individuals from the thinking and planning mode to the doing mode. It includes starting some specific initiatives by which the usefulness of the innovation can be tested.
Here again courage is needed to stake your personal reputation behind an initiative for which there is no clear certainty of success. Innovation takes us into new territory one cannot even be certain what action steps are most appropriate and what skills are most essential. Innovators need to function as entrepreneurs who see change as normal and as an opportunity to be exploited.
Stage 7: Share the Innovation and Enroll Others
Sharing your breakthrough ideas with others inside and outside of your organization is invaluable in helping to refine the innovation through a process of co-creation.
The impact of co-creation can be particularly for those innovators who have built an extensive, diverse, global, network of contacts and who have been able to gain the trust of the network associates.
As the innovation starts to take shape there is a major challenge to develop a capacity for mounting successful strategic communications to share your innovation widely and in a manner that inspires confidence and attracts support
Stage 8: Make measures That Matter
Setting stretch goals helps to inspire a commitment to innovation. Here one is presented with another opportunity to set a culture on innovation in your organization as you move to measure the outcomes and impact of the innovation. There are ways of involving large numbers of your diverse stakeholders in determining the areas of measurement that are most meaningful to them and how they might best be measured. The result, can lead to a customized balance scorecard that serves both to empower individuals to act and to help ensure that all of their actions are linked to the vision and strategies of the innovation. Stage 9: Reflect on Progress and Revise Plans
This stage stresses the need to regularly reflect as to the results being achieved by the innovation and whether it is having the desired effect.
Reflecting on the results and capturing the learning that comes from this reflection provides a solid basis for revising the action plans and for starting to apply the steps of the innovation process all over again. |
