What we’ve learned after working with 15+ corporate innovation leaders
10 things that separate great innovation leaders from struggling ones.
We have worked with a lot of innovation leaders in our careers. A lot. We love companies that want to innovate but we will also be the first ones to say that being an innovation leader in a company is fucking hard. Innovation leaders need to balance politics, challenge legacy thinking, push uncomfortable ideas, and deliver results — all at the same time. The innovation job can often feel impossible.
We’ve advised many innovation leaders in a range of industries and companies. We have seen the good, the bad, and the ugly (and sometimes the fired). In our opinion, great innovation leaders are those that can actually deliver quality products at pace while driving cultural change at scale. We have pulled together what we think these great innovation leaders do and what sets them apart.
#1 They have a bold, compelling vision
This one is number 1 for a reason. Innovation is super uncomfortable and often very foreign for many within an organization. We have seen innovation leaders who try to “co-create” an innovation vision, who inherit one, or who just operate without one. None of these work.
The leaders who excel are those that can rally and excite people about their vision for the future. That means that vision better be big, a bit crazy, often personal, and super exciting. The alternative to the status quo should be ten times better and it’s the innovation leader's job to craft this.
#2 They don’t do innovation theatre
Workshops. Workshops. Workshops. We have hosted a lot of innovation workshops, design sprints, and executive training sessions that have resulted in nothing. These sessions are often used to make everyone feel good, heard, and involved. All these tools definitely have a place — but great leaders use them as tools, not as a crutch, ego boost, or “team builder”.
#3 They are hyper-curious
Our favorite clients and innovation leaders are actually pretty annoying. But in the best possible way. They are always reading, questioning, and asking. There isn’t a 9–5 for these leaders, they are always learning and it’s not uncommon to get a late-night article from them. Great leaders are curious about innovation as a craft, about adjacent industries, and often read or listen to things that on the surface might not seem applicable to their business. They also want to talk to everybody and are often pitching their innovation ideas or musings to their hairdressers or at the dinner table.
#4 They have strong opinions, loosely held
Great innovation leaders aren’t wallflowers but also aren’t assholes. In unchartered territory, such as innovation, the organization will look to the innovation leader for direction. Great leaders provide that direction by having strong opinions about how things should be and how they should occur. However, they are also quick to adapt if their approach is wrong or might hinder their results.
#5 They are political mercenaries
Great innovation leaders know that organizational dogma, politics, and red tape are the enemies of innovation. They actively seek to destroy or circumvent these. This is the most dangerous of the traits because if done wrong can have significant career risk but if not done most definitely will result in poor innovation results. Great innovation leaders are masters at organizational politics and use their abilities to break down walls and barriers throughout the organization to deliver innovation at speed.
#6 They have diverse and valuable networks
Great innovation leaders never solve anything alone and often this comes about by having an impressive roster to call on for advice, feedback, or guidance. They aren’t afraid to network and ask strangers for help. They also give and support others on their innovation journeys. Great innovation leaders often know (or know of) one another and are active in innovation circles.
#7 They are down to earth (and fun)
All the best leaders of innovation have also been people who you could sit down with and chat over a bottle of wine that turns into 3. There is little posturing, jargon, formality, or hiding behind buzzy words. They are comfortable in their own skin, can operate at all levels of the organization, and are someone everyone wants to be around.
#8 They have a bias to action
Innovation leaders need to be great creative thinkers but they also need to have a focus on delivery. Too many leaders spend too much time in the fun ideation stage or in trying to “socialize” or get ideas approved inside the organization. Ultimately not having customers using innovations is not a success. Great innovation leaders push forward, drive action, and produce results.
#9 They ask for forgiveness, never permission
This one is a strong contender for the number one spot. Innovation has to do a lot of things, and a lot of things that go against “how things have always been done”. It seems obvious that doing something new requires doing things that are new. But, sometimes leaders try to drive innovation inside the old rules. Great innovation leaders break a lot of the rules, but they know the one or two that they absolutely can’t break. Everything else is up for debate. They always ask for forgiveness after the fact rather than trying to go through the mud of getting permission before acting.
#10 They deeply get the business & customers
Good innovation leaders can regurgitate talking points about the strategy, business, and customers. But great innovation leaders deeply understand these. Great innovation leaders can translate the strategy into their innovation vision. They can see opportunities in the business that others don’t. They have often talked with more customers than anyone else in the company and have real stories and names to go with their insights.
ABOUT NOW OR NEVER: Now or Never is a challenger consultancy providing strategy & insight work, modular consulting projects & new venture creation. We have worked with everyone from start-ups to large pension funds. Iain Montgomery & Alex Nuth are the co-founders of the agency — combining both big consultancy experience & the scars of actually doing innovation within organizations.
