Dear Senior Executive...

Dear Senior Executive,

I understand you’ve been given responsibility for innovation. I’ve heard on the grapevine that you’re excited about it, and planning great things. I think it will be thrilling to see what you create.

But I hope you’ll take a few words of advice from someone who has been in the position you’re now in.

Firstly, you’re going to have a hard time convincing anyone that your new responsibilities are important. Oh, everyone will say they think innovation is important, but when the rubber hits the road, they’ll be watching to see if you screw up the line-of-business things you’re responsible for now, not waiting to celebrate your innovation success.

So my first word of advice is to believe in your new responsibilities, even if most of the time you’re the only one who does. Success will come with time, if you let it. 

Secondly, everyone will have an opinion on what you’re doing and all those opinions will be as far apart as the Earth and the Moon. There are no right answers if you have to run an innovation effort, but there is a wrong answer. The wrong answer is trying to satisfy everyone who has an opinion on innovation. If you try to do that, you’ll never get anything done. You have to believe in what you believe is right.

This is my second piece of advice: you are senior, and you are responsible. You aren’t going to make anyone happy with innovation no matter what you do. Every time you try something  new there will be winners and losers. So take my advice, and start new stuff regardless. If you wait for consensus, you’ll never be able to start anything at all.

Finally, you may be senior and empowered to make decisions, but the fact is you won’t be the one implementing them. You don’t have time, and anyway implementation will probably require lots of specialized skills besides your own.

Though you’re in charge, there are lots of less senior people who can do things to stop innovation.  They will never deliberately disobey and obstruct, but they will certainly go-slow if they don’t like or don’t understand what you’re doing. Change in any form is very frightening to those who aren’t making the decisions.

So my final piece of advice is this. You need to build your innovation effort from the bottom up as well as from the top down. The little people at the front line are just as important as the ones in the center who make the decisions. It is the front line and their managers, after all, who will be affected by anything you do. If they love your innovation effort, they will make sure you succeed. If they don’t, you will certainly fail.

My best wishes for your future success.

Comments

[Andy Rouse]

James
Not sure if this is meant to be as tart as it comes across but given recent events I’d not blame you.
I do feel the sentiment is right in terms of making sure you have those that will be directly impacted on board with you. Back to the old approach of the 3 Cs communication, communication, communications.
Appreciate there is a need to drive it through and have faith but you do still need to listen to those with the opinions (especially from the sharp end) who might just know why it isn’t a good idea, in fact I’d say it is the “little people” who often no more on what will or won’t work in the organisation but they don’t get the voice.
What you say is true about any change, innovation or not but the key as always is know where you start, know what you’re going to do and know when you get there and demonstrate it, too many organisations have constant change so no one sees the good results or otherwise. Often they do the changes before the end because they can see their innovation isn’t working so have to get something else in to hide it – have the faith and courage to say you were wrong when you are would be another innovative idea but that isn’t macho.
Anyway good luck in your next venture and will keep an eye on this blog even though it won’t be as DWP centric, plus any URL links to the whisky business always helps in the Google stakes

[fred]

Might be best to avoid phrases like "little people". It makes you sound like a twat.

[Basset]

I agree with Fred.

[spot the dog]

Get a decent haircut and a tie?

[Older and Wiser]

You can only be successful in business if the people you depend on want you to succeed. This means you need to talk to them from time to time, shake their hands, sincerely appreciate their efforts and even buy them a drink. Tweeting at them from time to time doesn't cut it. IT is a people business, not a technology one.

[No Wiser]

Here's some more advice for the senior exec:

- Thought leadership and leadership are not the same things. The first is useless without the second

- Innovation is just one of your responsibilities. Make sure you remember that.

- Don't start by pissing off the people who you'll depend on to deliver your innovations

- Bitching about senior colleagues behind their backs really won't earn you any respect

- Don't treat your staff like dirt

[James]

So true that they wont disobey or go out their way to hinder anything. They will just work to make it Not So.

I work in public sector as well and boy oh boy do they work to make sure things DON'T happen

[A leprechaun]

I think you may be mistaking lethargy for strategy Minister - maybe it was the turquoise tracksuit

[DaveP]

God grant me the Serenity to :
Accept the things I cannot change,
Courage to change the things I can,
And Wisdom to know the difference.

[MJ]

I hope you didn't completely burn all your bridges. You are going to need them when your new gig evaporates like the fart in the wind you just blew.

[Sunguy]

Having worked for central government here in the UK I can quite understand where you are coming from.

However, as you are talking about a position in the UK, should you not remember to use the correct Oxford or Chambers English spellings when writing to and about UK government work?

If so, I do believe centre is the correct spelling of the word rather than the American version you decided to use!

Good luck, and be careful!

[Account Deleted]

Working at a big retail bank in Russia, I completely agree with what James said about the challenges that anyone faces while pushing change agenda.

So it is strange to blame the words for being too true - we don't discard ruminations from Kotter's "Leading Change", do we - and James just summed up the theory in a good practical post.

Good job!

[Simon]

Got to say I agree with the concept of not burning bridges. I find it amazing how often people do this with little regards