Shock & Awe: Get Started Today

In a resent post by from Tom Fishburne, we see a depiction of those that failed to see the need for organizational change and digital transformation. Must like many today who were just blind-sided by an enormous wrecking ball. 

BAM... Covid-19 HITS!

In the first two articles in the Shock & Awe series, we discussed the impact of major catalysts to organizational change and innovation. We finished them by highlighting the importance of a culture of innovation in improving the resilience of organizations.

The pace of change in business is speeding up. Like the current pandemic and associated economic shutdown causing upheaval across the globe, businesses are realizing the landscape is changing forever. As business leaders, it is our job to read the signs, understand the impacts, and prepare our organizations for the changes that are coming. For some, the uncertainty of the future feels bleak.Personally, I see opportunity that any business can grab hold of and leverage for lasting success. That does not mean it will be easy. It does mean we have some control over the outcome.  It requires us to put in the work and focus on adapting to the change by building a culture of innovation.

Today we want to cover two topics:

Topic 1: What a Culture of Innovation is from the perspective of four immutable truths

Topic 2: How you, personally, can help ignite a Culture of Innovation in your organization

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Truth #1: A Culture of Innovation is a Philosophy

A Culture of Innovation is not a program or method that can be implemented. It is not something a single person or even a small team can define, build, or develop for their organization. It is not a single process, it is not something tangible, and it does not come with step by step instructions. It is a philosophy that is adopted, nurtured, and grown over time. At its heart, it is the empowerment to be human. That means being curious, adventurous, questioning everything, failing, and then picking yourself back up before trying again. It is messy and sometimes raw and uncertain. In the end, it breeds nimbleness and leverages incremental success to move the business towards its strategic goals. 

Truth #2: A Culture of Innovation takes Top Down Leadership

The seeds of any change, including a culture of innovation, can be a grass-roots movement. That model is not sustainable. With a grass-roots movement, sure, you will see some victories and can make a minor noticeable impact. The challenge is, without proper support, daily priorities & competing agendas will distract and diminished enthusiasm. Eventually extinguishing the energy of the grass-roots movement while progress subsides. For a culture of innovation to really take root, it starts at the top.

A successful Culture of Innovation brings lasting change. Such change only occurs when Leadership buys into the importance of it. The executive team must prioritize resources dedicated to driving such change. This ensures the Culture of Innovation efforts are aligned to the strategic direction of the organization.

Truth #3: A Culture of Innovation is a Relay Race

Everyone has a role in a culture of innovation. In a relay race, one person or group starts the race, runs around until they reach the next runner, and hands off the baton. This process continues until the race is over. The same is true with a culture of innovation. Here, the race starts with the leadership, is handed off to management, and eventually down to every employee in the organization. This is critical for adoption, as stated in Truth #2. This is also true for the Innovation itself. Part of innovation is the process, often referred to as a funnel or a pipeline. In this process, an idea is generated and handed off from person to person or group to group until either the idea fails to reach the next hand-off or reaches the finish line.

Truth #4: A Culture of Innovation does not happen Overnight

The final truth is that this does not happen overnight. All meaningful and sustainable change takes time. In fact, you should not be surprised if it takes your organization two to three years to establish a lasting Culture of Innovation. Why? There are several factors that go into this answer. The first is the level and depth of resistance to change. Every time change is involved, there is some resistance. It could be light, or it could be heavy. The degree and how deep it goes within the organization directly impacts the speed of adoption. The size of the organization and the number of layers also has a significant impact. Change is a slow process as it is, the larger an organization and the more layers that exist, the longer it will take to spread. Other factors that can play a role might be the market, the industry, and the economy. In the end, prepare for the long haul by taking stock of what factors, within your organization, might slow the process and discuss how to handle them.

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Now that we have talked about the truths, let’s talk about the six steps that can be taken, starting today, to seed and nurture a Culture of Innovation.

