Forward thinking with new ideas!

For those of us running a business, I know we can sometimes feel like there are no new ways to spark ideas from our team and bring them out into the open…there are, you just might need to think outside the box a little…

New ideas are crucial to your company’s ability to expand and progress.   This could mean…

• Developing completely new and improved products or services
• Adding value to existing products or services
• Improving on or replacing business practices to increase efficiency and productivity

However you get there, innovation is a creative process and the best source is from your team communicating and sharing ideas!

• Connecting: Creating a culture within the firm that knowledge sharing is important will greatly benefit everyone.   Your folks will come up with better ideas faster when they put their concepts together instead of working on the same ideas separately.

Think about promoting knowledge sharing with a reward regardless of the outcome of their contribution.   Just remember, it needs to be a united effort to get concepts accomplished as a team and then everyone will achieve their objectives!

• “Liquid Networks”: The idea here is to have multiple teams make a conscious effort to meet with each other and share ideas, in different surroundings.  Bringing different people together from within the company to discuss their challenges, will allow them an opportunity to come up with innovative ways to solve them.
• Creative spaces: There is a strong correlation between personal interactions, performance, and innovation.  Common spaces in the office can be designed to increase the likelihood of “collisions” amongst workers.   Data shows that when you create a space for “chance encounters” that these unplanned connections between employees develops better performance overall.  If you are willing to create this kind of workspace it could pay off with better results in retention, productivity and overall results for your company.

The creative process that leads to great ideas tends to unfold quite gradually.  We need to turn our ideas and concepts over and over in our heads, and talk them out with our colleagues so that new knowledge and ideas can be built upon until we reach that point where a new perception is conceivable.

Remember, working side by side supports continuous education and learning so that your staff can share knowledge that has not yet been communicated or documented.  For groups not working in the same location, documents are especially important for sharing and learning.

So, if you and your staff are struggling with a complex problem or working towards that “Eureka” moment, be patient and give yourself and your team time and the tools to arrive at the solution, for when it comes it will be amazing!

 

Do you have a knowledge sharing community within your company?

[themecolor]Dave Baney is the founder and CEO of 55 Questions, LLC.  We work with successful top executives with a driving ambition to crush their competition.  We help CEOs and Entrepreneurs improve alignment, communication and accountability throughout their organization.[/themecolor] www.55Questions.com

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