Be Less Zombie

1The Power of Strategic Intentionality

Why innovation doesn't happen without a deliberate leadership choice.

Innovation is an argument that most companies lose.

Why? Because usually they are far too casual about it.

Innovation demands change in the status quo. And typically, the greater the change, the bigger the argument.

So, when companies aren't deliberate enough about innovation, efforts evaporate quickly: business-as-usual is too busy and too powerful to make room for upstart, inconvenient, unproven, resource-hungry ideas. It's a fight that is always rigged.

The transition from a casual ‘dating’ mentality with innovation to a strategic always-on commitment is what sets apart the innovation powerhouses that we read about: Amazon, Google, Pixar, Netflix, Corning, Tesla and the like.

In these companies, innovation is a deliberate, never-ending pursuit. It is strategically aligned, deeply embedded, appropriately resourced, and meaningfully rewarded across the organisation. And anyone can do it.

© Richard Johnston.

Innovation has to be as intentional as any other function in the business. A company will usually have a sales strategy, finance strategy, marketing strategy, IT strategy and HR strategy…but rarely a meaningful innovation strategy. Of course, each function is supposed to layer on some innovation as part of its own strategy; but the truth is that it's rarely enough. ...