The Innovation Formula

PART I INDIVIDUAL-LEVEL FACTORS

While many people think of cultural change as something that needs to happen at an organisation-wide level, research has actually revealed that there is much that can be influenced at the individual level — especially when it comes to driving innovation. If you are a manager reading this book, the chapters in this section will provide you with plenty of advice on how to structure tasks and projects in your team, and suggest initiatives that you could consider implementing to help drive a culture of innovation for the individuals in your team.

If you are an individual without direct managerial responsibility, then this section will probably be the most important one you read. The suggestions and ideas contained over the next three chapters are strategies that you will be able to implement readily — for both yourself and your peers.

We start with the challenge of challenge. One of the most important factors in creating a strong innovation culture is that individuals need to feel significantly challenged by what they do. Chapter 1 explores what it means to be challenged, what is the ‘right' level of challenge to aim for, and gives examples of how other organisations are setting challenges for individuals.

Chapter 2 examines the topic of autonomy. Ensuring people feel a sense of freedom and control over what they do and how they solve problems is a significant driver of innovation. The need to give individuals autonomy in their roles comes up over ...