Innovation and Technology

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|Creativity and innovation often come from "thinking outside the box," but too much divergent thinking can result in chaos. A well-run |

|business requires order and routine to function effectively. Therefore, managers must learn to balance the need for stability with the need|

|to create an environment that encourages new ideas. |

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|What corporate competencies and environmental strategies can managers and organizations cultivate and employ in order to foster creativity,|

|innovation, and success? How would you as a manager go about implementing and measuring these strategies? |

Week 6 Discussion

From the readings this week, I noticed that a theme that ran through each article was that managers must be open to the probability that innovation is the key to a company’s success. In fact, whether the manager is a top executive or a middle manager, the strategies that are utilized by those that are successful are similar because of the behaviors that they exhibit. First of all, successful managers must be comfortable with change (Kanter, 2004). A company that is constantly changing with how their customer or clients are changing is one that will be successful (Nonaka, 2007). Another strategy that successful managers employ is that they have a “clarity of direction” in how they decide which direction their company will go (Kanter, p. 152, 2004).

Additionally, manager should be thorough in how they are preparing for meetings, providing feedback to employees and managing projects (Kanter, 2004). Innovation is encouraged with thoroughness especially...