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.Encouraging Innovation in your Organization When it comes to creating an Innovative work environment, Corporate Culture can be a significant barrier. Most leaders outwardly speak the language of Innovation. Terms such as “Thinking Outside the Box”, “Paradigm Shifting”, and ”Taking Ownership” are used frequently. However, very few leaders truly encourage this type of thinking. Instead, they create environments where the unwritten rules are ”Don’t Rock the Boat”, “Fly Under the Radar”, “If you Stick your Neck Out, it will be cut”, and “If it is not broken, don’t fix it!” I believe that in many cases these leaders are simply unaware that they are not walking the talk. They are so focused on saying the right things that they lose sight , ignore, or just flat out don’t understand how their actions can negate all of the the rah-rah business speak. Successful leaders encourage innovation through deliberate and pointed actions. Actions that leaders should take to encourage innovation include: · recognizing team members that display the characteristics of an innovative contributor · establishing performance objectives that require an employee’s participation in identifying and implementing innovative ideas · creating an Innovation Committee dedicated to “marketing” innovation throughout the organization.
Jeffrey Phillips goes into further detail regarding encouraging Innovation in his 2007 article entitled Creating a Culture of Innovation. Jeffrey Phillips goes into further detail regarding encouraging Innovation in his 2007 article entitled |