How to promote innovation

How to achieve more innovation according to Dr. Frederick G. Pferdt. Chief Innovation Evangelist at Google.

Dr Pferdt shares the following strategies to promote innovation within your organization.

1. Dream more about what it could be. 

Ask: What would it be if ......? . For example What would it be if cars could fly?. What would it be if there was no poverty?. By asking such questions, new innovative solutions could be provided. They key is: Dream!

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2. Encourage and promote innovation by building on ideas rather than putting obstacles. 

Don't say: yes, BUT; say Yes, AND......

how do you feel when you go to your boss with a new idea and he replies with a "yes, but.....". I bet you, you immediately are put down and your motivation is out the door.

As a leader, your task is to create an environment where ideas can grow, so the next time an employee comes to you with an idea, use the following answer instead... "yes, and...."

3. Communicate, communicate and communicate. 

Let your people know about the status of projects, the company and the industry. Only when people feel and understand what is going on, the challenges your company is facing, only then they can contribute with more ideas to those challenges.

4. Take risks without fear

Create an environment of experimentation and trust, where ideas can grow. Your people should not fear to try new solutions. Remember that only after trying 1000, you might come with a solution that works, this is not a failure, but a big success, because you learn 999 ways it does not work, so you have gained a lot of knowledge

5. Focus always on the user

The focus of your effort should center around your customers or your users. Everything your do, should be to address a need they have or a problem you are trying to solve for them.

If you want to learn more about Google, the following book is a good source.
In The Plex: How Google Thinks, Works, and Shapes Our Lives. http://amzn.to/2q7i1OI

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