How companies can encourage innovation
Many workers admit they are not living up to their creative potential. Workplace experts say there are ways to narrow this 'creativity gap.'
from the October 15, 2007 edition
Page 2 of 3
"People are no longer motivated just by making money," Florida says. "Companies have to provide environments that allow [employees] to express themselves."
That kind of environment prevails at the Summit Group Communications in Salt Lake City. Because they are located in an old warehouse, employees can draw on the walls of the conference room while brainstorming. They also play hockey in the hallway, work out, and hold barbecues in the parking lot.
Activities like these go beyond fun and games, Florida says. "They're ways of building relationships and fostering networks. They're powerful tools."
More creativity means less turnover
Still, some managers are concerned that such activities will hinder productivity. Kent counters by saying, "When you foster creative expression among your employees, you end up with lower turnover."
Tight budgets and lean staffing also discourage innovation. "When you had five engineers and now have only three, there's less time and ability for creativity," says Bob Kustka, president of Fusion Factor, a workplace productivity consulting firm in Norwell, Mass.
Outsourcing presents another obstacle. "It's hard to get creative when you have a call center located somewhere else in the world that's disconnected," Mr. Kustka says.
Firms that avoid risks also stifle creativity. "Companies need to allow employees to innovate and occasionally fail by encouraging them to take risks," Kustka says. Otherwise, he warns, "Talented, creative people will become frustrated by their inability to push change. You lose good people."
Kustka praises a former employer, the Gillette Company, for nurturing innovation. He recalls that when it developed its Mach3 razor, it also launched a continuous motion assembly line. "That quadrupled the speed at which we could produce the product," he says. "The organizational culture had a tremendous effect on that. It was a team effort."
Some pay lip service to innovation
Todd Dewett, author of the forthcoming "Leadership Redefined," often finds a "rhetoric gap" between what a company says it values and what it actually values. "There is no shortage of companies with 'creativity' and 'innovation' in their vision statements that nonetheless swiftly stomp out attempts at creativity when they emerge," he says.
Definitions of creativity vary. Kent and others see it as problem-solving. "That's what innovation is," she says.
RSS feed
