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Innovation as Usual
By Paddy Miller and Thomas Wedell-Wedellsborg
Harvard Business Review Press
Reviewer: Sadie-Jane Nunis


Creating a Sustainable Innovative Culture at Work

COMPANIES are always harping about the need to be innovative and how their teams need to be creative at all times. Many send their employees for training courses whereby some work while most others do not. Sustaining this innovative culture is another story altogether.

The authors attempt to provide companies with a better approach to innovation. What results is a book that does not merely focus on the importance of innovation but suggests that it is more important to achieve a sustainable state of innovation. This means that employees create a systematic and sustainable way of being innovative.

There are minimal graphs and images used throughout the book. Do not be afraid of the amount of text as the book is fairly easy to read. The way leaders use this book and implement the examples may not be as easy; but it is not that difficult either.

Take for example, within the chapter titled Tweak, the authors provided a list of questions for leaders to help their people reframe a problem. There are further tips provided on how to maximise using this list. Not so difficult after all, right? Each chapter has interesting ways to maximise the potential of innovation in the company, ultimately helping organisations create a sustainable innovative culture at the office. Maximising the case studies helps too.

Regardless of the size of the organisation, if your priority is to get your people to think or act more innovatively, consider picking up a copy of this book. Try your hand at using the techniques suggested. The authors are known for being innovation experts. With this book, they may have just taken it to the next level.

If this book sounds interesting, check out Today’s Manager’s interview with one half of the duo, Mr Thomas Wedell-Wedellsborg, in the next issue.