“ Innovation is the fastest and most cost-effective way to solve the world’s problems” Steve Jobs
Innovation is the process of generating new ideas and bringing them to life. This therefore requires a great level of creativity, but also a lot of courage, because changing methodology and trying new approaches is accompanied by taking risks.
When we talk about the important qualities to become a good leader, innovation is not necessarily the one that seems most important to develop. However, when we look at the large companies that are leaders in their field (Amazon, Netflix, Apple, Nike, Google), we can see that each of them promotes innovation to distinguish themselves from their competition and to remain the leader in their market. .
By placing itself at the level of a work team and the daily operations of a company, innovation is always opposed to the status quo and the comfort zone of employees. Being creative and having new ideas to improve the efficiency of operations to increase profitability should be at the heart of companies’ goals.
Changing habits
The major problem comes when we ask people to change their habits. Always performing tasks in the same way provides a feeling of security and limits the possibility of errors on the part of employees.
These are two important elements to ensure the sustainability of operations, because we want employees to feel good and tasks to be carried out correctly. However, when an action becomes routine, we stop using our brain and fall on autopilot, which prevents us from seeing and trying methodologies that could be more effective.
According to Charles Kettering , American businessman, if you’ve always done a task the same way, it’s probably the wrong way.
The elements above allow us to understand the importance of innovation for organizations and work teams, but what is the impact of being innovative when we are a leader?
Being an innovative person when we are in a leadership position affects several elements of our daily life:
- Vision and strategy
- Creating a culture of innovation
- Encouragement and motivation
- Change management
- Collaboration and networking
- Informed decision making
- Continuous development
- Problems solving
Vision and strategy
A good leader has a clear vision of the destination to be reached for his team and the different milestones that must be reached. An innovative leader has the advantage of being able to see many possibilities and think outside the box.
This creativity and open-mindedness to doing things differently will make it possible to optimize the actions taken on a daily basis to achieve long-term objectives.
Creation of innovation culture
An innovative leader understands the benefits and results he has been able to achieve because of his ability to use his creativity to improve his work methodologies. It is therefore natural for him to see the multiplicative effect coming from promoting a culture of innovation within his team.
To encourage innovation, he encourages risk-taking as well as creativity and creates a work environment where he values the implementation of new ideas. It is essential for the leader to communicate to his team that new approaches could lead to failures, but that these are part of the improvement process and will serve as a springboard towards exceeding objectives.
Encouragement and motivation
Innovative leaders encourage their employees to use their creativity and experience to find the best methodologies to follow to optimize daily operations. They ask for feedback from people to make the best decisions.
They recognize and reward innovation and new ideas from their employees, which increases employee engagement and motivation to continue looking for ways to improve.
Change management
As mentioned earlier, innovation is opposed to the status quo and the comfort zone. Innovating necessarily implies a change of approach. A good innovative leader will be able to use the right words to explain to his team the advantages of this change, reassure them and guide them through the transition.
It would also make future changes easier if the leader is able to start with modifications with a quick win to convince his colleagues more easily of the advantages incurred when we change the way we do things.
Collaboration and networking
An innovative leader understands that good ideas can come from anywhere so they promote collaboration and cooperation between different teams and departments to find the best ideas. A person external to your work team will bring a fresh perspective on the situation and will allow you to step away from the wall to see the situation as a whole.
He will look at the situation based on his team’s needs and expertise, which could help smooth operations and process efficiency. There is also the opportunity to discuss best practices that could help members of different teams and have an overall impact.
Informed decision making
Asking the opinion of his colleagues and encouraging the use of the creativity of team members allows the innovative leader to access information and have a complete vision of the situation and what is happening. must be accomplished to ensure future success.
There is a significant saving in the time needed to make decisions and this helps minimize errors and negative impacts on the leader and his team. Healthy and effective communication is an essential ingredient to ensure cohesion and collaboration within a team.
Continuous development
An innovative leader encourages their team to learn new skills in order to be aware of process improvement opportunities. This development also provides intellectual stimulation which keeps the brain active and allows team members to always try to find innovations to implement.
It becomes a positive circle: development – innovation – improvement – positivism – development.
Problems solving
Naturally, this is the first thing that comes to mind when we think about innovation: finding new ways to solve our problems. A proactive approach helps overcome obstacles and turn challenges into opportunities.
In my introductory article on innovation as an essential quality of the leader, I gave a good example of problem solving through innovation.
As an innovative leader, you can enjoy many benefits that will set you apart and help your team reach new heights. Encouraging innovation and creativity in your employees will strengthen their engagement and well-being within your group. This will also help with employee retention, a major aspect of the current labor shortage.
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Need help improving your leadership skills or building a culture of caring leadership? Do not hesitate to contact me. I will be happy to provide you with the tools you need for the future.
Always remember: how does your mood impact your performance and overall attitude? Imagine if all your employees or collaborators were happy…
Carl-Michael Tessier, Manager and Team Leader
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