Building a *System* of Innovation
While most business leaders agree that innovation is essential, surprisingly few organizations have a system for innovation. Creativity and innovation may well be the fuel that drive an organization to greatness, but a system for implementing innovation is the rocket that will take an organization to the top. Lacking an effective system to carry it -- innovation is just raw fuel left sitting unused. In order to effectively integrate an innovation system into an existing organization, we first have to view organizations in a new light.
Seeing Organizations as Living Systems
Quantum physicists see all matter as being connected and in motion. Thus everything in the universe affects everything else, because all are parts of the same unbroken whole. In truth, organizations are
living systems. When we view the organization as a living system, our focus becomes one of how to provide the right environment to "nurture and grow" the innovation not finding new ways of "controlling" or "changing" the parts. This is the essence of systems thinking -- the parts are no longer our primary focus. The parts are essential ingredients of an integrated system where the interrelationship between the parts is more important than the parts themselves.
A Systems Approach to Innovation
Creating an innovation system requires organizations to change the way they think about creativity and innovation -- not only do they want to stimulate people to accept innovation but they also need to create an environment where everyone participates in it. A quality innovation system incorporates the three levels of interrelated and interdependent living systems in organizations: individuals, teams and the organization as a whole.
-- Individuals must possess the values and competencies that generate, accelerate and sustain innovation.
-- Teams are more capable of transforming ideas into reality when there is a structured process (or Cycle as we prefer to call it) to align the team's efforts and deal with the barrage of information, uncertainty, and confusion that is inevitable in any innovation.
-- Organizations provide the context for innovation. Many innovators concentrate too much energy on the change they are trying to bring about with very little regard to the People, Structure, Process and Technology forces that will either enable or hinder their efforts.
The bottom line? An effective system for innovation provides the Organizational context for Individuals to employ the appropriate values and competencies to guide ideas through the cycle of innovation on their Teams.
** Andrew Papageorge, author of "Everyone GoInnovate!", "Leaders GoInnovate!" and "Executives GoInnovate!", founded the GoInnovate! Academy in 1980 to improve the capability of executives and organizations to innovate. Contact Andrew at andrew@goinnovate.com or call him at 760-402-1122.
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