What does innovation mean to you?
Level Seven UK Limited, recently adminstered a straw poll, asking a small, mixed population from its corporate client base “What does innovation mean to you in the context of your day-to-day work?”
Here’s a summary of the more interesting comments:
• Not a lot, it’s down to the marketing department
• Our R&D department look after that sort of thing
• We have a suggestion box we’ve nicknamed the ‘Black Hole’
• It’s one of our corporate values but personally it doesn’t affect what I do daily
• Innovation, just another management fad isn’t it?
Dorothy Foote, director at Level Seven, said: "Clearly there are different ways of looking at innovation and where responsibility for innovating lies. Level Seven’s approach to innovation is that it is a mindset and attitude - a sentiment echoed by others, including the MD of BSkyB in his presentation at last year’s IOD Annual Conference."
Some industries take the innovation agenda a lot more seriously as it is often at the core of what they do. The IT industry, for example, is continually looking for innovations (http://tek.io/vRC1pU). Some principles borrowed from their quest include:
• Keep focused (whatever pressures you may be facing)
• Keep to a plan but build in flexibility
• Do your research and have a deep understanding about your situation
• Look to the future rather than the past (i.e. what do we want to achieve rather than what did we do before)
Arguably, these principles could apply across any sector and any discipline and Level Seven attempts to reinforce this message wherever and whenever appropriate. Its Leading Innovation Diagnostic, the LID, aims to help leaders get to grips with how they can foster this spirit within themselves, their team and more widely within the organisation.
Find out more about the LID at www.level7live.com/lid.html and contact dorothyf@level7live.com if you would be interested in using the LID to develop the spirit of innovation in your organisation.
Posted by: Level Seven (UK) Limited
