When the leadership teams of many companies engage in strategic planning, they may be inclined to play it safe. And that’s understandable; sticking to strengths and slow, measured growth are often safe pathways to success.
But substantial growth—and, in some industries, just staying competitive—calls for innovation. That’s why, as your business looks to the future, be sure you’re creating an environment where you and your employees can innovate in big or small ways.
It’s assumed sometimes that innovation requires limitless resources or is solely the province of those in technical or research roles. However, every department, from accounting to human resources, can devise ways to work more efficiently or even devise a game-changing product or service concept.
Developing an innovative business culture encourages employees to come up with ideas and explore their feasibility without fear of making mistakes. As part of your strategic plan every year, challenge staff to identify problems, ask questions, and seek solutions and answers. In addition, build and maintain a strong structure for innovation. Doing so includes:
Ideas can also come from other sources. For example, what do your customers complain about or ask for? Customer feedback can be an excellent source of innovative concepts. Encourage employees to engage in conversations with customers about what new products or services they may be looking for and ways to improve their current ones.
Innovation is rarely a straight shot. Outrageous, seemingly unworkable ideas may be the genesis of concepts proving both viable and profitable. Employees must be confident they can propose ideas without fear of ridicule or adverse employment actions. Regularly scheduled strategic innovation brainstorming sessions are one way to make this happen. These meetings aim to help staff get comfortable suggesting bold ideas without censoring themselves or harshly criticizing others. Make it clear to participants that there are no bad ideas.
Be sure to include employees from throughout the business. People tend to feel comfortable with co-workers they know well and work with regularly, but “echo chambers” may develop that limit the feasibility of ideas. Staff members from other departments are often able to provide different perspectives. They can help employees with ideas question their assumptions and view concepts from different angles. In other words, assembling cross-functional teams that can cover more ground is helpful when pursuing prospective innovations.
Waiting for the next big breakthrough in your business or industry to fall into your lap is a huge gamble. By making room for innovation in your strategic planning, you’ll increase the likelihood that you’ll find it.
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