At Mythology LLC, our #10 pillar is Innovation, defined as "the next surprise designed to feed the addiction of being delighted with new value."

One of our favorite thought leaders on the subject of innovation is Clayton Christensen of Harvard University. His book, The Innovator's Dilemma, took a groundbreaking look into how successful companies reach a peak and forget how to innovate. Why? Because their very success inhibits them from taking the risks necessary to render their current profitable products obsolete. The executives sitting on top of the cash cow will fight tooth and nail to protect their baby instead of supporting innovative new offerings that may challenge it. The result? An upstart competitor seizes the opportunity and does to them what they were unwilling to do to themselves in order to maintain leadership after a paradigm-shifting technology advance.

One reason innovation declines over time in an organization is that the skills required by managers to run a company smoothly are very different from those of an innovative entrepreneur. We've all heard examples of the start-up executive who launched a successful venture only to get booted out later for being a poor manager once the business required more operational skills.

What is a company to do? Here are just a few suggestions:

• Commit to innovation - Even though the executive team or board of directors may not be made up of innovators, they can make the smart business choice to affirm a culture of innovation and support a strategic plan to nurture it.
•  Recruit innovators - Talent is the oxygen of innovation; find people whose job it is to stay ahead of the curve, develop prototypes and connect future dots.
• Protect innovators - Most experts agree that setting aside a small group to develop the next wave of products or services is critical. At some point these ideas need integrated into the business, but an executive with a vested interest in protecting a cash cow is typically not the best person to be assigned the role of innovator. The pilot group should be a cross-disciplined team protected from the critical glare of the rest of the company, at least in the early stages.
• Align incentives - This is a challenging one, but also crucial. If your incentive structure inhibits risk-taking, then you get what you ask for.

We want to hear from you! How innovative is your organization? How can a workplace foster innovation?

Posted by Jeff James, Mythology Marketing
Jeff is a 14-year veteran of Microsoft Corporation with deep experience in sales/marketing management to enterprise, small business, channel and consumer audiences. Jeff has led Microsoft’s Executive Circle relationship marketing program, developed national integrated demand generation programs, and lead numerous innovative marketing initiatives for Microsoft.

Mythology is a marketing management services company partnering with senior executives to improve revenue, profitability, customer satisfaction and loyalty. Based in beautiful Charleston, WV, with talented team members located from Philadelphia to Seattle, Mythology has the experience, vision and energy to build belief in your business.