Step #1: Start the Conversation

Conversations are an important business tool. By having a conversation, you can learn about another person. Discover problems and struggles that should be addressed. While uncovering just how much people understand about the corporate objectives. Starting a Culture of Innovation can benefit as well. During your interactions with coworkers, managers, and the leadership, you can pose some simple questions like these to take the pulse of the organization.

Change to Daily Activities: “If you can change one thing about your daily work, what would it be? What stops you from making the change?

Change to Technologies: “Is there a technology or tool that can help you perform your job more effectively? Why isn’t it available to you?”

Change to Processes: “What processes, in your daily work, are cumbersome and fraught with red-tape? Could you change it? Why not?”

Change to Deliverables: “What does your department do for the organization? How can it be better? What changes would be necessary to make it better?"

Impact to the Organization: “Do you understand the impact you and your team have on the organization? Do you understand the strategic objectives of the organization? Do you know how your efforts tie into those objectives?”

Hidden Ideas and Talent: “Do you have any ideas that could help the organization reach its objectives? Do you have a way of sharing those with the leadership? Do you have any talents that could be useful to the organization that are not leveraged today?”

Assist Change: “How can I help to make the change you seek possible?”

Having a conversation is not the end, it is the means. The goal is to open others up and get them sharing in ways they never have before. You are setting the example and showing others that these conversations are important. As you have them, encourage people to have similar conversations with others and to be curious. Show them that they have more control over their daily lives than they think and inspire them to make the changes they can make. Pay attention to those that have a passion for this process and are clearly thriving change. These people will be important in Step #3.

Step #2: Win Alignment (aka Buy an Executive Lunch)

This is relatively self-explanatory. As we said earlier, a Culture of Innovation takes leadership buy-in. By taking an executive to lunch or having a candid conversation with them, you are showing your passion and the need for change and innovation within your organization. Show your passion for helping the organization achieve its goals and grow. Without naming names, talk about the conversations you have had with others and what you have learned. The goal is two-fold: show the need for innovation and win a sponsor. The key to success here hinges, largely, on how much you know about what is important to the executive you are courting. Taylor your discussion and argument to how innovation can impact what they care about. Leverage the questions above to highlight how innovation can help them achieve their department goals and personal agenda.  This will increase the chance that they agree to champion your efforts with other execs and the board. Be prepared to have more than one lunch/conversation and possibly with more than one executive.

Step #3: Build a Coalition

Depending on executive guidance, you may be the point person who will take this step and lead future steps. However the baton may pass to another person. Regardless, this step is crucial and will need to be lead with executive guidance and oversight.

Once you have at least executive team awareness and buy in, take the time to build a coalition of coworkers. Include individuals from every level. Coalition members should a similar passion for innovation and driving the organization’s objectives. Together, the coalition will research what it may take to build a Culture of Innovation within the organization. The goal is to outline a reasonable plan that the organization can adopt, nurture and mature. This is where you start to water the seeds of innovation and nurture their growth. Often, this process requires a small allocation of resources, whether capital, technology, people, and/or time. This is where your Executive Sponsor(s) come in. It is their role to make the case for this introductory exploration and secure the needed resources and leeway.

Note: If your organization is already structured to support a Culture of Innovation, then you just might need to craft a plan to establish a Process Innovation System. However, less innovative organizations may need to establish an Innovation Journey Program (a repeatable Idea Maturity process) first before attempting to stand up a Process Innovation System. In our next article we will outline what a plan may look like and how to establish and grow a Culture of Innovation and an Innovation Journey Program.

Step #4: Analyze Objectives

In this step, the coalition takes a deep look at the organization and themselves. Here, they analyze the decisions that have been made over the past 12 to 24 months, sometimes longer. The goal is to identify who has a tactical focus vs a strategic focus. Remember article #2? Both have a place but understanding who tends one way or the other is important for aligning their efforts appropriately. They need to review the actual decisions as well. Do they still make sense? Do any work against the strategic direction of the organization? This is where your executive sponsor(s) can really make in impact and start to show the need for innovation within the organization.

