ENCOURAGE INNOVATION AND OUTSMART YOUR COMPETITION
By: Dave Clossey / T.J. Tedesco
For: The Binding Edge
Published: Winter, 2003

Company owners often wear many hats within their organization. Some responsibilities deal with day-to-day operations, while others are more of the “big picture” variety. Inspiring innovation and encouraging the discovery of creative solutions is often lumped into that latter category, even though it shouldn’t be.

For many graphic arts companies, the need to encourage innovation clashes with everyday responsibilities that keep the company going. However, balancing the two is essential for continued growth. Here are a few ideas to help you encourage innovation and generate creative, implementable solutions:

Create an “anything’s possible” atmosphere – Innovation becomes stagnated when certain procedures and policies are marked “off limits.” To truly give employees the power to find creative solutions, be clear that everything – from the way finished sheets or books are stacked, to the entire layout of the plant and the flow of work through it – can be improved.

There’s no such thing as a bad idea – What sounds offbeat and illogical to one person may be music to someone else’s ears. Filtering all the seeds of creative thought through one person will result in many potentially beneficial – and profitable – ideas falling to the wayside. A weekly or monthly “town hall” is one way to throw all ideas out for collective chewing.

Mistakes in the name of improvement are acceptable – Innovation sounds so good in theory; it’s the practice of it that causes many companies to let it peter out. In order to enhance and improve a procedure or product, there needs to be some room for mistakes. When employees are afraid to fail, creativity will remain bottled up. Reinforce the notion that innovation is accomplished by trial and error, and that mistakes made in the name of improvement are a natural part of that process. Of course, you should also stress that those mistakes should never be made twice.

Innovate both inside and outside – The best solutions that help your company grow may not have anything to do with what goes on within its walls. Although most innovation efforts may focus on production and customer service, equal gains can often be found in relationships with suppliers.

A recent Harvard Business Review article on innovation used the development of the Chrysler minivan as an example of networking innovation. In it, author Larry Keeley pointed out that the minivan was simply a platform on which suppliers designed products to fit it – car seats, video game consoles, etc. The result was a product improved and enhanced with R&D coming almost completely from the suppliers rather than the manufacturer.

Although there aren’t any direct parallels to the minivan in our industry, the message is universal: innovation that’s profitable to your company is as likely to come from outside your company as it is from within.

Ignore your competition – Too often, printers and post press services providers focus innovation efforts on doing things better and cheaper than the guy next door. To create truly unique solutions that customers crave, “keeping up with the Joneses” shouldn’t be part of the equation; getting away from what they do should be.

Use resources wisely – The great thing about ideas is that they’re all free. Unfortunately, the implementation of those ideas is not. When business is swooning, it can be tempting to look for bigger and better bandages to stop the bleeding. Make sure the implementation of new ideas adheres to a strict life cycle. For example, adding a new service may sound like a great way to keep business from slipping away to a competitor. Before you go ahead and commit to equipment and employees, get an accurate and realistic idea of the costs involved, both monetary and otherwise. Set realistic goals for bringing the service live and operational and, most importantly, plan an exit strategy before you enter.

Encourage innovation when the going’s good – A big push for innovative solutions is often the result of a lull in revenues. However, creative thinking should be an equal priority when you’re flush with work. Complacency and fear are the two biggest innovation killers. Overcome both of them by encouraging innovation when you’re on top of the mountain and when you’re in the valley.

Focus on solutions that solve real problems – Overhauling, expanding, revamping and reorganizing your mechanical binding department won’t do one bit of good if your biggest obstacle to increased sales is the person answering the phones. Before you can encourage innovation, decide what needs innovation.

One of the best ways to do that is to ask your customers – both past, present and future – how your business can improve. Have customer service folks conduct impromptu surveys over the phone, or mail out a brief questionnaire (don’t forget to offer a small token of appreciation in return).

Bring in outside influences – Occasionally, even the most well-intentioned plans for encouraging innovation produce few implementable ideas. One way to get things moving is to bring in eyes and ears from outside the company. The fresh perspective of a neutral observer may be just the tonic that helps both owners and employees get the creative juices flowing freely again.

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Encouraging innovation can be quite a challenge for any company. In the post press world, that challenge is magnified with the daily pressures of cycling work in and out of the plant. For that reason, innovation that’s easily implementable has great value; even slight improvements can reap huge benefits. Keep your company on the upswing by acknowledging the creative potential within every employee.

T.J. Tedesco is a “hands-on” marketing, sales, coaching and training consultant to the post press industry. He is the author of Binding, Finishing & Mailing: The Final Word, and Win Top-of-Mind Positioning, both published by GATFPress and available at Amazon.com. T.J. can be reached at (301) 294-9900 or tj@growsales.com.