Driving high performance and innovation therefore go hand-in-hand. The market recognises this, and the need for innovation can be boiled down to five factors<\/a>:<\/p>\n So in order to be adaptive and succeed, companies must create a culture that cultivates creativity and innovation. An organization\u2019s culture is innovative when it truly supports and values discovery and creativity at every level. However, building this can be tricky and surprisingly paradoxical.<\/p>\n In the Harvard Business Review<\/a>, Gary Pisano discusses how difficult it is for organizations to successfully create an innovative company culture due to the inconsistencies required. For example, organizations must be able to balance;<\/p>\n Pisano captures the idea that creating a culture of innovation is not as simple as vaguely encouraging employees to be creative and giving them the freedom to experiment.<\/p>\n Everything in a company contributes to its culture – from the organizational structure to the team-building activities to the technology used. Here are some things you can do to help create a more innovative company culture:<\/p>\n To create a culture of innovation in your company, an innovative mindset in your employees is a must. Many believe that innovation or creativity comes naturally and isn\u2019t something that can be taught. This isn\u2019t true, and believing so will have massive costs in the long run! Innovative thinking can be taught and practiced, but the effort needs to be put in from the top.<\/p>\n According to Gary Hamel in HBR<\/a>, individuals must be taught to do these four things to build innovation:<\/p>\n With some training and opportunities to practice, an innovative mindset will drive high-performance in your team.<\/p>\n If your team is going to have the chance to come up with new and exciting ideas, they\u2019re going to need the resources available to do it. Time, money, personnel, and technology are essential to your employees the freedom needed to innovate. They\u2019ll also need the resources to implement their ideas.<\/p>\n For example, imagine working at a company that preaches innovation, but in reality, your work day is constantly consumed by unnecessary busywork that eats up your time. Time is money, and companies need to be ruthlessly efficient with it.<\/p>\n Ensuring a flow of resources to your team will give them the space and time to conjure and implement those brilliant ideas. This process perpetuates your company\u2019s innovative culture, as it inspires employees to keep innovating. Plus, other employees will be encouraged to innovate when they see their peers making a difference. One study<\/a> that analyzed the impact of organizational culture on creativity and innovation found a correlation between the implementation of ideas and the willingness of employees to innovate. When employees\u2019 ideas are implemented, they are more likely to continue to innovate. Who wouldn\u2019t be pumped by your great idea becoming the next big feature at work?<\/p>\n Psychological safety in the workplace is more important than ever, and it\u2019s the key to a culture of innovation. Simply put, it\u2019s the ability to be yourself without fear of negative consequences to self-worth or career.<\/p>\n Take the classic film The Devil Wears Prada – nightmare boss Miranda Priestley was brutally harsh and casually cruel. A prime example of a leader that did not foster psychological safety, making those under her feel small and silly. While her outfits were fabulous, the office morale was not. An extreme example this may be, but the rule stands that inspiration to innovate isn\u2019t going to happen when your team is apprehensive at sharing their ideas.<\/p>\n Here are a few things that leaders can do to ensure that their workplace is psychologically safe:<\/p>\n Remember, the nature of innovation means that most ideas won\u2019t be suitable. And that\u2019s ok! After all, spitballing 99 unworkable ideas to get 1 brilliant one is a far better trade than no brilliant ideas at all.<\/p>\n A strong team that can communicate effectively is more likely to collaborate. Collaboration is what leads to better innovation<\/a>. Often different departments need to come together to implement a new initiative, so it\u2019s important that your employees are able to work together no matter their background or personality.<\/p>\n Incorporate team-building activities<\/a> on a regular basis that encourage your employees to bond and get to know how to work with one another. Go beyond the Friday happy hour and come up with activities that encourage your team to practice innovation and creativity. This could be taking them to an escape room challenge or even doing a relay race. You\u2019ll kill two birds with one stone by getting them to collaborate while stretching their innovation muscles.<\/p>\n If you want an innovative culture, failure is going to be a given. It\u2019s a reality of trying to innovate that ideas that sound great on paper don\u2019t always work out. Organizations that don\u2019t celebrate innovative failures will find that their employees quickly become hesitant to experiment and think outside the box.<\/p>\n Rather, it\u2019s important to recognise that there are important learnings and takeaways from all outcomes. Always praise your employees for their willingness to take a chance and run with an idea. You\u2019ll be rewarded with a workplace that will care about getting your business to the top.<\/p>\n However, organizations must be able to praise failure while having an intolerance for incompetence. As much as you want your employees to try and make their crazy ideas work, the crazy ideas have to be rooted in reality.<\/p>\n A culture of innovation means that innovation is an integral part of your company\u2019s values and goals. Therefore your company\u2019s definition of innovation must be clearly defined and integrated into your ethos. All employees, from the C-suite to the new hire, must be aligned with this. When employees are aligned and invested in the organization\u2019s mission, they\u2019re more likely to contribute to its success.<\/p>\n This requires skillful and consistent communication<\/a>. Develop a Strategic Roadmap that clearly aligns your organisation\u2019s goals with the \u2018how\u2019. Don\u2019t let it gather dust: use it! Frame every idea into how this can drive your organization\u2019s goals.<\/p>\n When you clearly articulate to your employees what innovation looks like, and how their innovation fits within the strategic plan, you will have employees that actively participate in the culture of innovation, no matter who they are or what department they work in.<\/p>\n Like any output in an organization, you will want to keep track of the innovation effort and have a rewards system in place. Innovation metrics can be placed into two categories – input metrics vs. output metrics<\/a>. Input metrics measure the relevance and amount of activities while output metrics measure whether the activities have impacted your goals.<\/p>\n Input metrics could include the R&D spend as a percentage of sales or the number of new ideas in the pipeline, whereas output metrics could be the number of new products launched in a period of time or the ROI from an innovative project. You should also measure your company\u2019s culture for innovativeness through metrics like the number of employees participating in innovation activities, or the number of employees trained in innovation methodologies.<\/p>\n The reward for innovation should be generous, consistent, and public. Reward your team not only when their innovative ideas are successful, but when they take risks too. Even verbal acknowledgments in team meetings or investing in their training further go a long way.<\/p>\n\n
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![\"Teach](\"https:\/\/www.teamly.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/Teach-your-employees-to-be-innovative.png\")
<\/p>\n<\/span>1. Teach your employees to be innovative<\/span><\/h2>\n
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![\"Make](\"https:\/\/www.teamly.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/Make-the-resources-needed-available.png\")
<\/p>\n<\/span>2. Make the resources needed available<\/span><\/h2>\n
![\"Foster](\"https:\/\/www.teamly.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/Foster-psychological-safety-so-your-employees-are-comfortable-sharing.png\")
<\/p>\n<\/span>3. Foster psychological safety so your employees are comfortable sharing<\/span><\/h2>\n
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![\"Support](\"https:\/\/www.teamly.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/Support-collaboration-and-communication-through-team-bonding.png\")
<\/p>\n<\/span>4. Support collaboration and communication through team bonding<\/span><\/h2>\n
<\/span>5. Don\u2019t punish failure but reward success<\/span><\/h2>\n
![\"Align](\"https:\/\/www.teamly.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/Align-your-employees-with-the-Strategic-Vision.png\")
<\/p>\n<\/span>6. Consistently align your employees with the Strategic Vision<\/span><\/h2>\n
![\"Keep](\"https:\/\/www.teamly.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/Keep-track-of-innovation-and-reward-as-required.png\")
<\/p>\n<\/span>7. Keep track of innovation, and reward as required<\/span><\/h2>\n
<\/span>Conclusion<\/span><\/h2>\n