The Risk of an Idea
Why innovative people in your firm may not be sharing their best ideas
Albert Einstein once said “If at first the idea is not absurd, then there is no hope for it.” How true. When someone comes up with a radically new idea, it is often hard to determine whether the new idea is brilliant or stupid – even for the person who had the idea in the first place.
As a result, it takes a brave person to propose to their firm a truly innovative new idea. The perceived consequences can include ridicule, loss of respect from management, missing out on future promotions and more.
Of course it is not only brave people who have brilliant ideas. Shy people, people insecure about their jobs, new people who are unfamiliar with corporate culture and people who do not like to make waves (which, comprises the majority of us) are likely to keep radical ideas to themselves rather than risk the consequences. As a result, most organisations miss out on brilliant ideas with substantial potential returns.
The consequences of this are tremendous. By our calculations, a firm with 1000 people is missing out on one or two revolutionary ideas (ie: ideas that have a significant affect on turnover) every year.
There are two solutions, both of which should be implemented in every organisation that wishes to maximise their innovation potential:
-
Ensure that there is an environment of trust within the organisation, particularly with respect to idea proposals. If every idea is treated with respect and even proposers of impractical ideas are rewarded for sharing their ideas; staff will be more comfortable about contributing ideas to the organisation, even ideas which may seem absurd. Such an environment of trust cannot be created instantly. It takes time to create and promote the mechanisms that support the environment. Even then, trust will only come with time.
-
Create a process that allows an employee to propose ideas anonymously, but provides a mechanism that allows that employee to be recognised should her idea be implemented.
Only in this way can employees feel secure in proposing potentially absurd – but also potentially revolutionary – ideas to their organisation.
If your idea proposal system is an old-fashioned suggestion box, you could simply provide idea paper with receipts. Anonymous proposers could retain the receipt and show it later, once the idea is to be implemented.
Needless-to-say, innovation driven firms need to combine an environment of trust together with a means of submitting anonymous ideas to management.
Anonymous idea submission is one of many features of our Jenni enterprise idea management service.
© 2004 Jeffrey Baumgartner
Recent Articles
Leading Diverse Teams
Filed under: Business Innovation
Diverse teams are more innovative and smarter than homogeneous ones. But, they are also harder to manager. Here are some tips. By Jeffrey Baumgartner -- Read the article...
Questions you should ask when an innovative project fails
Filed under: Business Innovation
You can learn a lot from the failure of an innovative project, but you need to ask the right questions. Here are those questions. By Jeffrey Baumgartner -- Read the article...
Unmarketing the Competition
Filed under: Business Innovation
A look at creative, but unethical dirty trick marketing campaigns designed to damage the competition By Jeffrey Baumgartner -- Read the article...
Imaginativefulness and the Fisherman
Filed under: Creativity
What does a fisherman wearing a cycling helmet have to do with imaginativefulness? Quite a lot, it seems. By Jeffrey Baumgartner -- Read the article...
Actually, Criticising Ideas Is Good for Creativity
Filed under: Creativity
People have long assumed criticising ideas in a brainstorm inhibits creativity. Research and experience shows that is wrong By Jeffrey Baumgartner -- Read the article...
Imaginativefulness
Filed under: Creativity
Imaginativefulness is a state of heightened imagination in which your mind allows thoughts, memories and ideas to play with each other freely. By Jeffrey Baumgartner -- Read the article...
Why and How to Exploit Alternative Uses for Your Products
Filed under: Business Innovation
Discovering new ways customers use, misuse and could use your products can inspire innovation. Jeffrey Baumgartner explains. By Jeffrey Baumgartner -- Read the article...
The Cost of Not Innovating
Filed under: Business Innovation
If your company fails to innovate, you pay a steep price in terms of loss of leadershop, tight margins, missed opportunities and more. By Jeffrey Baumgartner -- Read the article...
Don't Trust the Status Quo
Filed under: Creativity
Jeffrey Baumgartner has never trusted the status quo. He explains why this is so and why you should also not trust the status quo By Jeffrey Baumgartner -- Read the article...
Index of all creative articles...