Doing things right

Mistakes can be expensive. The cost of rejection is a major source of concern in manufacturing. Doing things right is essential before companies can think of doing new things.  Training  Retraining  Building-in quality consciousness  Reward and feedback systems  Process improvement  Communicating and affirming a culture of excellence  Building teams that co-operate rather than compete

Organizational Culture and the Emphasis on Innovation

Without the oxygen of support and applause, ideas often die in infancy. The creativity improvement program can be the foundation that enables all other company programs to be effective. There are a number of steps to ensure that the program encourages innovation. IBM whose motto is ‘Think,’ believes in ‘More intellect, less materials.’

Leadership and consumer relevance are the top drivers of innovation

There are two essential ingredients for successful innovation: Leadership and Consumer Relevance. Innovative processes do not begin in the R&D laboratory. They are initiated with a mandate from the highest level of the corporation. Identifying the consumer’s needs is an equally integral part of the innovation process. Ensuring employee participation in planning and a complete buy-in into innovative strategy is critical.

The mind is the greatest resource

The mind is the greatest resource needed for innovation. With mental capability, there are few limitations. Overload a machine and it can break down. Even computer chips have their speed limits. Resources can run dry. However, if we can help people make better use of their minds, the returns are immeasurable. The mind computer has the capacity to store an equivalent of 7550 volumes of the Encyclopedia Britannica.

Process Of Managing Innovation

The process of managing innovation ties in closely with organizational freedom. Managing innovation is not an oxymoron. Highly innovative companies manage the actual process of generating, developing and implementing innovative ideas better than their competitors do. This process involves a lot of deliberate duplication and redundancy in order to foster knowledge sharing and communication. There are a million garage start-ups in IT. In rural India, cowshed innovation is common. But in every case, it has blossomed in an atmosphere of organizational freedom. Microsoft says that “their only factory asset is the human imagination.”

CULTURE OF INNOVATION

Innovation is about lighting our little candles to defy the darkness. The organizational climate often decides whether the ideas flourish and bloom or fade and die. Thus, organizational culture becomes critical to innovation. Ricardo Semler of Semco, the South American magnate, believes that the culture of innovation in an organization is created by providing total freedom to his employees. Ricardo Semler’s Six Rules for Management without Control: 1. Forget about the top line 2. Never stop being start up 3. Don’t be a nanny 4. Let talent find its place 5. Make decisions quickly and openly 6. Partner promiscuously

The Final Stage of the Process

The ‘reality test’ should now be ruthlessly applied. Once implementation starts, every move costs money. This is the last step in the thinking process and all ideas should be carefully studied. Implementing creative ideas and turning them into innovations is a special challenge. It is a process that requires a clear road map and the organizational will to stick to the path. This is where many organizations fail. An ounce of action is worth tonnes of e-mail, paper and speeches. Implementation is the key to innovation. “Management tends to ignore workers’ suggestions about jobs. I have seen engineers ignore comments from workers, which would improve the productivity of an individual job. At one point, I noticed hot air holes were crossed, creating a potentially dangerous situation. When I suggested they be altered, the foreman said they had been designed that way by engineers who clearly know better than I, how the plant works. Management obviously is effectively cutting off creativity from a large group of employees who are most likely to make worthwhile suggestions on jobs they are doing. The whole situation carries from a lack of respect for the creativity of the individual. It arises from the view that people ought to be as identical as the cars they make.” ― John F Awacies