Every company culture needs accountability. Actually, for any company to succeed accountability is an imperative. Members of a corporate team need to feel responsible for their work – to meet deadlines and to deliver what was agreed upon. Holding others accountable begins with clear communication of what is expected of them and even getting the agreement in writing if necessary.

So to expect creativity in developing new products at your company, hold your team accountable. Schedule New Product Development meetings.  Set clear action items and expect follow-through to keep the program moving along. Team members need to feel responsible for delivery.

Now there’s the left brain/ right brain argument that creative people cannot be organized – that creation loves chaos and therefore creatives are not able to deliver on a set schedule. But for a group of creatives who feel responsible for the outcome of their project and accountability for what happens within the company, Robert Brands assures you that in his years of experience leading project development teams that he has seen plenty of people who are creative and competent in delivering work on schedule. If you struggle with accountability, monitor and have your team report on smaller, interim steps in between monthly meetings. These tips should be helpful in encouraging accountability in your organization…

-  Give Them Enough Rope To…: The natural tendency is to dictate terms – deadlines, methodologies, etc.  Let the team members decide upon the “how it’s going to get done” elements.  Should they go a bit off the track, you can always fine-tune.  Or, better yet, lead a discussion on how they can fine-tune.

-  It’s Expected: State clearly, from the outset, that the team members will be expected to develop the answers to work-related issues – it will be their responsibility.

For more tips, visit Robert’s Rules of Innovation’s Accountability page and click on “Tips“.

Ultimately, it’s about people knowing their roles and that there are limitless possibilities and positive rewards for jobs performed in an organization that insists on Accountability.

It needs new views, fresh thinking, a different perspective from across the organization.

We’ve noted that Innovation = Creative x Risk Taking. Setting aside risk for the moment, creativity is a central element to the innovation process. But it must continually be nourished with new ideas from a variety of sources.

Ideation is not a single event. It doesn’t originate from a single silo or one person or one department, although it can come from a single source. Ideation thrives in an open environment; think Wikipedia, the open-source, online repository of the world’s specialized knowledge. It is the result of a collaborative process that welcomes minds and teams from across any organization of any size.

How can you foster a fertile ideation environment?

Start by creating an “idea hopper.” This idea bank is the repository of any idea to be pursued, saved, reconsidered – or at least explored.

In the closing scene of Raiders of the Lost Ark, the Ark of the Covenant is crated and stashed in endless warehouse of similar, non-descript crates. This is the polar opposite. Don’t think of the Hopper as a bottomless pit. Think actionable. While this idea database can be managed online or as a Access Dbase, Word  or Excel spreadsheet, the key word is “managed.” Ideas come in and are vetted by the Innovation Team and the Chief Innovation Officer [link to previous blog on CIO ]. The CIO will organize ideas in order of importance or relevance based on the organization’s current path or needs. Then the ideas then are presented at the next meeting of the Ideation or Brainstorming Session.

About that session… Brainstorm sessions should be held at a regular interval  and include a variety of participants from across the organization. This isn’t just a place for R&D or the New Product team. Sales should be there. So should Marketing. Include Customer Service. Those who interact with customers and have a feel for the shifting tidings of the consumer should have input in ideation – whether in feeding the hopper or digesting its contents.

The meetings also should be structured. They should be scheduled, with an agenda in place so participants know what to expect, the topics of discussion, and the anticipated outcomes. In this instance, the CIO should defer to a facilitator or Innovation Coach who can lead the session with complete neutrality. He or she (or someone designated for that task) will write, chart, graph or otherwise gather every idea presented. There are no bad ideas. All concepts should be filed, prioritized, validated, for future reference and / or use in combination with other ideation session results. The outcome of each meeting besides feeding the hopper is a prioritized list to be worked in in Product Development

Next, feed that hopper. This database needs that constant diet of fresh ideas – especially between brainstorming sessions. Welcome ideas from all corners of the organization – from the C-Suite to the receptionist’s desk. You never know where the next Great Idea will come from.

To be clear, new “ideas” aren’t simply about products. Ideas can include process changes, technological enhancements – anything that represents change in the organization.

In ideation, think green. In those brainstorming sessions, some ideas will rise, some will fall. Throw none away. Those that don’t pass muster at that moment should be placed back in the hopper and recycled. Some ideas fail based on momentary circumstances: bad timing, market conditions, technological disconnect, conflict with the organization’s current needs or vision – any of which can change very quickly. In fact, two ideas discarded today may morph into a better concept tomorrow. Keeping them in the hopper ensures they can be revisited in the future.

The process of ideation isn’t inherently a risk-taking endeavor. But it is part of the experimentation equation. As we’ve noted previously [please link to the blog on Risk], Risk plus Experimentation (plus Failure) equals an Improved Environment for Innovation.

The risk here is to break the mold. Open the silos. Welcome input from across the organization. You might come away thinking, “What a great idea!”