Today’s competitive business environment is forcing corporations to use more creativity than ever to stay competitive, productive and profitable. Never before has it been so challenging for a business to stay ahead of the competition, bring products to market and continue to create value within the corporate culture.
Are the managers of the organization willing to take risks? Both the size and age of an organization can affect this willingness. Newer firms are usually more willing to take risks — and, for risk taking, smaller is better. The complicated structure of larger firms works against risk taking. The exceptions to this are large organizations whose success has been based on innovation.
It is necessary to “think outside the box” without ignoring common business practices and compliance with regulations in labor, security and business conduct. Companies that find that balance will be more competitive and ready to address their customers’ needs without sacrificing their own basic values.
The extent to which outside organizations can control the behavior of an organization affects innovation. Such outside regulation can have either a positive or negative effect, depending on the regulation and/or its enforcement.
Listen to your customers: This is one of the basic lessons many people ignore. Some corporations are so focused on their business that they fail to understand what their customers really need. Marketing people have to listen more and push less.
Engage your people in creativity: You have the potential among your employees. They can come up with new ideas every day, but managers often suppress them. And there is never too much time to find new approaches to productivity, customer service and competitive design.
Listen to the community: Many corporations forget their own corporate environments for inspiration — to listen to the people around them in their local offices. With many businesses now looking at a global market, it is easy to forget that many good business ideas can come from just across the hall. We have become so focused on our business that we forget to see the trees within the forest.
Work with the regulators: Before trying to implement change in business practices, see what issues of compliance you may encounter. Knowing the limits before proposing major changes can avoid many problems in the process.
Once an organization starts identifying the needs in those areas, it’s time for the task of trying to come up with actions to deal with them. Productivity is one area where often a new approach is needed. Many organizations are afraid of losing control of their existing processes and delay change in fear of not being able to cope with the challenges.
But that approach is often creating more problems and resistance in the long run. People become more reluctant to accept change. In every organization, there are three types of people when related to change:
The Adapters: Usually the people who want change all the time. They are never happy with the status quo, always looking for new things to do. They can be the best allies in a changing environment, but also will go to certain extremes to ensure change happens without considering potential risks.
The Cautious: They want change, but also evaluate all possibilities before making a move. They will not drive change in an organization, but given the circumstances, they will accept it, and after the benefits and risks are clear, they will help make it happen.
The Opposition: When the change threatens to modify established patterns of working relationships among people, they can be adamant against any changes. They feel threatened by any possible change in their status, working practices. An effort is necessary as well as assurances that change will help them to work better to gain their acceptance and support.
Innovation, or at least the way it is presented, should be easy to understand. Even when users agree that the proposed change would be "good," they may not be enthusiastic if they think it's too complicated to understand or implement.
For further information, see:
End-to-End Efficiency for a More Productive Organization
Technology Consulting
Regulatory Compliance
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