Regardless of what industry we work in, complexity and uncertainty are often present in our professional lives. Then add in a dose of digital disruption and it’s no wonder many in leadership positions feel the pressure to be more innovative.
As Harvard Business School Professor Linda A. Hill explains, “[T]here is a perennial challenge that many leaders inevitably come to contemplate: How do I build an organisation capable of innovating continually over time?” When it comes to developing new game-changing ideas, we often look to the likes of Apple and Netflix and presume they have the most extraordinarily clever and creative people.
And they may well do, but what really sets these organisations apart is their ability to develop a culture that harnesses the collective wisdom of their people. This helps foster new ideas and create an environment where people are both willing and able to do the hard work that innovative problem solving requires. And it is hard work, and it is risky work.
There is no guarantee that any single idea is going to be the big winner. For this reason, a portfolio approach to innovation allows a range of options to be simultaneously explored, increasing the chances of delivering the desired return on investment. With the right guidance and support, organisations can temper uncertainties, mitigate risks and increase the full value of opportunities to ensure material dividends are realised. The key is enabling people to innovate.
Enabling innovation across an organisation:
There are three key ingredients to deliver both an engaging and outcome-driven experience:
- Creating the right mindset
- Working with tried and tested methodologies
- Involving people with the necessary skills and experience
1. Mindset
We all have the ability to generate new ideas and like any muscle, we need to know how to exercise it. An innovation or ‘growth’ mindset can be felt in the palpable collective of a group that is highly energised and disciplined towards making great things happen.
Engineers, scientists and designers create the infrastructure that enables us to span incredible distances at lightening speeds and live a comfortable, modern life so many of us have come to expect. It’s important to combine their well-honed deep domain technical skills with their inherent talents to think outside the box, share their creativity and have the mechanisms to explore the integration of new technologies into their designs.
“To be an engineer of the future, you need to imagine what is possible and bring to your problem solving an agile creativity that is applied with a human lens.” - Trish White, featured in GHD Digital’s thoughtbook: Tomorrow’s thinking. Today’s people.
2. Methodology
Every situation to innovate is different. New ideas, however viable, have value. We must always strategically assess and customise our approach to the organisational dynamics and challenges to be solved. By doing so, the foundational design thinking methodology tends to apply, along with a strong focus on human-centred design.
Throughout the process, there are a few fundamental steps required before we lead into implementation:
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- Clearly frame the territory we want to focus on
- Define the exact problem we want to solve
- Iteratively develop and test ideas and solutions.
“Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.” - Albert Einstein
3. Expertise
Innovation ambition requires essential team skills and experience to strategically curate the right approach and be dedicated to facilitating an end-to-end innovation program. Drawing on diversity, such as a mix of entrepreneurs, engineers, technologists, creatives, storytellers and change management champions, provides the perfect base to foster innovation of thought, perspective and practice.
“Technology alone is not enough - it’s technology married with liberal arts, married with the humanities, that yields us the results that make our heart sing.” - Steve Jobs
To help our clients understand what may be possible, GHD Digital have curated Applied Innovation: a practical guide to getting the right mix of mindsets, methodology and expertise. Applied Innovation is an integrated approach to help our clients solve their complex business problems creatively, explore new ways of working and deliver untapped value for their organisations, customers and communities.
Meet Anne-Marie
With over twenty years’ experience working for top tier companies and global professional services firms, Anne-Marie Kirkman is a Strategy & Innovation Leader of GHD Digital's innovation practice (D-Lab). Passionate about combining innovative work practices and human-centred design, Anne-Marie also helps run GHD’s global digital innovation accelerator, mentoring project teams and supporting technology enablement. Contact Anne-Marie at Anne-Marie.Kirkman@ghd.com.
