Today's overused buzzword, innovation might be defined as the constant quest for "the next big thing," but is innovation always a good thing? Maybe not, if it's not placed right where it belongs, under the watchful eye of strategy. Michael Porter's Big Ideas article in Fast Company is a refreshing reminder, despite the fact that it was published in Feb. 2001. Here's a clip from the conclusion:

If people in the organization don't understand how a company is supposed to be different, how it creates value compared to its rivals, then how can they possibly make all of the myriad choices they have to make? Every salesman has to know the strategy -- otherwise, he won't know who to call on. Every engineer has to understand it, or she won't know what to build.

The best CEOs I know are teachers, and at the core of what they teach is strategy. They go out to employees, to suppliers, and to customers, and they repeat, "This is what we stand for, this is what we stand for." So everyone understands it. This is what leaders do. In great companies, strategy becomes a cause. That's because a strategy is about being different. So if you have a really great strategy, people are fired up: "We're not just another airline. We're bringing something new to the world."

7:04:29 PM    
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