Innovation
Did you hear they have reinvented the wheel? Sounds like the beginning of a bad joke, doesn’t it!
Horse drawn carts had wheels made of timber with a band of metal shaped by blacksmiths to encase the wheel and hold it together. When the motor car was invented an inflated rubber tyre was needed to make the ride more comfortable and facilitate higher speed travel.
Recently in a keynote speech I was speaking about the inevitability of change, and how we should anticipate and be ready for it. Thankfully this doesn’t mean constantly reinventing the wheel, but it does mean being open to better ways of doing things.
Innovation is not just for companies centred on research and development. The everyday organisaton can be innovative when it comes to the ‘how’ they deliver their services, without change the ‘what’ they deliver.
A risk based approach means constantly asking 3 questions:
- Where are we going?
- What do we need to get there?
- What could stop us?
The innovative approach is in the answers to those questions, with perhaps some additional nuance in the questions. How can we get there faster? Cheaper? Smarter? Safer? Happier?
These questions can be asked at the organisation level and at the team level. With the influx of AI tools, administrative tasks are a current example. Are you encouraging your team to think innovatively?
The Author
With over 30 years’ experience, from engineering and manufacturing through to consulting, facilitation and speaking, Lauren’s passion and expertise is in helping leaders build businesses for the future.
She helps organisations become “future fit” through pragmatic application of risk management in strategic planning and management systems. Lauren is also passionate about developing future fit leaders through essential leadership skills.
Her book 10% Better – Taking Organisations from Ordinary to Excellence has been acclaimed as a practical and hugely helpful guide for business leaders.
