How to Best Support Disruptors
In a
recent article from the scientific journal Nature, academics from the Universities of Minnesota and Arizona argued that patents have become “less disruptive” over time. The authors claim that in recent decades we have witnessed exponential growth in scientific and technological knowledge; however, “studies suggest that progress is slowing in several major fields.” This research regarding the inability for new achievements to disrupt the status quo supports what I have observed in consulting, which is that innovators are being driven into the ground. So how do we support positive disruptions?
On the one hand, disruption is only achievable when innovators are given room to work against the grain. This is because innovators are not like other members of an organization: their purpose and process are different. For some organizations, this can be seen as a threat; however, one of the major signs of healthy organizations is how well they are able to support the needs of their individual members. By centering
innovation as a company-wide endeavor, organizations are able to sidestep potential turf wars or other difficulties that plague innovation.
On the other hand, innovators need structure and support. It is not enough to provide them with opportunity and then just leave them be. According to
the Harvard Business Review, innovative cultures focus on tolerance for failure while remaining intolerant of incompetence. The distinction here is that failure is predicated on a good process that will eventually lead to good results—it is just that these results have yet to be realized. Think of
Thomas Edison and the lightbulb: in the attempt to mass produce electricity, Edison needed 2,774 attempts to discover a workable lightbulb solution. What do innovators all have in common? They work from a good process. Incompetence, however, is the consequence of a bad process.
This is one reason why
Nature’s article is so astounding. Clearly, there are innovators working from a good process, hence why there are so many new patents. The issue lies with the infrastructure surrounding these advancements. Often, non-innovative cultures are the ones killing innovation with large groups that have too many competing voices, which affect the ability of innovators to create new ideas. This wide-spread issue is not limited to one specific business sector. Instead, it is like the snake eating its tail: companies need innovation to thrive but are often too apprehensive to nurture it.
Innovation Leader surveyed 270 corporate leaders who opined on the biggest obstacles to innovation in larger companies. The results were largely predictable: 55% of respondents believed that politics, turf wars and a lack of alignment were to blame. This is an understandable conclusion—if organizations lack a culture of innovation, any specialized treatment becomes political. This goes hand in hand with the second-largest response: 44% of those leaders cited cultural issues. Though this may seem obvious, it bears repeating that if your culture supports innovators, you will probably experience more innovation!
How should organizations support disruptors? By putting them in a position to succeed by offering both flexibility and structure. Larger organizations should do their best to ensure innovators are not being micromanaged and have the freedom to fail. In a modern workforce noted for its efficiency, such a commitment might be seen as a risk; however, risks are not truly “risks” if they are tied to the right people. Instead, companies should feel empowered to observe their innovators’ processes. If innovators are unable to explain the details of their process, then it is time to investigate more closely.
