Therefore, if an organization wants to create a climate and culture innovation, best possible lasting solution is to help every employee and leader become more self-aware of who they are and what their personal values are. And I don't mean definition of personal values but the expression of those values; i.e. how do those values show up in their work? Their projects? Their email communications, etc.? This will allow everyone to 'tap into' the inner source where ideas to grow the business are sitting dormant.

Great Innovation Leaders figured this out long time ago - i.e. innovation arises from one's (or team's)deep passion for something much bigger then themselves.

-Jatin

"There are innovators who are 'kissed by the Muses,' and whose innovations are the result of a 'flash of genius' rather than of hard, organized, purposeful work. But such innovations cannot be replicated. They cannot be taught and they cannot be learned. ..."

"But also, contrary to popular belief in the romance of invention and innovation, 'flashes of genius' are uncommonly rare. What is worse, I know of not one such 'flash of genius' that turned into an innovation. They all remained brilliant ideas.

"The purposeful work of innovation resulting from analysis, system, and hard work is all that can be discussed and presented as the practice of innovation. ... And the extraordinary performer in innovation, as in every other area, will be effective only if grounded in the discipline and master of it.

"Purposeful, systematic innovation begins with the analysis of ... the seven sources of opportunity: ... [which are] the organization's own unexpected successes and failures ... incongruities ... process needs ... changes in market structures ... changes in demographics ... changes in meaning and perception ... [and] new knowledge. All sources of innovative opportunity should be systematically analyzed and studied. It is not enough to be alerted to them. ...

"An innovation, to be effective, has to be simple and it has to be focused. It should do only one thing; otherwise it confuses. If it is not simple, it won't work. ... All effective innovations are breathtakingly simple. Indeed, the greatest praise an innovation can receive is for people to say, 'This is obvious. Why didn't I think of it?' "

Peter F. Drucker, The Essential Drucker, Harper, 2001, pp. 273-4.

The DeSai Group’s latest research suggests that organizations that prioritize innovation as a core competency and develop leaders who possess the characteristics to create a climate conducive for innovation, consistently outperform their competitors in nearly every category including top-line growth and bottom-line profitability. Employees cannot successfully innovate unless their leaders empower them to do so in an environment that values and rewards their contributions.

Behaviors of Innovation Leaders:

Through our work with executives in their respective fields, we have observed that there are certain characteristics and behaviors exhibited by those that could be considered to be “Great Innovation Leaders”.

Research at The DeSai Group has uncovered four of the most critical behaviors that are essential for success as an innovation leader. These are:

• Collaboration: A leader’s ability to work as a true partner with other stakeholders within as well as outside of their organization adds significant value and competitive advantages not often recognized by leaders who remain insular.

• Customer Focused: True innovative leaders always keep a razor sharp perspective on who their customer/s are.  This pertains to the internal as well as the external customer and involves an intuitive understanding of existing as well as anticipated future needs.

• Quick and Effective Decision Making: Great innovation leaders make wise decisions quickly and effectively. This often occurs because they have established strong cross-functional communication channels and are informed about matters that are vital to decision making. 

• Embrace Change: Great leaders understand that continuous change creates significant opportunities for growth and if a leader is unwilling or unable to continually adapt in today’s business environment, it impedes the entire process of innovation.

Finding leaders that possess all of these traits is challenging. Developing these in others can be even more challenging. Some believe these are behaviors that are innate, but there is evidence that they can be cultivated over time. 

Do you agree?

Can they be built?

What would you consider the most important behavior? –

We would love to hear from you – join our community and collaborate on this and other issues…

- Dan
dbrowne@desai.com

If you did not know, China has become the world's top producer of steel, small-sized motors, and home electrical appliances such as toasters, ovens, and refrigerators. How? They have achieved this due to two important factors:

•1) foreign investment in China

•2) high quality of the Chinese workforce

China has also been ‘buying’ up companies just so they can learn and develop global management skills. In 2004 IBM announced they are selling their flagship personal computer business to the Chinese company Lenovo. In December 28, 2004 article, New York Times suggested that part of the reason they bought the IBM business was to acquire the experienced management team that came with the business from IBM.

On November 11, 2003, then the chairman of Toyota and head of Keidan-Ren, the most powerful organization of CEOs in Japan, said to his peers that

“China has become the world’s top producer in many areas...and Japan cannot of compete with China in the production of like products. China has enormous competitive advantage in its quality of workforce. We must clearly understand that competition is not possible in the filed of “commoditized” products.

