This is the first of two posts on AchieveGlobal’s study on the differences between Change and Innovation, “Carving Yin From Yang.” Be sure to read the entire report.
The title of this blog post is only half true. The other half of it is, curiously, that Innovation is also the mother of all Change. It’s a sort of hand-in-glove-in-hand sort of relationship. Note that in the spirit of innovation, I’m steering clear of the whole chicken-and-egg metaphor.
In two recent studies on change and innovation, we took the opportunity to unpack the differences between change and innovation: terms that one often fuses into the very broad idea of transformation.
Some of the quotes that came back to us are nothing short of brilliant, and really deserve a read. One participant, for example, refers to Innovation as being a home run, and goes on to consider what might have happened if Edison had settled for “change” instead of striving for “innovation.” Because on many levels, the two terms are so tightly interwoven in our thinking, it takes a few logical moves to disentangle them.
By the end of our study though, two things became clear:
- The first is that if an organization wants to change successfully, it takes innovation. Organizational change can become a necessary response to changing external conditions. Navigating that change effectively requires the organization to become innovative in its approach. Hand-in-glove.
- The second – innovation, if properly done, will bring change. Organizations can’t just be superficially “innovative.” Sometimes, organizations put on the label of “being innovative” as if it were as straightforward as, well, putting on a glove. (“Okay, now we’re going to be innovative!”) Real innovation means the organization has to go through real and tangible internal changes, altering parts of the very structure of the organization. And only in that way will “being innovative” cause real change.
In a very real sense, when an organization innovates successfully, it is in effect taking up the gauntlet of change.
Sharon Daniels is President and CEO of AchieveGlobal in Tampa, Florida