Innovation Broken Down

Workplace innovation is a necessity. Businesses have to keep coming up with new ideas in order to stay ahead of competition, keep up with trends, and keep turnover rates at a minimum. Unfortunately, the idea can also be highly intimidating for some. Most businesses fall back on brainstorming, a process that is in no way guaranteed to work, or sometimes even outsource their creative thinking, costing money that could be better spent elsewhere. So how then, does a leader make the idea of innovation and creative thinking accessible to everyone? Well, the geniuses over at Wharton have published another one of their brilliant Nano Tools for Leaders that outlines the best way to do just that.

Wharton’s Ethan Mollick presents a concise set of seven steps that will spark creative thinking and help overcome hurdles. Based on The Breakthrough Game, which Mollick co-created with game developer Justin Gary, this nano tool is a fun approach to something that not everyone is inherently good at.

First, says Mollick, frame the question. When relying on team-think to come up with creative ideas, open-ended questions lead to more inventive solutions and new ideas. Second, build the team. Get as many diverse opinions and backgrounds as possible for the best outcome. Third, generate raw ideas individually. While this may seem counterintuitive, research shows that many ideas discussed as a group get shot down before their time to conform with the hive-mind mentality. If everyone takes time to come up with a list of ideas before coming together as a group, the more creative ideas get a chance to shine. Fourth, add constraints. Whether time constraints or boundaries about the types of ideas, studies show that these can lead to better ideas. Fifth (which gets back to the third tip), recombine as a group and watch ideas flourish. Sixth, vote! Mollick suggests voting along more than just yes and no lines. Give awards for which ideas stand out as most efficient, most cost effective, etc. And lastly, commit. Without protocols to follow up, and dedicated team member accountability to each step in the process, ideas will eventually fall flat.

Innovation can be intimidating, and having steps can greatly help teams and businesses achieve goals and solve problems. Sometimes it just helps to have it broken down in a seven-step path before we can really get into the meat of the ideas. Check out the full article here for a deeper dive and see what your team can come up with!

The 5 Types of Decision-Makers

We’ve all seen personality quizzes that profess to tell us what kind of traits make us who we are. From the infamous Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (TM), to identifying which type of learning style or love language each one of us has, there are many different quizzes at our fingertips just waiting to be Googled. A new archetype on the scene, however, is what type of problem-solving personality we each may have. In a new article from HBR, Cheryl Strauss Einhorn lays out what she calls the five PSPs, or Problem-Solving Personalities. Einhorn explains that our own cognitive biases often lead us to want to work with others that problem-solve in the same ways. In general, people who problem-solve the same way tend to think and make decisions in the same way as well. Unfortunately, this lack of problem-solving diversity can crush creativity.

First in the PSP lineup we have the Adventurers; these are the folks led by intuition and are the consummate optimists. Second, the Detectives; data-driven and precise, they dig into all information voraciously. Third, the Listeners; whose favorite way to problem-solve is to collaborate with others and collect ideas. Fourth, the Thinkers; who like to map out many options before deciding on one. And last but not least, the Visionaries; the creative types who pride themselves on being able to see solutions others don’t.

Some of these PSPs can interact together in very constructive ways, while others, unfortunately, seem to amplify their weaknesses. In order to play to all strengths, first team members must identify which kind of problem-solver they are. Then, advantages and disadvantages can be identified and teams can move forward in a collaborative environment. Check out the full article here for a deeper dive into each PSP’s details, and read some real-life examples of how leadership put these into action.

On the Road to Moral Insight

Often, when we encounter difficult problems, people, or issues, our initial reaction can be to run or try and shut it (or them) out. This is only natural, and likely led to survival back when the problem was a life-threatening predator. These days, however, our problems tend to be less dangerous, but far more morally complex. Daniel Pink, bestselling author and host of Pinkcast, posted one of his short yet informative videos recently about a simple linguistic change that can have a profound impact on your problem-solving abilities.

Based on research published in the Academy of Management Journal, Ting Zhang of Harvard University, along with colleagues Francesca Gino and Joshua D. Margolis found that there was one trick to use when trying to fix a dilemma. They found that posing the question “What could I do?”, as opposed to “What should I do"?” can generate moral insight and more creative solutions to the issue at hand. Not only is the ‘could’ approach inherently altruistic, but it also opens up possible solutions to the issue. Check out the full article here and see how this one small change can change your mindset the next time you’re in a difficult situation.

Jazz and the Art of Generative Conversations

Any fan of jazz music will tell you how enjoyable - or even euphoric - it can be when multiple musicians, instruments, and sounds come together. The blending of notes, rhythms, and improvisations coming from multiple artists are what set jazz apart from other types of music; what make jazz unique. So how can observations from this style of music help us with what we call ‘generative conversations’? Just like in a jazz performance, generative conversations bring together people with different skills, experiences, and perspectives in order to solve a problem creatively.

In the context of running a business, generative conversations can - but rarely do - occur organically. Usually one team or individual attempts to push through their own point of view or solution to a problem, while others get ignored. Luckily, a fantastic new article from Wharton lays out some simple and effective techniques for facilitating these conversations in a business setting, and uses neuroscience to explain how solutions are come to in this process. In particular: play by the jazz rules.

By following the unique aspect of improvisation and cooperation allow teams to take a step back from problem solving into exploring the challenge directly. This serves the dual purpose of gathering more information about the existing problem, while also not overloading the team on the most glaring or obvious parts. In other words; be curious rather than determined.

Just like in jazz, this method of problem-solving allows our minds to open and be creative in a way that otherwise wouldn’t happen. By entering into a mindset of exploration and structured dialogues in which participants alternate between speaking and listening, teams can improvise to reach breakthrough solutions to complex challenges. Check out the full article here and see if all these steps can be put together for your team to build a unique set of problem-solving techniques.

The Hero Complex

When disaster strikes or issues arise in a business, those in leadership may feel the need to step in and attempt to solve the problem. They want to be the hero, and as leaders they may be naturally inclined to do so. But is this tendency really helping anyone? Of course leaders have a responsibility to respond to situations, but the onus to take over situations to “fix” them, may be misguided.

Colonel Fred Maddox, an assistant professor at the U.S. Army War College and Chief of Staff of the Army senior fellow at the Kellogg School shares his experiences in a new article from Kellogg Insight blog. In it, he explains that leaders need to resist the urge to ignore their own workload to help resolve these situations. “When leaders act like they’re the only ones who can solve something, it can become an issue for the whole organization,” Maddox says, “because they’re not focused on strategy and they’re doing someone else’s job.” Let that one marinate for a while.

Maddox goes on to tell leaders that when the urge to step in arises, take a step back and reflect on the situation first. Ask why this intervention is necessary. Are there fears around teams or individuals failing? Are there no systems of accountability? Is there just plain fear that the entire ship will go down? Once there is a good understanding of why this urge is coming up, then it can be addressed. Is the team/individual really in danger of failing? Likely not. It’s likely that they are actually quite capable if left to figure things out.

In preparation for problems inevitably arising, some leaders may want to rehearse common issues so that this urge to intervene may be better controlled. The confidence built for teams, individuals, and leaders can go a long way to allow everyone to do their jobs, and keep leadership in the strategic roles where they belong. Check out the article and see if you can let go of some of these tendencies.