For India, the exponential growth rate of software export is clearly the most competitive advantage. In 1995 the export was $700Million, it grew to $15Billion in 2004, to $40B in 2008 and is expected to hit $50B in 2009.

This is not the only advantage in India, the second strength is in the manufacturing sector. Level of Quality of Indian industry has been increasing such that 111 Indian companies were TPM Award Winners (www.tpmonline.com) between 1995 and 2006. Similarly 16 Indian companies won the Deming Prize and Japan Quality Medal. In the United States only two companies (Florida Power in 1989 and AT&T Power Systems in 1994) have ever own the Deming Prize. In Taiwan, only one company has (Phillips in 1991).

According to Ex-Indian President, Mr. Kalam India has three types of companies for the world to take advantage of:

•1) companies with an R&D capability to create unique technologies

•2) companies that license technology and do some design

•3) companies that do manufacturing according to a specification given to them

Bottom-Line #1: For every business , the question for companies elsewhere is...What type of breakthrough thinking is required for a business to grow and prosper in the future, knowing that China and India wants to be your plant and the back office?

Bottom-Line #2:For every individual, the question is what type of skills and competencies will be required to stay in the career you are in or prepare for a career that will be in high demand, knowing the new competitive global workforce?

-Jatin

You might wonder, in light of explicit evidence, why do many of the C-Level executives do not take a more active role is establishing a climate and culture for their organizations to innovate, grow and prosper?

In our work with senior teams and organizations across the globe – the one consistent answer is because they lack the courage and confidence to take risks.

The cause of this "effect” might be that most C-Level decision makers are not strategist, but mere manager. Many people who climb the corporate ladder are just managers not innovators and as long as they are calling the shots, there is a de facto ban on innovation in their respective organizations. Period.

They will not take the role of authentic champions, agents, and advocates of innovation, they are very happy just managing decaying (or stagnant or even dying) operations. To be an innovator the leaders must ask:

1. Are we doing all we can do to generate sustainable growth?
2. Are we providing our clients with the best products or services that we can and the best price points?
3. Are we creating long term value for the organization?
4. Are we challenging our employees to generate breakthroughs and derivative projects?
5. Are the leaders committed and aligned together with strategies and direction?

In today’s climate, innovation cannot be ignored – independent of industries, geographies, or economic climate. Just like breathing in and breathing out – innovation must be the ‘natural rhythm’ of every organization – else the future is well defined – you will land on Commodity Island and ultimately sink.

Do you agree?

-Jatin

Q: What are some critical trends individuals and organizations need to know for weathering the economical storm and beyond?

A: There are several trends. For instance, the future of jobs does not look good for traditional jobs or regular activities performed in exchange for payment, including computer programmer, bank teller, customer phone representative, nurse, certain lawyers, doctors. Those jobs, according to research we have conducted, will be either enhanced or eliminated within the next 5-10 years due to two major trends: Information Automation and Globalization.

Another trend is that most businesses today are ‘wired’ to create profits, not create new jobs. This is a critical point that is much forgotten. It means businesses will do whatever is necessary to make a profit. They will automate every job task and overlook the passion behind the job – the human element.

The only solution to the profit challenge versus maintaining valuable jobs is for individuals in various jobs to re-innovate themselves. This can be achieved by applying more human skills to existing jobs or developing new skills that cannot be automated or outsourced in the face of these major trends.

In our applied research, we have discovered that for most organizations considering automation over people, the answer is the same. In order to survive in business, organizations must rethink how to attract, retain, and grow talent pools with skills that cannot be automated – discovery, creativity, influence, resilience, implementation, and mindful action. These are some examples of competencies, which we believe will be in greater demand in the future. At DeSai, we call these the new ‘Hyper Skills’ needed in every future job.To compete effectively, businesses will have to focus on the importance of the quality and readiness of their talent. Finally, I believe millions of new jobs will be created, not by organizations, but by creative and innovative people themselves. Those who can figure out how to re-invent their own jobs to keep them from being ‘automated or outsourced’ will greatly benefit. The period when employers only designed new job positions are about to go, with more opportunities for those who can create their own job roles and activities to help their organizations.

