Workplace
Start with workplace culture “Groups don’t exist in isolation,” says Whyte. A workplace with inflexible leaders who don’t listen to ideas — or feedback of any kind — will not nurture idea-rich teams. “You could have Thomas Edison in an uncreative environment and you’d get nothing from him,” says Whyte. And it’s not just attitudes. Highly struc-
tured companies that just churn out the product or service at hand often don’t encourage new ideas, and can’t put them into place anyway. “The more you want to structure things, the less likely you are to have innovation,” says Thomas O’Neill, associate professor of organizational psy- chology at the University of Calgary. Meanwhile, if budgets are tight and people have no time for thinking, don’t attend conferences and can’t secure funds to launch pilots, you won’t see cre- ative fireworks. Organizations that resist change through their very setup might as well skip hiring people with an innovative track record. They’ll be affected by company culture and will either stop coming up with great ideas, or get frus- trated and jump ship. If you truly want a creative workplace, you have to verbally encourage ideas from everyone and enable change through fluid company processes and budgets that support investment, education and risk. For Stern Cohen, developing a culture
of innovation has meant stating it as a company value as well as creating an envi- ronment that encourages it. This is rela- tively new thinking. A few years ago, the firm found itself with numerous partners and a slow decision-making process. As people retired, the company trimmed its partner ranks to seven. “We spread out decision-making and where ideas come from,” says Williams. The nonprofit group knew how to get its idea up the ranks, and that partners would listen. Similarly, after vetting his idea with a middle manager, a young accountant at the firm pitched his proposal for an
Workplace groups will ideally cook up valuable ideas, as well as finish their day-to-day work efficiently. It’s a tall order
online tool directly to partners a few years ago, and it got built too.
Cultivate functional groups Effective teams get along while being tol- erant and respectful of different ideas and goals. It helps to have a diverse group of people with different backgrounds, genders, experience, skill sets and time with the company. It also helps to have a leader who encourages listening and acceptance. O’Neill says research shows something as simple as team colleagues taking lunch at the same time builds con- nection. “When you have lunch together, you learn about each other as human beings outside of work.” Conversely, a group that’s cohesive to
the point where it has developed a them- against-us attitude, coupled with a power- motivated leader, can end up in trouble. It’s a situation that may lead to classic groupthink. “People who value their membership are quite susceptible to groupthink; no one wants to upset the applecart,” says Whyte. When groups like this operate with a predominant mind-set about a certain issue — maybe the group has become anti-digital, or thinks a new product line is the only way to go — it will push forward with projects or decisions that further entrench that idea, ignoring facts and contrary opinions.
You can prevent these kinds of groups
from forming at the office with a work- place culture that celebrates individual- ism and respect, backed up by processes for communicating that clearly encour- age balanced debate. “There is a link between process and outcome of deci- sion-making,” says Whyte. “The better the process, the less prone you are to making silly mistakes.” For instance, O’Neill favours an idea-
vetting process that gets around the fact that groups oſten disregard strong ideas raised in meetings because they get side- tracked by the first one or two presented. Instead, have the ideas introduced one by one, then debate them all after the pre- sentations have wrapped. He warns that this is hard to do; people can’t resist com- menting right away. But it’s your best bet for a balanced discussion in which all ideas will be heard. Then, whittle down the list based on facts and data, not gut instinct, which can be motivated by per- sonal agendas and one-off experiences.
Encourage creativity As much as companies would like to put a group of super-smart people in a room and have them walk out with a brilliant solution to a problem, it rarely happens. “Individuals are more creative than groups,” says Whyte. Brainstorming seldom works — there’s too much pres- sure in the moment. Research shows the best ideas come from people on their own, and then can be refined by a group process. “Groups are better at evaluating ideas,” says Whyte. Setting aside individual time for think-
ing and personal development will help the juices flow. Making sure the evalua- tion process in meetings gives all ideas a fair shake is key to being innovative and keeping people motivated to speak up. When it comes down to it, facilitating
healthy, functional groups can increase your company’s efficiency and morale. Jaw-dropping ideas might end up being an added bonus. — Diane Peters
MARCH 2017 | CPA MAGAZINE | 17
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