Several weeks ago, our global leadership team converged at our Calgary headquarters, “the mothership” so to speak, for annual strategic planning meetings. One of the key themes of the week was “Moving at the Speed of Culture.”
Neil Clemmons, President, and Arif Hirani, Consumer Research Director.
We spent hours and numerous breakout sessions outlining the myriad obstacles that can prevent companies (ourselves included) from moving faster, more efficiently, and above all, more effectively. From noise to process to culture and tools, we mapped out the challenges and corresponding solutions to keep us on a path toward continual evolution, and to manage growth while remaining a nimble, innovation-focused culture.
Our lengthy discussions on this topic underscored a compelling point: no matter how steeped you are in digital expertise or “best practices”, whether you are a boutique hot shop or a leading established player, the pace of change—in the industry and culture at large—is mind-blowing. Seemingly everyday, the ground is shifting: new agency models, new technology players and platforms, new consumer behaviors that are rendering our tried and true marketing strategies utterly irrelevant.
So how do you remain competitive or, as we strive to do, continue to lead our clients and inspire our employees by “moving at the speed of culture”?
Our good friend over at Business Week, Bruce Nussbaum, penned a great post on “Cultivating Innovation and Creativity, Not Managing It.” In it, he alludes to a wonderful analogy made by Diego Rodriquez, partner at IDEO, about how “cultivating” a culture of innovation is much like a tending to a garden, as opposed to the traditional command-and-control model of “managing” from the top down.
He also references The Innovation Principles that Rodriquez eloquently fleshes out on his blog, metacool. They’re thought-provoking, inspiring and in our minds, worth repeating.
1. Experience the world instead of talking about experiencing the world
2. See and hear with the mind of a child
3. Always ask: “How do we want people to feel after they experience this?”
4. Prototype as if you are right. Listen as if you are wrong.
5. Anything can be prototyped. You can prototype with anything.
6. Live life at the intersection
7. Develop a taste for the many flavors of innovation
8. Most new ideas aren’t
9. Killing good ideas is a good idea
10. Baby steps often lead to big leaps
11. Everyone needs time to innovate
12. Instead of managing, try cultivating
13. Do everything right, and you’ll still fail
14. Failure sucks, but instructs
15. Celebrate errors of commission. Stamp out errors of omission.
16. Grok the gestalt of teams
17. It’s not the years, it’s the mileage
Our amazing portfolio of clients enables us to attract top talent, from the creative, planning, user experience and technology disciplines. At Critical Mass, we believe the key to nurturing our best and brightest will depend upon the delicate balance of managing our business objectives while fostering an environment, a garden, if you will, where innovation and creativity can truly flourish.
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http://www.criticalmass.com Heidi Skinner