One last point. I believe a large percentage of workers will need to seek a living outside the corporate umbrella in the future. I think that individuals who can consciously, directly or indirectly, generate income and profits outside the organization will see the most success in the future. We will definitely be more of an entrepreneurial society.

Your feedback, questions and comments are more than welcomed...

Thanks,

Jatin DeSai

Q2: What are some myths associated with innovation?

Answer: Among the myths about innovation is that most people think of innovation as an invention or breakthrough products like the iPhone, hybrid cars, green computers, GPS in cars, etc. Another myth is the belief that innovation is only for large companies.Other myths associated with innovation include the idea that innovation is too risky, eccentric, and time consuming to achieve. Some think innovation is only for R&D areas or for high-tech companies and consumer product industries only. Some believe that innovation is too costly and it takes too long to identify areas in need of innovation and implement solutions. All of these ideas and many more are all unfounded. Every organization, for profit or not for profit, large or small, in every function and at every level can greatly benefit from innovation. The key is to understand it, define it for their respective business, and point all innovation efforts towards one of three value-generation business outcomes – to grow revenue, to grow profits, or to grow market reputation.

Click here to read the book 'The Myths of Innovation' by the well renowned author Scott Berkun.

Q3: You say innovation is a critical driver of growth. Isn't all growth done by innovation or do you mean folks stick to tried and true methods for growth?

Answer: Most businesses are designed to make profits alone. In our, more than 25 years of experience, senior executives seem to pay more attention to the bottom line(profits) and ROI metrics then to top-line growth. Top-line (sales/revenue) growth is much harder to achieve then the bottom line. Most incentives and compensation plans are primarily tied to the bottom line and stock value. I believe this is the primary cause of much of our financial system failure. Motivation to grow the top-line with innovation rarely exists in the business ecology. Innovation, by definition, requires allocation for ‘mindful failure’ (planned projects for purpose of trial, error, and learning), experimentation, and courage to withstand financial performance pressures. When there is no incentive to grow by innovation, only those real leaders with highest moral integrity are willing to do it. Here lies the irony of our current economical situation.

Click here to read how the world's largest technlogy company HP is riding the recession wave using Innovation.

Q4: How can innovation help discover what your customers (internal and external) really want?

Answer: Innovation has very specific management processes. It can be organized and managed similar to every other organizational capability. At our firm, we have created training programs, courses, tools, and methods to teach our clients how to be more creative and strategic for future growth. One of our tools is designed to discover everyone’s own “Innovation Style^TM”; i.e. what stimulates creative thinking and how people approach problem solving (click here for more). By understanding this ‘human side’ of innovation, it is absolutely possible to identify a client’s deeper intent (beyond the needs). Once everyone learns how to bring out the best 360º thinking in themselves and from others, the organization can achieve extraordinary success and generate maximum value with assets they already have. This sounds simple, but learning to ask questions tailored to an individual’s style is a much more complex. However, once individuals and management in organizations learn the skill of asking the right questions, they will become more successful in determining what customers ‘really’ want and need.

Thanks,

Jatin

The first question and answer is posted below.The remaining four Q & A's will be posted over the week...

Q&A on Role of Innovation for Individuals and Organizations

By: Mr. Jatin DeSai, CEO, The DeSai Group

“Innovation Execution” Consulting Firm

http://www.desai.com

Q1: What is the game of innovation? Is innovation a game?

Answer: "Yes, innovation is a game. It is a game because it requires knowledge and skills to compete and win in the ever changing markets. Innovation is a game that every business today needs to play today to avoid becoming useless or even extinct.

Also part of the game of innovation is global competition, the energy crises, economic system failure, poverty, population expansion, and many other mega trends that are here to stay. All of these are converging upon every business sector simultaneously. They are like huge rivers all merging in to one. The turbulence, the waves, and the force created by these mega trends have never been seen by humanity before.

That is why running a business the ‘same old way’ will only guarantee that its management will end up on a commodity island – where everything is price competitive and customers don’t see much difference between that business and the competition. From my perspective as an innovation consultant, I believe that every business must figure out a way to meet every challenge directly or indirectly, with a focus on winning the game of innovation. This means, businesses must learn to experiment, fail, learn from failure, and try something else – until they develop new business acumen skills to sustain and grow.

The rules of the innovation game have also changed - primarily due to two “major” forces: the information revolution and globalization. There is plenty of evidence that shows how these two major trends are shifting consumer buying patterns, local and regional economies, access to education, environmental issues, and the pace of life for every human being. This has created more urgent need to invent new ways of doing business – faster then ever before. Average life span of a company is shortening and more businesses are failing faster due to these two major trends.

