The simplest way to avoid innovation is to cling to what we know. Disruption is a consequence of the efficient management of an open process of exploration and experimentation of new things.   

By Martin Padulla for staffingamericalatina

There is a rather generalized inclination to think about change as a fact or event, as something sudden that happens at a specific time. An inflection point that modifies the course of things. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Change is a process, and, as every process, it demands a sort of management that considers that certain facts happen in the right moment. This perspective could show change as a succession of small facts that alter the dominant trend.

“Creative Destruction is the essential fact about capitalism”, wrote Joseph Schumpeter in 1942 while teaching at Harvard University. He was the first economist to develop a theory on entrepreneurs.

Are there infallible formulas to be innovative? Can we find successful models that lead us to a certain scenery of disruption? Can we access bibliography that grants us a career as high-impact entrepreneurs?

I could say that the answer to these questions is no, but we might find other alternatives to analyze this.

What seems clear is that imitating an innovative person might be the certain path towards non-innovation. Among other reasons, because culture and context have a major influence on the chances to innovate.

To illustrate the situation I could take a single variable to analyze: the role of the client in innovation. I could quote two innovators: Bernard Meyerson, CIO of IBM, who says that the client is an important part of the innovation process; and Henry Ford, who used to say that, if asked about their preferences, people would have answered: “a faster horse”. Confused? Do not despair.

Science, which enlightens us on certain phenomenon, shows us there is a direct correlation between the exploration/attempt to do new things and creativity. Neuroscientific evidence has been found on the link between new experiences and creative thinking. The Beatles revolutionized the music world when experimenting with the sitar, a traditional musical instrument from India and Pakistan, and the melodeon, a polyphonic electromechanical instrument.

Therefore, another key point seems to be to remain aware of the status quo. Established organizations tend to innovate incrementally within their existing business or goals dynamic, and this opens the back door to disruptors. Besides, due to the fact that we are living in a liquid world where nobody knows with certainty what is going to happen, the status quo is not as solid as it used to be.

Is it possible to innovate at school, in a company or in a country with the pre-existing structure? Everything seems to indicate that the key is in the culture and in the possibility, or not, of sharing the values of change. If teachers, workers or citizens share the established values in education, labor, and the country’s project, then it is possible to innovate. It is necessary to align thinkers and doers to reach impact.

For several years I have been working on the strategy-structure interaction in different companies in Latin America; only with a smart design of the structure, can the strategy become a reality: this is even more relevant when you are close to an innovation process. Innovation necessarily implies a cultural change.

Innovation is a job for a team, but not for any good team. It is a challenge for team that adapts in an agile way to change. A team of innovators. It demands talent with the capacity to avoid falling into routines and to solve problems in a creative way. A team of “different” people with a quality leap.

When mentioning agile adaptation, the concept agilism arises. It does not just mean to go faster, manage in a more dynamic way and get results in a short period of time. It also involves doing each of this things in a collaborative culture, with teams that are committed and oriented towards results.

Can innovators be recruited without using innovative recruitment processes? How can we innovate to find innovative talent? Change is not possible if we do not stop thinking that with concepts of the past, a different future is possible.

Innovative talent is that which has innovative thinking. This kind of thinking includes creative thinking, and creative thinking includes critical thinking. Enthusiasm emerges from nonconformism. From the emotional need to change.

The path towards innovation resembles the path of epistemology, and precisely because of that, critical thinking is key. It arises from a deep understanding of the state of art, from a properly defined problem and from having a clear idea of the resources, skills, and capacities you have to address it. Innovation emerges from innovative spirits who are convinced that, by working together, they can produce more innovation than on their own. In several cases by using new technologies, but in many others, by having new perspectives, new business or management models, original approaches to a common problem.

For traditional leaders, this poses quite a challenge. The first, and most important one, is being able to determine whether disruptive innovation is adequate for the competition or for your own organization. In my opinion, if we are truly facing disruptive innovation, it will imply changes in the market or the context, and, therefore, it will impact the organizational structure. Sometimes, it will even make us wonder whether we have the best possible leader to guide the organization to the next level.

Latin America has a great opportunity. A young continent that can connect more easily with childhood, which might be the largest reservoir of creativity. Through innovation labs, and more flexible learning systems, we could integrate critical thinking, evaluate the community and the surroundings of the students and promote all that creative capacity. These training phases stimulate critical thinking and, with it, science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics; and even disciplines we do not know about yet. If we build spaces that work as a safe refugee to learn through elaboration, modification and modeling, the retention levels of the education system will be greater, and our chances to seize the demographic bonus will grow.

We are training workers for jobs that do not exist yet.

Maybe, we can do something to live in places that guarantee equal opportunities and more dynamic, modern, inclusive and sustainable contexts.

About Martin Padulla

Founder and Managing Director of staffingamericalatina. Martin Padulla is Sociologist (USAL), MBA (UCA) and labour markets expert. He published “Flexible Work in South America” and “Regulatory framework for private employment agencies in Latin America” two books about the new realities of work in Latin America.

Follow Martín Padulla on Twitter: @MartinPadulla

mpadulla@staffingamericalatina.com

About staffingamericalatina

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