The Innovator's DNA

Innovation is the philosopher’s stone of the business world. It can turn leaden, boring offerings into shiny, golden success. It can rejuvenate moribund firms and revitalize stagnant organizations. It may even hold the secret to achieving corporate immortality. At least, that's a commonly heard theme these days.

The generations of alchemists who sought to reveal the mysteries of the philosopher's stone have been replaced by a new generation seeking to unlock the secrets of successful innovation. Earlier this week I had the chance to attend a webinar hosted by two of the best: Clay Christensen and Hal Gregersen. The professors have written a number of books and articles about "disruptive innovators" -- creative minds like Jeff Bezos of Amazon.com, Marc Benioff of Salesforce.com, and the iconic Steve Jobs of Apple who change the way business is done.

The webinar, The Innovator's DNA: Mastering the Five Skills of Disruptive Innovation, attempted to answer two critical questions: how do disruptive innovators think differently, and can other people learn how to do it too? The answer to the second question is a firm "yes, you can learn to think like successful disruptors". And according to Christensen and Gregersen, the way you do it is by practicing five skills that anyone can learn:

1.      Associational Thinking - Disruptive innovators associate things that are normally not associated. They see connections that other people don't see. They make connections that other people would not have considered.

2.      Questioning - Disruptive innovators constant questioning the world. They question what is happening. They question what might happen if a variable were to change. They question why things are done the way they are done. They question why things are not done in a different way.

3.      Observing - Disruptive innovators notice things. They focus on what is happening. They focus on what is not happening. They look for surprising and unexpected things.

4.      Networking - Disruptive innovators do not just watch -- they also talk with people. They seek out people with different points of view. They seek ideas from people who are not like them -- people from different professions, of different genders, from different backgrounds, of different ages, and with different interests. They listen to what people say.

5.      Experimenting - Disruptive innovators try out new things. They seek new experiences. They are open to new ideas. They take products, processes, and ideas apart and put them together in different ways. When they get new ideas, they try them out. If they fail, they modify them and try them out again.

Mastering the skills of disruptive innovators requires more than attending a 60-minute webinar. It takes more than reading a book (although The Innovator's DNA is at the top of my list of books to read next). Luckily, every day provides opportunities to practice the five skills that will help me become a disruptive innovator.