Rita McGrath on why innovation is equal parts politics and new ideas

Rita McGrath

Here is an excerpt from article written by Rita McGrath for the Harvard Business Review blog. To read the complete article, check out other articles and resources, and/or sign up for a free subscription to Harvard Business Review’s Daily Alerts, please click here.

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One of the great things about my job is that I get to observe the practices of many companies. If they’re working with me, chances are that growth and innovation are somewhere on their agenda. And when it is, I’m sure to make the point that taking an innovation from a concept to an actual business launch requires at least three types of leaders.
First, at the top, innovation leaders need to:

• define the territory that the company should be exploring,
• make sure that organizational systems support innovation, and
• draw the distinction between practices that are appropriate for business-as-usual and those that make sense for more uncertain environments.

In particular, “patient impatience” and creating the momentum for people to try new things are key. A leader who exemplifies these practices is A.G. Lafley, formerly of P&G. Among the things he did to get practical innovation on the agenda were mandating that 50% or more of ideas had to originate outside the company, and repeating, over and over, that “the customer is boss.”

Second, at the level of an actual venture, leaders often need to be somewhat unorthodox, with laser-sharp focus on overcoming the obstacles that stand between where they are and where they feel the business could go. These leaders do not put up with bureaucracy and effectively brush aside obstacles to get what they need, and that can rub a lot of corporate types the wrong way. Actually, it can drive them crazy.

Third are the unsung heroes of the innovation process are often the middle managers who somehow bring together the vision and direction at the top of the organization with the energy and breakthrough thinking at the entrepreneurial level. A huge part of this job is political, and if it’s not handled well, there won’t be much innovation. While lots of people seem to recognize this, regrettably few companies monitor, train, or reward middle managers for skillful political work. Indeed, as many have observed , it is often not in their own best interest to drive innovations: they do better financially and personally by supporting the status quo.

It was heartening, therefore, to see a recent article in BusinessWeek [click here] citing the efforts of Gary Martz, a senior product manager in Intel’s wireless products unit. Wireless Display, or WiDi, was the technology Martz championed with great skill. Faced with internal opposition from others who doubted that the technology would ever deliver a satisfactory user experience, Martz could have gone back to his desk and forgotten about it. Instead, he decided to engage in positive politics. He took early versions of the invention to PC makers all over the world and to Best Buy. The technology, which allows you to zap sound and images from your laptop to a television, had sufficient customer appeal that Martz was able to use the positive response to overcome internal objections. Earlier this week, Intel executives were quoted as saying that WiDi is the “next must-have” feature in personal computing.

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To read the complete article, check out other articles and resources, and/or sign up for a free subscription to Harvard Business Review’s Daily Alerts, please click here.

Rita McGrath studies innovation, corporate venturing and entrepreneurship. She is well-known for developing practical tools and frameworks to make the innovation process less risky and difficult, and to bring a dose of reality to growth programs. She works extensively with leadership teams in Global 1,000 companies, and is a popular speaker. Her co-authored books include The Entrepreneurial Mindset (2000), MarketBusters: 40 Strategic Moves that Drive Exceptional Business Growth (2005), and Discovery-Driven Growth: A Breakthrough Process to Reduce Risk and Seize Opportunity (2009). In her position as a Columbia Business School professor, Rita McGrath directs and teaches in its top ranked Executive Education programs.

To check out her website and the abundance of resources provided, please click here.