So your team is on a mission to innovate…just like almost everyone in business, technology, government, education, energy, healthcare, hospitality, food, entertainment, news media, manufacturing, construction, and nearly every industry in existence.
As Michael O’Bryan pointed out in 2013, “Innovation has become the new buzzword, but its overuse and generalization has caused more instances of eye rolling than actual innovation.”
In 2020, Nadya Zhexembayeva took this even further and said, “Innovation is the buzzword. In fact, it has been the buzzword for so long, you could say we’ve developed a cult around it.” She also shared how this might be turning people off to it.
While the word innovation is overused, innovation defined as creating new or better ways of doing valued things is needed and is crucial to human progress.
If you want to mitigate eye-rolling at the use of the word innovation and set your team up for success as innovators, move from overuse and generalization to specific meaning.
Different types of innovation require different strategies and execution. Take the time to get clear about and aligned around what innovation means for your team and your collective efforts so you can choose strategies and execution that make the most sense:
Why are you innovating?
What’s your pursuit of innovation for?
Who are you seeking to create value for?
What does success look like for your innovation efforts? How is the world different because of your innovation? How are those you seek to create value for different as a result of your innovation?
Are you striving for incremental innovation, disruptive innovation, or both?
What mindsets and skills are required for the journey?
