In today’s competitive landscape, innovation is the name of the game. At Miro, we surveyed global enterprise leaders and found that over nine in 10 believe that a company will not survive more than a decade if it fails to innovate. Yet, as we all know, innovation is hard. Seventy-nine percent of those same leaders said that their company struggles to bring its innovation strategy to life. What are they missing?
Enterprise leaders fear that processes slow innovation
It can be tempting to think of innovation just in terms of technology, but there’s much more to it. Innovation is the human process of applied creativity, and at Miro we believe in the power of people coming together in repeatable ways to transform their innate creativity into a reality — and how we work together is tremendously important.
This is why an organization’s ways of working can make or break its ability to innovate quickly, effectively, and efficiently. In fact, Miro found that only 41% of decision makers agree that their internal processes actively encourage innovation velocity — and the number dropped further to 31% among information workers.
Here’s where ways of working come into play. Our research shows that leaders and workers at companies that innovate more effectively and efficiently are also more likely to report that collaboration is a core value and behavior; simply put, these organizations walk the talk when it comes to teamwork. This means investing in building strong teams and prioritizing rituals to work together better. It also means being intentional about identifying existing blockers, and escalating them as needed when teams can’t fix issues on their own.
Experimentation is the secret sauce for collaboration
But collaboration, like innovation, is a continuous process. No individual or team will ever “master” it, since every project and partnership requires adjustments. As a result, an experimental mindset is a critical component of collaboration — and lies at the heart of the most innovative organizations.
By trying new approaches and consistently assessing existing ones, teams are able to keep a finger on the pulse of what is (and isn’t) working for them. But for this approach to succeed, it’s crucial that leaders nurture psychological safety within and across teams. Everyone needs to feel empowered and safe to try new things, as well as to give and receive actionable feedback, throughout the journey. Mature teams not only experiment, but they also share their learnings openly and actively across the organization to help others solve similar challenges.
An experimental approach also includes considerations of how technology can improve quality and efficiency of outputs. I encourage leaders and team members to consider ways to leverage AI as part of their continuous improvement efforts, where possible. Just as different ways of interacting with people can improve collaboration, new AI tools can unlock entirely new possibilities.
Small changes today can build a more innovative tomorrow
Make no mistake: there is no silver bullet for innovation. Every organization wrestles with it, including the ones that make it look easy. However, committing to intentional collaboration can make all the difference. By adopting an experimental mindset and prioritizing continuous improvement, teams can build their collaborative muscles through iteration, refinement, and review. As part of this, experimenting with new technologies like AI can improve ways of working in ways that were previously unimaginable and, in the process, give organizations a leg up on the competition.
As the pace of innovation continues to rise, the decisions we make today will shape the future of our organizations and teams. This is a marathon, not a sprint. But when we shift our ways of working to meet the moment, we can rise to today’s challenges — and prepare for an even brighter future.
