I love learning from case studies and plan to write a few this year on creativity and innovation.
I was delighted to work at Cisco as an Innovation Consultant in 2017. This is a technology company which has invested heavily in building processes and systems to support a culture of innovation everywhere.
In writing this blog I draw heavily on the thinking of Alex Goryachev, Global Innovation Leader at Cisco starts his book, Fearless Innovation with the opening remark that,
‘Innovation is a horrible word – The term has become so buzzy, it seems to have lost all practical meaning’
Later on, he goes on to explain that,
‘Innovation isn’t a thing, it’s a mindset and attitude made up of clear principles that help individuals, organizations and societies adapt to change, survive and grow, progress and prosper’
He explains that to keep it alive requires focused effort. In a blog on the Cisco website, Alex proposed five strategies to build an innovative culture.
1. Break down silos and foster cross-functional collaboration
Recognize that great ideas can come from anywhere inside the organisation and that innovation programs should not be limited to particular departments and that employees should be encouraged to think beyond their own job and function and across to other teams and disciplines to solve problems.
2. Gamify Innovation and Have Some Fun in the Workplace
Create friendly competitions that incentivize and reward employees and teams for identifying and developing new ideas. Encourage other employees to vote on the ideas to encourage discussion.
3. Form a Community-wide Network and Innovation Hubs
This strategy recognizes that no single company can innovate on their own. It’s recommended to invest in coaching and mentoring to develoo skills and confidence and build on strategy 1, by providing employees with channels to connect with leaders in their business community. Cisco is a prolific bringer together of customers, partners, start-ups, developers, representatives from local government, researchers and academics under one roof to discuss challenges crossing sectors. Through their various Innovation Centers they have given internal and external parties a space to meet and exchange ideas.
4. Secure Executive Commitment to Innovation
Leaders empower employees to dedicate time, away from their day-to-day responsibilities to innovate ideas they’re most passionate about creating an environment where employees feel free to experiment and take risks, without fearing repercussions. Francine Katsoudas, Chief People Officer at Cisco, suggests that managers build a culture of trust and talk about a mistake they’ve made, to model a behavior for other team members to follow. At the same time, they need to ensure that there is a metaphorical safety net there to protect employees.
5. Weave Innovation into the Everyday Fabric of Your Work Culture
Managers should set aside time for conducting meaningful discussions with their teams around persistent problems or challenges they’re seeing in the workplace and how they could be solved.
You can learn more about Cisco and what they’ve done to build an innovative culture at the links below.
References
Alex Goryachev (2020) Fearless Innovation: Going beyond the buzzword to continuously drive growth improve the bottom line, and enact change. Wiley Publishing
https://blogs.cisco.com/innovation/cultivating-innovation-within-your-organization
Jacob Morgan interviewing Francine Katsoudas