The possibility driven organization must drive innovation from the top. Your organization may be structured and the culture indoctrinated so that innovation is more challenging than in other organizations. Leadership drives culture and innovation requires leadership.
- Innovation has nothing to do with how many R&D dollars you have…It’s not about money. It’s about the people you have, how you’re led, and how much you get it. -Steve Jobs
An organization that is passionate about possibilities must innovate. Richard Branson is always looking to what could be.
In Australia where we only had two domestic airlines, and they had the same flight times and prices, there wasn’t any innovation.
There is no better example for innovation over patch protection. Virgin came in and offered lower prices, significantly better customer experience, and online booking systems. He single handidly blew the Australian airline industry a part. I credit him for the wave of innovation now coming out of Qantas. None of that would have happened with the mind-set Qantas had of milking the cow and patch protection.
It is amazing to watch Branson do this over and over again. Where there is a monopoly and innovation has stopped, he comes in asks what the customers want and changes the face the industry. Beautiful.
Virgin has creativity, innovation, and empowering employees at the centre of its strategy. Now they have had their fair share of failures and tough times. But you would hardly say it has been fatal.
That is the power of the possibility organization. You will achieve more, attract better employees and therefore clients.
To invite innovation is to implement creativity. To invite creativity is to empower your people with the skills systems and structures. Then we must have the courage to jump across the ravine.
Lessons learned from Virgin:
- Innovation is purposeful and systematic
- Is simple and focused
- Starts small and builds up, adjusting along the way
- Aims at being the best. Not so much the biggest but aim for being the best in field.
