What does it mean for an organization to be truly innovative? How can we foster a sense of creativity in an organization’s workforce? Why are innovation and creativity so sought after in organizations today? The answers to these questions are rarely simple, but here are three ways you can encourage innovation and creativity in your own organizations:
1. Establish a Mission for your Organization.
Simply put, an organization is a team of people working towards a mission, or a set of agreed-upon goals. Without these shared goals, organizational members are left to determine their purpose individually. The individuality of each employee should be honored, yes, but success largely depends on the organization’s mission. Thus, developing a coordinated mission is incredibly important.
In establishing a mission, an organization can employ what Tompkins and Cheney (1985) refer to as “‘concertive control,’ whereby members act in concert because they share a common organizational vision and understand how their own work helps build on that shared vision” (Eisenberg, Goodall, & Trethewey, 2013, p. 109). Unlike a typical hierarchy, this form of control binds organization members together in the name of something bigger than themselves. No boss or CEO can stand in the way of a well-crafted mission.
Peter Senge (1990) also claims that all members of an organization must succeed before any single member can (Eisenberg et al., 2013, p. 109). For me, this idea is reminiscent of the popular adage: “teamwork makes the dream work.” As such, an emphasis should be placed on the importance of team-based learning and authentic dialogue. If we are to realize the dream of a creative, innovative organization, the team’s overarching mission should come first.
2. Examine the Past with Respect to the Future.
In considering an organization’s past, I’m reminded of another saying: hindsight is 20/20. Steve Jobs, in his 2005 Stanford University Commencement address, echoed a similar message: “You can’t connect the dots looking forward, you can only connect them looking backwards” (Eisenberg et al., 2013, p. 113). The past is, therefore, worthy of much inspection by ourselves and the organizations we participate in.
As Weick (1995) suggests, members make sense of their organization by examining their own and other’s past actions. This process, called retrospective sense making, allows members to answer the question: “how can we know what we think until we see what we say?” (Eisenberg et al., 2013, p. 112). Looking back at past actions will, in turn, reveal possible methods of organizing in the future.
It’s important to note, however, that the past is just that—the past. Old methods are not always the best choice for an innovative, creative organization. And thus, we reach my final point of advice.
3. Be Open to Drastic Change.
Leave no doubt—organizations must adapt to survive the test of time. Traditions and old ways of thinking can threaten the viability of any organization. To combat this, organizations must engage in what Senge (1990) refers to as “reflective openness,” or “the willingness to challenge our own thinking” (Eisenberg et al., 2013, p. 109). At the same time, an authentic dialogue must be established before challenging the status quo of any organization.
Another great way to investigate change is to see how other organizations are adapting to the current economy. “Environmental scanning,” as Weick (1979) posits, “is crucial to an organization’s survival” (Eisenberg et al., 2013, p. 111). In scrutinizing other organizational trends, members can see what works well and what doesn’t in a certain industry. We can also use another organization’s experience to predict the future of an industry.
Simultaneously, however, we must recognize the truth of equifinality: “the same goal may be reached in multiple ways” (Eisenberg et al., 2013, p. 108). An organization’s success with one method does not mean that another organization will have the same experience. Welcoming change and new ideas—especially in the name of equifinality—is the hallmark of any innovative, creative organization.
References:
- Eisenberg, E.M., Goodall, H.L., Jr., & Trethewey, A. (2013). Organizational communication: Balancing creativity and constraint (7th Edition). Boston, MA: Bedford/St. Martin’s.
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