generate new ideas
Ideas as a Job Requirement
You can’t say “let’s be Apple” and suddenly be Apple. Nor can you hire a bunch of highly talented people and expect them to self-assemble into an innovation machine. You must create an environment where new ideas are routine.
Most companies aren’t innovative because innovation is not built in. They’re meeting deadlines, hopefully stumbling, with little time to be “creative”.
But creativity is a habit – not an attribute – and if you want to be competitive, you may need to make some fundamental, cultural changes.
Schedule
Make brainstorming sessions a part of the regular schedule and encourage far-range thinking. Though you might have to reel back expectations from time to time, the depth and volume of your team’s ideas will likely only increase over time and you’ll have the comfort of knowing your company is always working on something new.
Allow experimentation
Untested ideas are useless, even burdensome. Let your team try out their ideas and learn from their mistakes. Better to learn from private mistakes than public ones.
Instill a sense of urgency
You need your best ideas in the marketplace as quickly as possible and wasted time is wasted money. Ideas need to come fast and furiously (though sometimes they simply won’t).
Make sharing ideas easy
Bulletin boards, wiki pages, post-it notes – all good ways to collect and distribute ideas. See what works best for your people.
Get everyone involved
The classic round design of the iPod’s interface was suggested by a person in marketing so include team members from various disciplines. You never know where good ideas will come from.
Be observant
There is nothing wrong with standing on the shoulder’s of giants – build on the ideas of your competition and avoid their mistakes. But if you’re always playing catch-up, you’ve got bigger problems.
Don’t wait for comfort
Don’t put off making changes till a “better” time – it won’t happen. Do you really think all those young start-ups are waiting on comfort?
Think small
Innovation doesn’t need to be a massive change. If your team can consistently generate small but effective, easy to implement ideas, you’ll always stay one step ahead of the other guys.
Think big
Sometimes making a radical change is exactly what you need to do. Knowing when you should take the big steps, well, that’s probably another topic.
Lead with creativity
Don’t wait for the “artsy types” to give you something “cool”, come prepared with things from your own head. If you can do it, maybe others can, too.
Resell
Try and inspire your clients by suggesting new spins on their features. Mine rejections for useful feedback. Create internal products, then sell them back to these or other clients later when they’re more fully realized.
Get fearless
Be willing to take the plunge into the unfamiliar, the uncomfortable. Your decisions can be calculated, but as the saying goes: no risk, no reward.