Encouraging Words...
Posted Tuesday November 13, 2007
I came across the following comment in an interview with Robert B. Tucker (pdf)
What should leaders do to foster a culture of innovation?
I advise leaders to make sure they are creating an environment in which mavericks are tolerated. The maverick is a well-documented personality type: These people would much rather change the system than simply perfect it. Mavericks don’t “go along to get along,” they don’t “dress for success” and, as the vice chairman of Medtronic puts it, they are a pain in the neck to manage. But they are absolutely necessary because they can make those “ah ha!” connections that lead to solutions.
If mavericks are not valued and respected, they will leave the organization and make their talents available to a company that will value them. Or worse, they’ll go off and start their own companies and compete with you.
Unfortunately, this is not ‘new’ news — just new people gaining an understanding of it.
This is the fundamental premise of Orbiting the Giant Hairball.
I’m still experimenting with the gaps and survival tactics (and/or what the signs are that you’ve exhausted all possible moves — like the ‘no more moves’ message in games).
— Paula Thornton Dec 20, 02:45 PM