Think about this… What if instead of the pocket sized mobile phones that we have these days, you had to carry around one of those weighty bag phones which were commonly sold in the mid 1990′s? You can heave a sigh of relief that it was just a thought; courtesy of the innovators who spent many years of their lives, designing this “mini-world” for all of us, just the way it is now.
However, this did not come easily. Innovation has to be incorporated into an organisational culture if such revolutionary and landmark achievements are what we are aiming to achieve.
Ideally, a culture is thought of as a set of opinions, attitudes, norms, beliefs, and values, while innovation is the implicit and explicit result of the creativity and knowledge of the individuals working within this organisation. Unfortunately, just coming up with an idea for something which is “out-of-the box” isn’t any indication that it will actual come to full fruition – usually due to the organisational circumstances at the time, because even though a brilliant innovation can be brought into our world, there are still such an incredible variety of things which can stop amazing ideas from ever getting to the production stage. With the passing of time, innovation has gone far beyond the concept of simply generating creative ideas; it’s something which can now be seen as the culture of a business. This innovative culture can easily “tip the scales” toward the success or failure of an organisation. Such a culture works toward cultivating an attitude of ongoing learning and development in all of the employees. All organisations have their own unique cultures which set them apart from their competition, and the success or failure of any of these companies primarily depends on the level of development of this culture. An organisation that has a top notch innovative culture invariably expands at a faster rate than an organisation without this resource. In the case of an organisation with a poorly managed culture, integrating and linking with the innovation of an existing culture is not an easy task, as this requires careful consideration, consistent motivation and an unwavering pursuit toward improvement.
Here are a few factors organisations should utilise for the integration of innovation into their culture:
1. Intellectual Property – This is the most important ingredient of an innovative culture. Regularly bringing up ideas in discussions or debates creates a continuous process of refinement, and these brain storming sessions infuse the members with enthusiasm, thereby stimulating the participants to come up with even more “never thought of before” solutions.
2. Technology – Ownership of “tech” and the process of upgrading these technological advancements are both other aspects which need consideration. This structure acts as an interface between knowledge and products, and is therefore responsible for the materialisation of concepts from paper into tangible and intangible services.
3. Effective Leadership – Effective leaders are those who, in the organisation, continuously integrate and motivate the creative thinking of their peers and subordinates.
4. Proper Communication – Proper communication is essential for making correct information available, at the right place and at the right time. Regular involvement with business coaching can help you to prevent miscommunication at the smallest level, which in an organisation could play havoc with even the most brilliant innovative ideas.
To be competitive in our changing business world, businesses require their individuals to develop innovative ideas consistently. These innovative ideas, along with management training, can help any organization traverse difficult phases of business smoothly, as companies can sell such innovative ideas in a slump period of a business cycle, or reap maximum profits during a time of strong market share.
Alan Gillies is the Managing Director of the L2L Group, specialising in supplying Executive Coaching, Training and Consultancy Services to Businesses around the World. Want to find out more about these comprehensive business building success strategies? Get Alan’s phenomenal FREE Business Pack right now!