creating the right community lies in choosing the right champions. This is a group of people representing all corners of the business, not just filtering and supporting messages from the top down, but feeding the voice of the organisation out from the centre.
Environment… If you want your people to love what they do, think differently must provide an environment that fosters creativity. You must create ‘an amazing place to work’. You must create spaces that are stimulating for idea generation, are practical for evaluation and implementation and that foster collaboration and social interaction. The bottom line is physical space matters. Make it grey, linear and boring and it will negatively influence the way people think and the way they feel.
Creativity… Creating a truly differentiated company requires you to push your people away from well-trodden paths and expose them to different perspectives and points of view. Show your people that they can be creative and give them the tools to be so. You must also expose all your people to real customer problems and needs so they know why and where you need them to think differently.
Risk… Innovation requires risk but the biggest gamble is to do nothing. However the traditional business model is focused on minimising risk. But if you end up doing nothing, then you are assuming that the future will be no different from your present or past, and that you are happy with where you are today. So, address your exposure to risk and justify every step of the journey. Change your people’s attitude towards risk and empower them to learn from it rather than fear it.
Leadership… People need a clear vision; they need to know what direction the company is going in, what the destination is and whether the journey will be worth the pain. So, a leader must make the future seem bright, achievable, desirable, and possible. The leadership role is not for the faint hearted and in truth the leadership badge can really only be bestowed upon someone by the people who choose to follow said person. Study some of the contemporary, genuine leaders in the world and you’ll see they have similar traits. They’re absolutely on-fire, they’re dynamic and they’re inspiring. To be so they have to be inspired themselves and that helps make them sincere. They’re passionate about the company and its brand and they demonstrate that they ‘live it and breath it’ every day.
Good Luck!
Cris Beswick is leading a new revolution in the way organisations approach strategy, leadership and innovation.
He is a successful entrepreneur, renowned Speaker, Author and Advisor to some of the world’s leading organisations. Having founded several successful companies, Cris has also worked with the likes of B&Q, M&S, BP, Nokia, BMW and GE and has over a decade of experience. His proven expertise and skill in the field of innovation has led to his appointment as a member of the NHS think tank for innovation and leadership, as the Director for Cranfield’s Creative Growth Programme and he is also working with The Henley Partnership. His latest book ‘The Road to Innovation’ and associated workshop ‘What it takes to innovate!’ illustrates the fundamental building blocks any organisation should address in order to create that illusive culture of innovation that many companies strive for.
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