When you hear the word “innovation” what do you think of? The mad professor, the genius inventor, or the creative department where everyone wears flip flops, eats bean sprouts and colors their hair in various shades of neon?
Actually, none of these pictures are accurate. By definition, innovation means “the process of
inventing or introducing something new”. But finding “something new” is not the sole domain of a small clique of gifted inventors. It is everyone’s job. Comic strip writers are experts at finding humor by seeing the world a little differently than everyone else. And this is what leaders need to do when their plans are off target. They must innovate, or take a slightly different look at their world to discover a not so obvious solution.
Innovation techniques can be formal (set aside time to brainstorm) or informal (chat over lunch). A third technique called benchmarking requires looking at what others have done with similar challenges. A number of years ago, as leader of a private school, I was searching for a Christmas gift for my teachers, but I had no money to spend. Looking in the sky, I realized that airlines give travel miles for loyalty programs because the cost is low but the perceived value of a free flight is high. What could I give that fit these criteria? The light came on. I would give each teacher a half day holiday leading up to Christmas so they could do some midweek Christmas shopping or relaxing. I would fill their class, so it cost me nothing but time (and gave the added benefit of insight into their classrooms). Meanwhile, the teachers received a high value gift of free time during the week, an unheard of luxury for their profession.
Where can you look to find an innovative solution to a challenge in your world?