Staying relevant in our exponentially changing world requires becoming a center of innovation. Individual innovation is not enough, it is teams that can deliver on the relentless innovation required to keep your organization relevant. The good news is there are common themes among much of the research and ideas around innovative teams, so we have consolidated seven key points to maximize the innovation in your organization.
1. Value Teamwork:
This quote from HBR – 4 Ways to Build an Innovative Team sums it up. “The truth is you don’t need the best people — you need the best teams. The problems we face today are far too complex to be solved by a lone genius working in isolation.”
2. Hire for Mission:
If your team members are not interested in the work they will not be engaged, and equally important for innovation, they will not be curious.
3. Create a Clear Purpose:
Multiple research studies have confirmed that high performing teams need a clear purpose, and their goals need to be well defined. However, the research also shows that the teams need leeway in how they will achieve the goal.
4. Hire for Diversity & Ensure Inclusion:
Innovation requires as many viewpoints as possible. Homogenous teams are easier to manage, but they will not consistently bring the leading innovative solutions that diverse teams can. Diverse teams only work if they are exceptionally inclusive, and all members can express their thoughts and opinions and they are valued by the team.
5. Create Psychological Safety:
Google’s Project Aristotle which investigated high performing team traits found that psychological safety was the key indicator of team performance. Everyone can voice their opinion without fear of reprisal or rebuke.
Another study, done by researchers at MIT and Carnegie Mellon, found that teams in which people speak in roughly equal amounts far outperform those in which one or two people dominate the conversation.
7. Encourage Experimentation:
Innovative teams need to feel free to experiment. This means being allowed to fail without negative consequences, and to have the required resources to do the experimentation. When you fail, fail quickly, and learn from the failure.
Sources:
HBR – 4 Ways to Build an Innovative Team
HBR – What Doesn’t Motivate Creativity Can Kill It
Forbes – 15 Ways To Help Your Team Be More Innovative At Work
InnovationTraining.org
