Chief Learning Officer - January 2008 - (Page 39)

human capital Eight Great Questions for CLOs (A CLO’s Innovation Question Bank) 1. What is the organization’s innovation strategy? 2. What is the organization’s innovation process? 3. What skills are needed to implement the process? 4. How might we ensure the right people are in the right positions to best execute the process? 5. How might people’s skills be furthered developed using education, coaching and experience? 6. How might the learning organization conduct action-learning sessions to meet innovation challenges and goals? 7. How might globalization be leveraged? 8. How might the innovation actions taken by the learning organization be measured? Innovations require breakthrough thinking and instinct. Developing them requires a holistic mindset and flexibility. Implementing them requires collaboration across the corporation. How mature is your organization’s innovation environment? The learning function can have a pivotal role in assessing the knowledge, skills and behaviors needed, and driving a plan to put them in place, including partnering with sponsoring senior management and addressing the reward and recognition system within the culture of the organization. tions, listen to and hear what interviewees are saying, interpret materials and research, exercise great objectivity, see relationships, separate causes from effects, prioritize requirements, know when to stop investigating (that is, avoid paralysis analysis), have expertise in the chosen domain and its audience, and articulate needs in a way that stimulates great ideas. • Create Ideas: “Creators” are creative, synthesizers, conceptual, holistic and artistic. To create ideas, creators ask good questions, have expertise in the chosen domain, see patterns and relationships where others might not, integrate thoughts and concepts, take risks, imagine and, as Theresa Amabile put it, have “intrinsic motivation.” • Evaluate Solutions: “Evaluators” are planners — they’re organized, controlled and detail-oriented. To evaluate ideas, evaluators ask good questions, determine both qualitative and quantitative criteria, and understand who needs to make decisions and when. They drive the evaluation process in a way that best avoids hidden agendas and other unproductive behaviors. • Activate Plans: “Activators” are action-oriented, talkative, emotional and interpersonal. To activate plans, activators ask good questions, determine who needs to do what and when, understand how to drive collaboration, create a motivating environment and usher in progress. How Should We Innovate? In the simplest terms, innovation is a process that starts with investigating needs and follows with creating ideas, evaluating solutions and activating plans. Many times, innovation is seen as simply ideating. However, our definition, which concludes with “commercial value,” reminds us that without action, there is no innovation. Understanding the details of the innovation process, whether it is a formalized pipeline followed by a stage-gate process or a looser collaborative network, is a great opportunity for the learning function to align solutions that advance skills and even facilitate the process through action learning. The Innovation Skill Set Regardless of an organization’s particular nomenclature, the essence of the innovation process can be summarized in terms of four distinct and fundamental stages: investigate needs, create ideas, evaluate potential solutions and activate plans. Each stage requires a different set of knowledge, skills and behaviors that collectively comprise a “whole-brained” thinking model (as seen in the Herrmann Whole Brain Model: analytical, imaginative, sequential and interpersonal). Note that the four stages are based on the four thinking styles. • Investigate Needs: “Investigators” are analytical, logical and fact based. To ascertain needs, investigators ask good ques- Nature or Nurture? It’s Both! Without a doubt, people are born with more ability in some areas than in others, yet we can all develop our effectiveness in each of the four innovation skill areas. Recognizing and aligning talent with jobs or innovation team roles is an obvious step. However, once in the role, knowledge, skills and behaviors need to be continuously honed. Not all talent will be at the same level of expertise. In the event that the talent is not available, “nurture” will take a greater role. 39 January 2008 I www.clomedia.com I Chief Learning Officer http://www.clomedia.com

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Chief Learning Officer - January 2008 Editor’s Letter Table of Contents Imperatives Selling up, Selling Down Strategies Take Five Environment Sips of Knowledge at E. & J. Gallo Winery CLO Profile Productivity UST Global: Opening Employees’ Eyes to New Learning Tactics Applying CRM Concepts to E-Learning Human Capital Capital One: Experiences in Innovation Learning Solutions Macy’s: Using Feedback to Develop One Leader at a Time Case Study Business Intelligence Advertisers’ Index Editorial Resources In Conclusion

Chief Learning Officer - January 2008

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