Creating a Culture of Innovation: The Identity Imperative
What is your Organisation’s Current Identity?
In today’s fast-paced business landscape, successful innovation isn’t just a hopeful ambition; it’s the lifeblood that feeds your organisation’s growth and longevity. As we have argued in earlier blogs, the secret to unlocking your potential is creating a purpose-built culture to support and cultivate innovation. This is about ingraining innovation so profoundly that it becomes part of your organisation’s DNA.
So, how does your organisation effectively shape and develop an innovation culture? The crucial first step lies in your organisation’s identity. How do your people perceive your organisation? As a Laggard? As a Bureaucrat? As a Trailblazer? This identity is more than a label — it’s the lens through which every decision and action is made. If your people believe they are working for a Bureaucratic organisation where you do as you are told, that’s how they will behave.
Change starts with your organisation’s commitment to being a place where innovation flourishes. When everyone in the organisation takes on this aspirational identity — “our organisation is an innovation powerhouse” real change begins. When innovation is built into your identity, it shapes everyone’s behaviour.
Insights from thought leaders James Clear and Simon Sinek support the importance of identity in driving lasting change.
Simon Sinek’s Golden Circle: Starting with Why
Simon Sinek’s “Golden Circle” highlights the importance of understanding the “why” behind our actions. Organisations looking to improve their innovation performance need to ask themselves: Is the drive towards innovation genuine and aimed at benefiting those we serve, or are we simply going through the motions? If innovation is not truly driving us, what is holding us back? When innovation is authentically tied to your core purpose, it resonates deeply, fueling commitment and creativity.
A good example is Apple under Steve Jobs. Apple’s ethos wasn’t just about building computers but about creating intuitive, user-friendly experiences and revolutionising how people interact with their devices. This strong ‘why’ shaped a culture where innovation wasn’t just encouraged; it was a way of life.
James Clear’s Atomic Habits: Identity Shapes Behaviour
For James Clear, the author of “Atomic Habits,” the magic is not in the practice of Habits; instead, it’s in believing something new about yourself. He argues, “The most effective way to change your habits is to focus not on what you want to achieve, but on who you wish to become.”
In an organisational context, this means committing to being an innovator. When being an ‘innovation leader’ is what your organisation is, every decision and action naturally aligns with this identity, making innovation a natural, organic process. Your organisation continuously makes choices that align with its innovative identity, much like a healthy individual habitually chooses a salad over fast food.
Microsoft’s pivot to a “growth mindset” is an example of this — redefining its identity as a Learner and Explorer initiated a company-wide renaissance in innovation. This concept of identity extends beyond the leadership team. For real change to happen, everyone in the organisation has to take on and live the “we are innovators” identity. “Your habits shape your identity, and your identity shapes your habits.”
Embarking on a Journey of Identity and Innovation
Building a vibrant innovation culture is a continuous journey of self-reflection, alignment, and action. It starts with establishing an identity as an ‘innovation powerhouse’ and consistently living out this identity. As Clear puts it, “True behaviour change is identity change.”
As you reflect on your organisation’s current identity, consider these questions:
- What sort of organisation do you wish to become?
- What do your people’s current habits reveal about your organisation’s identity?
- Are these habits carrying you towards your desired future?
Emplify is designed to support this journey. The discovery phase of Emplify reveals your current Innovation Identity and measures the strength of the Traits that make up the five Characteristics of an Innovation Culture: Empathy, Synergy, Focus, Motivation and Magic. Once you know where you stand, Emplify helps member organisations make progress through a programme of easy habits that everyone can practice and establish over time.
Start building a thriving innovation culture today.
To learn more, check out Emplify’s website and sign up for early access:
