IDEO went through it's archive of client profiles to determine trends in the companies internal dynamics that indicate a shared definition of innovation. IDEO found that the most important element is the organization’s ability to adapt and respond to change. IDEO then surveyed employees at these companies to quantify their ability to adapt -- from that survey data, they suggest 6 principles for achieving adaptability as a company.
Are the companies your research team is interviewing/studying exhibiting all or any of these principles?
- "When teams iterate on five or more different solutions, they are 50% more likely to launch successfully"
- "Team members who took the survey said that they felt comfortable challenging the status quo and acting with autonomy, the chances of a failed launch decreased by 16.67%."
3. A Clear, Consistent Purpose Fuels Innovation
- "..projects and strategic solutions succeed 20.40% more often when leaders articulate the company’s mission clearly and then reliably practice what they preach."
4. Remote Team Members Are Actually Good For Collaboration
- "The most innovative companies have between 25% to 57% of their employees working remotely."
5. Touch Base Daily–It Leads To More Successful Launches
- "[to] work together seamlessly, they need to collaborate every day–which...led to 28% fewer failed launches.
6. Leaders, Your Job Is To Help Your Team–Not The Other Way Around
- "leaders–both executives and project leaders–who see their role as helping their employees reach their full potential are 17% more effective when compared to more top-down, traditional leadership styles."
https://www.fastcodesign.com/3069069/ideo-studied-innovation-in-100-companies-heres-what-it-found
I like the concept of principles involving adaptability. These seem quite consistent to what we have touched on over the course of this semester.. It's interesting that IDEO evaluated its client profiles in order to create this list!
ReplyDeleteBethany - I also enjoy the concept of adaptability as it pertains to organizational management/structure.
ReplyDeleteI find it interesting how many of the principles IDEO identified are typically associated with smaller/lean 'start-up' companies. It seems that IDEO is suggesting in order for large, more established companies to be innovative, the need to have a 'start-up mentality'. From my experience, this can be challenging - especially principles like 'leaders, your job is to help your team - not the other way around' - because of hierarchical corporate bureaucracy and promotion/raise incentives.
According to IDEOS principles (all or one), do you think large organizations can ever truly be adaptive?
Great blog post! If you haven't already, I highly recommend the book "Creative Confidence" by Tom and David Kelley. David Kelley is the founder of IDEO and Tom Kelley is a partner at IDEO. The book is about "unleashing the creative potential within us all" and how creativity is the heart of innovation. They further explain how creativity is a mindset and one doesn't have to change careers or move to Silicon Valley to change their mindset - this creative confidence enhances problem solving and helps you come up with new and better solutions.
ReplyDeleteWith the research from the Kelleys, they reference Stanford professor Albert Bandura who has shown, "our belief system affects our actions, goals, and perception. Individuals who come to believe that they can effect change are more likely to accomplish what they set out to do" - higher self-efficacy, greater resilience of failure.
When determining if companies are innovative, a big part the work IDEO does is through design thinking. There are many "traditional" companies who are becoming more innovative with the introduction of these new technologies. For instance, General Electric redesigned and developed a new MRI experience (the machine and roleplaying from the doctor/pirate) that was designed to look like a pirate adventure for paediatric patients, reducing anxiety and fear from children and their parents. Lastly, we can also see this within Communitech in Downtown Kitchener. There are multiple national and international corporations with innovation labs (i.e. TD, Canadian Tire, LCBO, Manulife) which are finding ways to become more innovative though young talent, industry experts, and new technologies.