Innovation comes from the act of being creative. Creativity comes from people. So, to play this game correctly and compete in this new age, CEO’s must find a way to tap in to the hearts and minds of employees, customers, suppliers, and partners. Our latest research shows that the most critical new competencies that must be developed and managed in your company culture will be: discovery, creativity, influence, implementation, and mindful action. These skills cannot be outsourced and will play more a important role when creating and keeping customers for life."

Feel free to comment and express your thoughts on this blog..

Thanks,

Jatin DeSai

This is a ferocious engine that has created the current financial crisis. The U.S. Government (and many other countries) are bailing out the very same engine that has brought this crisis in the first place. – without solving the real problem. It is impossible to improve the future with only historical thinking. We cannot use existing thinking(rooted in the past experience only) and use it to create future. That is like an engineering teacher certifying a group of students as excellent engineers, but then asking the same teacher to suggest that all the students should also learn American History and Business Management. This type of thinking would be incomplete. In fact, we never notice how incomplete and inadequate it is.

This suggests that most of our societal thinking(and other types of thinking) is completely wrong if the only way we think is from the past.

For businesses, they think, the easiest way to increase profits is to increase efficiency and to reduce costs. They generally do this by reducing employment and laying off workers, instead of driving innovation and grow the top-line (much harder to do). So, they resort to making ‘quick profits’. Why? Because that is how they are incented. This ‘underground’ motivation – to gain personal profits have driven business leaders to be greedy - the fundamental root cause of the world’s sad situation today - in all sectors, in all issues.

So what can be done? What can be done in our thinking?

We need a new more humanistic approach and out of the box radical thinking to this problem. I don’t know of anyone thinking along these lines. Why? Maybe because it is too hard? Of course.

Solution I propose is to change the rules of the game. What if a corporation is allowed a specific profit per head for everyone employed? There would now be an incentive to employ as many people as possible. These people would still need to be employed productively because otherwise there would be no profit. The skill and thinking of executives would now be used to increase employment rather than to decrease employment.

What do you think?

-Jatin DeSai

The global financial crisis has led many companies to slice payrolls, but many employers are staying loyal. Meet 9 of this year's Best Companies that, as of mid-January, have never had a layoff. Click here to read more.

Today’s managers and leaders think of "creativity" rather than"creativeness". Our corporate culture has trained us to immediately think of results rather than seeking to be the kind of people who achieve them, which is little like putting the cart before the horse. We, too often, look for something which can be measured and therefore controlled. We use the word “Creativity” with the underlying intent that it can be a measurable quantity, whereas creativeness is not. It is a quality of the person.

Creativeness is something entirely natural, like the budding of a plant from a seed. Because it is natural, it cannot be forced to produce, commanded or demanded.

There are no recipes for creativeness. It happens in one’s presence at the spur of a moment.

For organizations to compete for the critical "talent war" ahead of us, they must rethink cultivating creativity, but more importantly creating an environment for people to naturally bring out their latent creativeness -which exists in all human beings. Organizations who figure out how to do that will be able to attract and retain the best talent.

So how can one develop this competency of “creativeness” in day-to-day work?

• Develop greater awareness of situations and problems, viewing them with bare attention. In this way they will be seen with clarity.
• Look at situations with sincerity and detachment (very hard to do). This means recognizing and admitting to yourself your own involvement.
• When you have observed the problem in this way, do not put it on one side, but bear it in mind for however long is necessary. Don’t force to seek the solution- let it come to you.
• Take care to notice the intuitive signals, whatever these happen to be in your case. Eventually a solution will occur to you – anytime, anywhere.
• Look at the solution you have discovered with clear comprehension of purpose and suitability. Not all intuitive and creative ideas you get are necessarily right or practical.
• Validate its value if it was realized, shop it around, lens it from varieties of perspectives – customers, peers, leaders, suppliers, markets, etc.
• Finally, act on it. Ideas and solutions are of no use, if they are only confined to private realities.

Thanks,

-Jatin

Recommended books on creativity (accessible online):

- Handbook of creativity - Robert J. Sternberg

- Cracking Creativity: The secrets of Creative Genius - Michael Michalko

- Creativity: Unleashing the forces within - Osho