“To innovate you have to be fine with your company, on emotional terms”
This phrase from a recent interview with Margarita Álvarez, Director of Marketing and Communication of Adecco.
From my experience of creating a culture of innovation in a corporate environment, I completely agree with this phrase. It is one of the bases of emotional intelligence applied to the job as explained by David Caruso, professor and creator of the concept of emotional intelligence at Yale University in the United States.
If the worker is happy, they will be more productive. Yes, this we can all agree on.
If the work is more productive, they will benefit the company more .. but more creative?
I think so … but.
For the person to be more creative, there also has to be an environment and a process in which that creativity is channeled so that this creativity has impact and value to the company.
And here is my point.
Apply emotional intelligence to the generation and maintenance of a culture of innovation. How can we ensure that the participants in the innovation process are happy? How can we motivate them to participate with ideas or become involved in innovation projects that are “outside” of their daily work?
This is my passion that I practice in my day-to-day work. I try to make people happy and motivated when working on innovative projects.
How do I do it?
My Five Principles For Channeling Creativity
- Actively listen to the person who has an idea.
- Co-work and co-design the idea with the managers who must buy-in but also with the person who generated the idea.
- An idea is not an innovation, an idea is a starting point. You must create a concept and a prototype altogether.
- Communicate the process step-by-step to other colleagues, as a team.
- The more impact an idea-concept has, the better. Design the change from A to Z.
And these factors are key. They are part of the process, but they are also inextricably linked to our emotions. We work better when we feel satisfied, recognized, useful and heard. Unfortunately, calling out emotions can be abnormal in a company but to drive innovation, it’s time that we change this.
