Innovation – Staying one step ahead

I came across this story in Best Practices are Stupid from Stephen Shapiro. This story – Not Survival of the Fittest – Survival of the Adaptable – is about choosing friends, partners and colleagues while introducing innovation in an organization. I use this story quite often when a senior executive ask me if the organization should have an innovative approach to a developmental project or in a workshop when an organization says that they have conjured up innovative way to tackle hunger in the community. I feel that there is much confusion between novelty and innovation. So here the story goes…

Have you heard the one about two men who are hiking through the mountains of Canada? The story goes that after stumbling upon a hungry, six-hundred-pound grizzly bear, one of the hikers takes off his backpack and his hiking boots and proceeds to put on his running shoes. The other hiker looks at him and asks, “What are you doing? You can’t outrun a bear!” The first hiker responds, “I know, but I only need to outrun you!”

This story highlights the essence of innovation. Innovation is not about new products, new processes, new services, new business models, or even new ideas. It is about staying one step ahead of your competition so that you are not eaten. Let’s face it, there are a lot of hungry competitors out there. And when you are trying to outpace the bear (your current competition), you need to make sure you don’t run into an alligator or a tiger (your new competition).

Innovation is about change. Not a onetime change but ongoing change. It is about adaptability, flexibility, and agility.

Consider this….

When the pace of change outside your organization is greater than the pace of change within, you will be eaten and have a tough time keeping your business afloat. And as you know, the pace of change outside of your organization is faster than ever.

The only way to survive is to stop treating innovation as a onetime event. Innovation must be a continuous, never-ending process. The second you rest on your laurels, you can be certain that someone will catch you for breakfast.

But the story of the two hikers does not end with the first hiker saying, “I only need to outrun you.” It continues with the second hiker saying, “Go ahead and try,” and then standing perfectly still as the first hiker takes off. The second hiker smiles because he knows that bears have poor eyesight and will only chase prey that runs away. The first hiker gets eaten. The second hiker reflects on the importance of understanding the hunting habits of large carnivores—and of choosing friends wisely.

The moral of the story is that, although organizations want to speed up their innovation efforts and move quickly, running in the wrong direction can actually slow you down and burn valuable resources. Instead, take deliberate action. Know what will improve your business. Understand the marketplace and harness the energies of your organization by focusing on what is most important.

And yes, pick your friends—and colleagues—wisely. The people you choose as your innovation partners are an important part of your innovation strategy.

Originally published: November 11, 2013