Reward the Effort

Innovation depends on a constant flow of new ideas. Reward people for their effort, not just for ideas that turn out to be successful.

Many people believe that ideas are only of value if implemented, and that rewards should therefore go only to people whose ideas are successful. This approach is counter-productive, for several reasons:


1. It can be difficult to attribute a successful idea to any one person or even to a group. Many different skills may be required to put the idea into practice. And there is the risk that the wrong person may take the credit for the idea.

2. It is difficult to decide what is an appropriate reward for a successful idea. An idea may make or save the firm a lot of money. How should the value of an idea be quantified? How much should the inventor of the idea receive? A percentage, or a holiday, or a movie ticket? There is a lot of potential for perceived unfairness, resentment and demotivation.

3. It is the habit of contributing ideas that will produce more ideas in the future, so encourage the habit. To arrive at the idea that you will implement, you need a flow of ideas. So the ideas that formed that flow, even though not implemented, have great value in terms of the collective thinking process.

4. People who have an intrinsic interest in the issues are more likely to offer valuable ideas than those who are just looking for the rewards . If people are interested and challenged by their work and feel involved in the business, they will want to contribute to its success.

Thanking your team for their contributions and reminding them how much you value their help will make them want to help you more. Keeping them informed about what's happening in the business will keep them interested and build intrinsic motivation.

If you do want to offer specific rewards, you could hold an "idea lottery", where you give tickets to people who offer ideas and at the end of the process draw a ticket for a small prize. Or bring special food to the meeting where ideas are to be generated. Bigger rewards generally don't lead to more or better ideas.

Value Uniqueness

We are all the product of our own individual upbringing, education and experiences. Each person has something unique to contribute to the innovation process. Understand what each person has to offer; encourage and harness diversity at work


When recruiting staff, there is an emphasis on "cultural fit". We like to hire people who are similar to us, and we may avoid people who seem a bit "quirky". But innovation benefits from all kinds of diversity. People with similar backgrounds often think similarly. Diversity is not confined to gender and race. A diverse range of personalities and perspectives is an advantage when trying to break free of conventional thinking. Make sure your culture does not become too homogenous.

Some people naturally see opportunities and find it easy and enjoyable to think laterally. Others are more likely to tell you why the ideas won't work. Both approaches are necessary, but not at the same time. People who seem to take a negative approach could be very valuable when it comes to evaluating ideas and managing risk. But when you are trying to generate a range of new ideas, these people may not be the best ones to have in the room.


Know the strengths of your people and use their skills in the most effective way.

Demand Funny Ideas

Most creative breakthroughs begin with ideas that sound odd at first. People put forward conventional, safe, serious ideas because they think that is what is expected of them at work. Leaders have to make their expectations clear.

I sent a brochure about a marketing seminar to a manager I knew. I'd seen this presentation and it was directly relevant to his industry, so I was confident in recommending it. A week later I happened to see the manager, and asked if he was going to send any of his people to the seminar. He said no, he wasn't. Curious, I asked why not. I thought he would say that they were all too busy to go, or that they had no budget left. His response was revealing. He said "They might come back with some funny ideas".

Why did this manager feel threatened by "funny ideas"? That's where great ideas are found. His firm employs very bright, educated people who are trained to think for themselves. Why wouldn't he expose them to new approaches to marketing? He wanted them to do it his way. He felt the need for control.

There is a tension between traditional management (which is about control), and leading for innovation (which is about freedom). Managers will say they want new ideas, but often they are just paying lip service.

People look to the leader for clues as to the "right" way to behave. They offer "safe" ideas which they think will gain the approval of others. Ask them instead to "be creative" with their suggestions. Research shows that people are more likely to produce unusual, useful ideas if they are given instructions to be creative, than if they are asked, for example, to "do their best"*. Asking them to be creative focuses their attention on being creative (rather than, say, pragmatic, or quick).

Funny ideas are fuel for the cauldron of innovation.