We all know we must innovate to survive. Some businesses have seemingly mastered the art of innovation\u2014they have the ability to break down walls, build products, pivot focus at lightning speed, and disrupt entire industries. But for many, innovation is a complex challenge. Process, people, and regulations get in the way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As a global business leader, how can you encourage your team to innovate like a disruptor?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
They say that necessity is the mother of invention. I grew up in South Africa, where, for me, scarcity was a way of life. We had to make the most of the little we had. We naturally innovated without ever calling it that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Most global enterprises don\u2019t suffer from scarcity\u2014even if they\u2019re fending off disruptors, they still have vast capital and resources. It\u2019s no wonder they\u2019re unable to innovate. The truth is, they haven\u2019t created a compelling need to do anything differently. However, I\u2019ve found that there are a few ways to create an environment that drives a need for change and fosters a culture of innovation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n
Scarcity. Scrappy. Failure. These words tend to have negative connotations. But each is positive in the context of innovation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
When people hear the word scarcity<\/strong>, they think of being deprived of the resources they need to be successful. However, startups know that operating with scarcity makes you think creatively\u2014which is exciting and invigorating and can infuse teams with a strong sense of purpose.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Scrappy<\/strong> is another undervalued term; you can be scrappy without being crappy. Innovation requires velocity\u2014speed, agility, and the ability to pivot quickly\u2014and scrappiness facilitates that. Being \u201cscrappy\u201d means you\u2019re able to get the job done with few resources and save time while you\u2019re at it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Every process that a company puts in place is meant to prevent failure<\/strong>\u2014and when all systems are fail-safe, there\u2019s never room to get creative and push the boundaries. Leaders need to reverse-engineer that and build safe-fail environments where employees are empowered to test a hypothesis, analyze the results, and experiment more. When failing is thought about as \u201caccelerating learning,\u201d that\u2019s when innovation happens.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Every leader needs to operate like a venture capitalist. VCs tend to be comfortable with risk\u2014they know that when they invest in startups, those companies will constantly be evolving. VCs let them do what they need to do because they believe their learnings will eventually help them succeed. If all business leaders were to embrace that same approach, they\u2019d give their teams the freedom they need to innovate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Throughout my career, I have taken that approach and seen incredible returns. One example is when I was CIO of Alaska Airlines. Flight benefits are one of the top perks for airline employees. Yet there was no easy way for employees to book their travel. To solve that, I created a team of self-motivated employees and gave them a constrained budget and complete freedom to operate like a startup. I assigned a leader and allowed him to behave like the CEO of the startup. The team very quickly created prototypes, set up user-experience labs, partnered with local companies, and ran demos at team events. Along the way, they solved political, budgeting, technical, and personnel challenges. Eventually, their hard work resulted in a working mobile app that\u2019s known as Hopper<\/a> and has a web interface and a dedicated team.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Perhaps most importantly, Hopper\u2019s success established a stronger culture of innovation, in which employees are empowered to develop solutions to improve customer and employee experiences.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Innovation isn\u2019t just a mindset or a process; the physical spaces in which teams operate also play a role. People tend to adapt their behavior to match their environment. For example, if I took someone to a house of worship, a concert, and a library, that person would likely behave differently in each venue. Each space inspires a different range of feelings, emotions, thought processes, and behavior patterns from the people inhabiting them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When we talk about innovation and startups, the phrase that\u2019s always used is \u201cthree guys in a garage.\u201d Some of the world\u2019s most successful startups famously began in garages\u2014Amazon and Apple, to name a couple. Here\u2019s why: The garage is a safe environment. It\u2019s informal, cozy, and private; it\u2019s part of someone\u2019s home. It\u2019s flexible\u2014when your garage is your office, you can set your own hours. You can go outside, get up, and move to other rooms. You\u2019re free to work in the style that best suits you. This freedom allows people to think creatively without fear of judgment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When you impose time and space boundaries on people, they can\u2019t be their creative selves. If Jeff Bezos and Steve Jobs had been forced to work in drab, gray cubicles, I bet that their innovation levels would not have been the same. That\u2019s not to say that teams should actually work in garages. But remove time and space constraints and give people environments where they feel free to think and create without inhibitions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Diversity is, perhaps, the most necessary ingredient for innovation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We are the sum of our life\u2019s experiences. Our cultures, genders, religions, sexual orientations, places of origin, languages, upbringings, and education all influence the perspectives we bring to an issue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The same types of people will explore only one path. We must explore many to find success.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When it comes down to it, innovation is nothing more than problem-solving. By giving your teams the right conditions in which to approach challenges, they\u2019ll come up with creative solutions you may never have thought possible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n WeWork offers companies of all sizes space solutions that help solve their biggest business challenges.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\nManage like a venture capitalist<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Create physical spaces that drive innovation<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Build diverse teams<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n