By using this site, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Accept
SmartData Collective
  • Analytics
    AnalyticsShow More
    data analytics in sports industry
    Here’s How Data Analytics In Sports Is Changing The Game
    6 Min Read
    data analytics on nursing career
    Advances in Data Analytics Are Rapidly Transforming Nursing
    8 Min Read
    data analytics reveals the benefits of MBA
    Data Analytics Technology Proves Benefits of an MBA
    9 Min Read
    data-driven image seo
    Data Analytics Helps Marketers Substantially Boost Image SEO
    8 Min Read
    construction analytics
    5 Benefits of Analytics to Manage Commercial Construction
    5 Min Read
  • Big Data
  • BI
  • Exclusive
  • IT
  • Marketing
  • Software
Search
© 2008-23 SmartData Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Reading: A Little Too Literal (or, How to Teach Innovation)
Share
Notification Show More
Latest News
data analytics in sports industry
Here’s How Data Analytics In Sports Is Changing The Game
Big Data
data analytics on nursing career
Advances in Data Analytics Are Rapidly Transforming Nursing
Analytics
data analytics reveals the benefits of MBA
Data Analytics Technology Proves Benefits of an MBA
Analytics
anti-spoofing tips
Anti-Spoofing is Crucial for Data-Driven Businesses
Security
ai in software development
3 AI-Based Strategies to Develop Software in Uncertain Times
Software
Aa
SmartData Collective
Aa
Search
  • About
  • Help
  • Privacy
Follow US
© 2008-23 SmartData Collective. All Rights Reserved.
SmartData Collective > Uncategorized > A Little Too Literal (or, How to Teach Innovation)
Uncategorized

A Little Too Literal (or, How to Teach Innovation)

Jim MacLennan
Last updated: 2010/08/10 at 2:04 AM
Jim MacLennan
4 Min Read
SHARE
- Advertisement -

Spoiler alert: It can’t be taught …

What are you, somebody’s lawyer? – Jim Dempsey, ca. 1984

More Read

innovation with software

4 Ways to Nurture Employee Innovation from Within Your Organization

Automated Car Tech Is Here – But Do We Have The Data?
Software, IP Protection, Innovation and the Apple – Samsung Verdict
The Experience Economy
5 Reasons To Be Optimistic About Technology Innovation In The Year Ahead

Spoiler alert: It can’t be taught …

What are you, somebody’s lawyer? – Jim Dempsey, ca. 1984

One of the questions I get – and I’m getting this a lot lately – is how to get people to think more analytically, less literally. We need folks to stop focusing on the mechanical task of manipulating reports with Excel just to compute some answers. How about learning to use Excel, Access, and whatever native query / data download tools are available – to pull some data from the system, just to take a look? How about playing with the data, maybe stumbling upon some trends and identifying some real opportunities?

Ah, but that’s not what you asked for … It’s like working with a bunch of lawyers, taking shelter behind literal interpretations, following the letter (rather than the spirit) of the “law”.

I think that people are not always incented to ask questions, but to provide answers. Yes, differentiating between the two is a bit of a gray area, but when I’m “just too busy to think about that”, and I feel I have more work to do then fits the time available, the focus will always be on getting a result. Not necessarily the result or the best result, but just a result. If you ask for a metric, I will give you the metric; I won’t ask the next question.

I’ve asked folks to eliminate steps in a workflow [process]. Their solution was to reduce the number of steps in the workflow by combining multiple tasks into a single step.

Hey, I successfully answered your question – I went from 10 steps to 8.

Unfortunately, you didn’t reduce the actual work being done – and you destroyed my ability to analyze the time sinks in the process, because I’ve lost granularity. (But I eliminated a step, just like you asked…)

How Do You Teach Intellectual Curiosity and Innovation?

Actually, I don’t think you can.

No, I’m not defeatist – I think that there are ways to address this challenge. But to me, traits like innovation, imagination, a sense of adventure, the willingness to try and fail, really can’t be taught.

You don’t have to; it’s already in everyone’s psyche, you just have to tease it out of ‘em. There are the classics (Establish an Environment of Innovation, Give ‘em Permission to Fail, Establish Audacious Goals, etc.) – but you also have to lead by example. Try some little things: rearrange your office, change seats in your standing meetings, buy your team lunch (or beers). And try some big things: learn how to automate Excel or Access (beyond recorded macros), develop some SharePoint sites (and figure out how to hack it with javascript).

But most of all, as you prod, push, pull, and otherwise exhort your team to new ways of thinking – keep an eagle eye out for any little bit of progress in their thinking, a glimmer of off-the-wall innovation – and call it out. We were all kids once, but corporate America kind of beats it out folks. You have to celebrate the little things, as people get their sea legs and the natural impulses take over.

Innovation can’t be taught – you just have to remind folks how fun it can be, how good they can be.

(image from Andy C. / Wikimedia Commons)

TAGGED: innovation
Jim MacLennan August 10, 2010
Share this Article
Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn
Share
By Jim MacLennan
Follow:
Jim MacLennan is Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer at IDEX Corporation, a Fortune 1000 manufacturer that sells highly engineered products in a variety of markets worldwide. MacLennan has responsibility for Corporate IT services for all IDEX business units, and also drives innovation through initiatives that leverage Information and Technology as growth drivers for the industrial manufacturing space. He regularly publishes his observations and insights on the intersection of business and technology - check out his work at www.cazh1.com.
- Advertisement -

Follow us on Facebook

Latest News

data analytics in sports industry
Here’s How Data Analytics In Sports Is Changing The Game
Big Data
data analytics on nursing career
Advances in Data Analytics Are Rapidly Transforming Nursing
Analytics
data analytics reveals the benefits of MBA
Data Analytics Technology Proves Benefits of an MBA
Analytics
anti-spoofing tips
Anti-Spoofing is Crucial for Data-Driven Businesses
Security

Stay Connected

1.2k Followers Like
33.7k Followers Follow
222 Followers Pin

You Might also Like

innovation with software
Business IntelligenceSoftware

4 Ways to Nurture Employee Innovation from Within Your Organization

8 Min Read
driverless cars data
Artificial IntelligenceIT

Automated Car Tech Is Here – But Do We Have The Data?

5 Min Read

Software, IP Protection, Innovation and the Apple – Samsung Verdict

6 Min Read

The Experience Economy

3 Min Read

SmartData Collective is one of the largest & trusted community covering technical content about Big Data, BI, Cloud, Analytics, Artificial Intelligence, IoT & more.

ai in ecommerce
Artificial Intelligence for eCommerce: A Closer Look
Artificial Intelligence
AI chatbots
AI Chatbots Can Help Retailers Convert Live Broadcast Viewers into Sales!
Chatbots

Quick Link

  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
Follow US

© 2008-23 SmartData Collective. All Rights Reserved.

Removed from reading list

Undo
Go to mobile version
Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Lost your password?