Task: This is also an exercise you can engage in to further your efforts. Create a list of all the Executives and Board Members. Review their past decisions, at least the ones you are aware of, then rate their level of willingness to Innovate & Change. Prioritize meetings with the book ends, those who are potential advocates or opponents. Buy each person lunch then learn & document what is important to them.

Note: Identifying and reviewing the decisions of the executive team, board members and even your own will help to inform you on what is important to each person. From that you can deduce a person’s propensity for risk & change while learning what their objectives are. This task can feed your efforts in Step #2.

Step #5: Build a Plan

The plan is a detailed roadmap for the implementation of the processes necessary for fostering a culture of innovation. This involves four focal points:

Focal Point #1 - EDUCATION: 

Education is about shifting the organization from Reactive to Continuous Improvement

Focal Point #2 - COMMUNICATION: 

This is about a strategy to Communicate what a culture of innovation is and the importance it has to the organization. This communication is focused on the entire enterprise (including external vendors & partners). 

Focal Point #3 - PROCESS:

Here we build a blueprint for establishing and maturing a Culture of Innovation within the organization.

Focal Point #4 - ADOPTION: 

Finally, the plan needs to address the back half of the process, how to adopt of innovation into the organization’s daily business. This means defining how an idea moves from a POC to launch and then into the core offering.

The plan is a critical step. It only works if it is as detailed as possible and tailored specifically for your organization. There are no shortcuts here. You can not borrow someone else’s plan and there are no templates you can implement. You must be willing to put in the work here. If you do, it will pay off.

Step #6: Sell the Plan

As we discussed, the executive team and board of directors will need to fully support this culture shift. Without their full support, a Culture of Innovation is little more than a fad. A topic for today that is gone tomorrow. So, this is where the heavy lifting resides. You are about to ask the executive team to make an investment. Not necessarily a financial investment but an influential investment. Culture Change happens first at the very top and trickles down. Just ask HR. They have been trying to change cultures for decades.

Remember that task above? Here is another area what that information becomes useful. Having learned about the Executive Team, consider how they might poke holes in the Plan or even the concept. Before you meet with the Board or Executive team address those considerations in your presentation. Be prepared that the selling process may take several months. Winning over the entire board & executive team can take time. Do not sell yourself short. You need them and they know it. On the other hand, the business needs the ability to innovate, adapt and change with the current. That is what you are introducing... A lifeline to the business.

Sounds simple, right? Its not but it is definitely worth it.

So, what are you waiting for? 

We are currently in the midst of a pandemic that has brought most of the economy to a standstill. If now isn’t the right time to act, when is? 

Even if you are afraid you aren’t the right person to tackle this within your organization, there is no harm in at least starting the conversation. This step alone could inspire someone else to pick up the baton and start running the next leg of the race.

If you are still unsure of where to start or the next step from where you are currently, reach out to us with any questions you may have.  We are always more than happy to share some of our experiences or provide coaching to anyone that needs it.

In our next article, we will be focusing on the mindsets that impact the plan and how to address them.

About Article Series: SHOCK & AWE 

Shock & Awe is a series of articles written by Nick Rich and Don Brown on change and innovation. In this first article we hear about the impact of a crisis on business, the economy, and our lives. In article two we will dive into some of the other types of events that are catalysts for change and innovation in business.

Article 1: https://www.dhirubhai.net/pulse/shock-awe-covid-19-don-brown

Article 2: https://www.dhirubhai.net/pulse/shock-awe-shifting-models-changing-times-nick-rich/

About the Authors:

Nick Rich: As Chief Strategy Officer at EEI (Enrich Enterprises, Inc.), Nick Rich helps drive change and corporate strategic initiatives for both clients and partners. In addition, he is a writer & speaker on Innovation Strategies, Digital Transformation, Data and the future of Scalable Workforce. 

Don Brown: Currently the Director of Software Engineering at Premier International. Passionate about technology, innovation, software development, and sci-fi, he believes that technology can be a force for change within any organization. He also advocates that partnerships between technology departments and leadership are a growth multiplier.

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