Innovation Culture - Focus on Climate

Discussion for EA874 Topic 7 > Evaluating Emerging Tech, Innovation, Trends

Post # 3

The six dimensions summarily discussed from Post # 2 are said to be building blocks of innovation (values, behaviors, climate, resources, processes, and success) and are interrelated to each other in helping build a culture of innovation and creativity.

The Rao framework presents “cultural climate” as one of the six building blocks for an innovative culture.  Climate refers to those patterns present in the organization’s environment, essential to building the foundation on which the spirit of innovation is cultivated.  Climate is an intangible notion which is more felt than directly seen. However, the effects of cultural climate are evidently observed. According to the framework, the innovative climate for the organization is influenced by three main factors or themes: Collaboration, Safety, and Simplicity.

Collaboration is the spirit of working with others to achieve shared goals. More important, it is an effort to foster working relationships by sharing knowledge, learning, and building consensus, in order to increase the likelihood of success.

Community.  A sense of community prevails in a collaborative environment.  Individuals or entities tend to affiliate with others who share common interests or goals.  In a large organization, it is not surprising for powerful sub-cultures to develop across the organization and bringing into alignment with different points of view, essential for fostering a healthy climate.  There are organizations which talks about the creation of a start-up sub-culture, and given autonomous power to innovate.  A strong community will also build a rich communal language which facilitates a common way of speaking and thinking about innovation. I have seen how successful companies reinforce the sense of community  through notions of “synchronous and asynchronous rhythms” i.e. good combination of face-times and asynch communications, “brown-bag” sessions, “round table” discussions, and distinguish between invention and innovation. Some companies mention “innovation champions”, “thinking-out-of-the-box” and “empowering failure”.  And some other cultures may even require “forcing people to collaborate”.

Diversity.  In a collaborative environment, differences that exist in the community are appreciated, respected, and leveraged. In global teams composed of different nationalities, it is important to embrace a diverse set of individuals from different countries in order to effectively execute on development and marketing of their products.  Diversity thinking is not only bound within the internal organization, and extend to external consultants who bring their expertise and "outsider" thinking.

Teamwork.  The notion of team emphasizes the healthy empowering behaviors necessary in a collaborative environment.  Collaboration only works towards innovation when team members work well together to capture opportunities.   In places where teamwork clicks, team members end their work days on high energy levels, filled with enthusiasm and laughter, even if the day's problem was elusive and the solution is not yet complete. Good places talk about the relaxed atmosphere of the informal after hour sessions to encourage camaraderie even in the context of technical discussions.

Safety is the second theme or primary factor in an innovative climate. It is an appreciation of the environment which provides its members a general sense of freedom from danger, risk, or injury. Safety is thus the provision of freedom from intense distractions which hinder the innovative process and productivity in general.

Trust. In an innovative environment, members need to feel safe by having mutual confidence that they can rely on each other to be consistent in upholding sustainable values articulated by the organization. In some enlightened companies teams are allowed to go out of their normal environments and are "given the permission" to fail.  And when we speak of hiring best talents, it is not only for intellectual abilities, but also for the maturities needed to work effectively in teams.  Once hired, these talents trust each other to take risks and accept failures as part of their learning realities. They know that failures are just part of the real world, and do not define the team members when they trip and fall from time to time.

Integrity.  Safety  can only be promoted with integrity because integrity is the quality of members that is manifested during conflicted moments, when nuanced scenarios test their steadfast adherence to organizational values and code of conduct.  Integrity is strongly related to trust.

Openness. Creativity and innovation demands an abundant exchange and flow of ideas and opinions.  A respectful environment which is open to suggestions allows its members to speak up and express their ideas -- even those which are unconventional and perhaps controversial. Openness allows the members to feel safe with these expressive freedoms. In good places, members are not afraid of being ridiculed with their ideas, and independent thinking was encouraged by stating that no ideas were 'off the table' and participants are encouraged to use contrarian thinking to spark new ideas.

Simplicity is the third theme or primary factor in an innovative climate. Simply put, it is the absence of the unnecessary.  Simplicity unclutters the playing field for the organization, and brings a sharper focus on what is essential to the mission. Simplicity allows its members to act with minimal restrictions and hindrances.

No Bureaucracy.  The workplace is simplified when the organization chooses to minimize bureaucracy.  Bureaucracy is the set of layers of administrative elements which can accumulate into many incoherent places over time. Restrictions are reduced or removed when the organization streamlines policies, rules, and procedures. As an example of how traditional bureaucracy is avoided, a company can create a new business area such that it could independently operate without being bound to the traditional ways of doing business. And in certain groups, the weekly round table discussions will always allot time specifically to identify opportunities to simplify processes.

Accountability.  Accountability promotes simplicity when responsibilities and ownership of tasks are clearly defined.  In a reinforcing cycle, the simplification theme itself also promotes accountability and forces the organization for better definitions.  An organization with a healthy level of accountability reduces the clutter and mess of resolving conflicts and avoids counter-productive finger-pointing complications. Good organizations apply RACI charts to major processes, and activities are documented to always identify responsible parties and owners.

Decision-making. The process of innovation in its goal to introduce change can be expected to go through several decision steps and stages.  When the organization adopts simple clear guidelines on how to move the initiatives through the steps, decisions flow smoothly and the innovations are realized expeditiously.  Some companies calls decision facilities as an “innovation funnel” that is used to capture and sift through ideas as these pass stage-gates for reviewing and prioritizing projects and prototyping. Decision-making is also facilitated by what we mentioned as independent operations free from traditional ways of doing business, as well as the use of asynchronous discussions to move actions along in the pipeline.

Conclusion

These building blocks are dynamically linked. Values drive priorities and decisions, which are reflected in how a company spends its time and money. Behaviors describe how people act in the cause of innovation. Climate sets the tenor of  the workplace. An innovative climate cultivates engagement and enthusiasm, challenges people to take risks within a safe environment, fosters learning and encourages independent thinking. Resources comprise three main factors: people, systems and projects. Of these, “innovation champions” are the most critical, because they have a powerful impact on the organization’s values and climate. Processes are the route that innovations follow as they are developed. These may include the familiar “innovation funnel” used to capture and sift through ideas or stage-gate systems for reviewing and prioritizing projects and prototyping. The success of an innovation can be captured at three levels: external, enterprise and personal. Success reinforces the enterprise’s values, behaviors and processes, which in turn drive many subsequent actions and decisions: who will be rewarded, which people will be hired and which projects will get the green light. 

The Rao matrix is thus  a useful tool that gives us another framework in which to view common characteristics that are typically found in innovative companies.  Combined with the other assessment tools from Gartner and Forrester, we can perhaps provide a better profile for our innovation culture, and thus have a clearer set of actions to address deficiencies.

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