All organizations have the ability to be smarter than the sum of their members’ intelligence and talent. Unfortunately, most are actually dumber. The good news is there are a handful of practical steps to boost collective intelligence.
3 Ways to Build a Culture of Collaborative Innovation
You’ll have a far more innovative, resilient organization if you follow three practices. 1) Create tools that allow everyone to communicate strategically about innovation. Materials science company W.L. Gore puts its key innovation criteria in the form of a one-page “Product Concept Worksheet.” The template allows anyone to propose a new idea — and everyone to judge its merit. 2) Vet and refine ideas collectively and continuously. In nimble organizations, innovation ideas aren’t reviewed once or twice a year by a senior committee. Instead they undergo a constant process of review, refinement, and — if necessary — death. The goal is for only the best ideas to survive. 3) Keep top leaders focused on helping those close to the coal get the resources and support they need. The job of top leaders is to serve people who are close to the market.