by Lindsay Collier

Created on: July 03, 2009   Last Updated: July 06, 2009

Few would argue that innovation is a critical key to the future of business. And, as organizations get further along in their learning curves, innovation becomes more necessary and more difficult. The bottom-line results we got from simple innovations yesterday will have to come from real breakthroughs in the future. When we think of innovation we most often think of product innovation. But innovation is also required in processes, marketing, and management. There is literally no part of organizational life that can't benefit from tapping the creative and innovative capacity of the workplace. And yet, in most organizations, the creative/innovative potential can be likened to a Ferrari sitting in a garage - a tremendous unreleased power.

What's the difference between creativity and innovation? Creativity is brought to play in the generation of new ideas - innovation focuses more on turning these ideas into real products or solutions and changes in the business.

What are the real ingredients of organizational innovation? There are a number of academic studies of this but here is my list based on over 30 years of observation and experience helping organizations tap this great resource. Some of them might surprise you and there is some overlap between these items.

1. There must be trust and support within the organization. If there is no trust and respect for each other and people are unwilling to support the creative thinking of their associates, there is no chance for innovation! If people aren't open with each other, jealous of other's ideas, talk about others in negative ways, or just flat don't particularly even like their associates, you are pretty much guaranteed that all creativity and innovation will be stifled.

2. There is a willingness to take risks and accept failure as learning experiences. Fear of failure is one of the most powerful blocks to creativity. People will rarely stretch into the creative zone if they think there is a good possibility of failure and that it will harm their future opportunities. The fear may come from a range of possibilities from real punishment (losing my job) to subtle (making a fool of myself). People must not be hung up on the need to look good.

3. The work must provide significant challenge and the ability to stretch thinking to places it's never been. A bridled mind is generally not a creative one. Few organizations really stretch the thinking capacity of their members. And many tend to

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