The Role of Leaders in Driving Innovation and Change

Without effective leadership, initiatives fall apart, leading to stagnation. Promoting innovation and welcoming change keeps organizations competitive. As a leader, becoming an agent of change allows your workplace to thrive, especially in competitive industries.

Change isn't easy. Those who are affected by change feel very stressed. Key traits of a good leader include being able to shoulder this responsibility. It's up to us as leaders to lead our teams through change and towards innovation. Embracing innovation is essential.

It's through effective change leadership that we can transform challenges into opportunities. Learn how leaders drive innovation and change in the workplace.

Shawn Kanungo Explains Managing Innovation and Change

What is Change and Innovation in the Workplace?

Innovation means introducing new ideas that bring positive change and improvement. Leaders must encourage creativity and foster experimentation. Everyone then finds better ways to adapt to different things.

Effective change means moving from one place to another. Take spider monkeys as an analogy. As they move through the forest, these creatures quickly reach and test branches while holding securely to existing ones. Once the next branch proves stable, they release the past one. They do this very quickly which makes them successful in a dynamic (and very unforgiving) environment.

Like these primates, successful firms know how important stability is. Crawling through the branches, they maintain a firm grip on one reliable branch while testing the strength of another. In this way they balance growth and stability.

Organizations can adapt to changing conditions, letting them grab new opportunities and maintain a competitive edge. 

Why is There a Resistance to Change?

Innovation should be built into any organization's DNA. Even so, resistance to change is a common problem. Resistance occurs when new ideas are attempted within an organization but aren't accepted. Here are some common reasons for resistance.

• Change brings uncertainty. Employees may resist change to avoid stepping into the unknown.
• We find comfort in familiarity. Routine provides safety, causing team members to resist doing things differently from the way they are used to.
• Stability and structure matter. The perceived loss of control is frightening and causes apprehension.
• A lack of trust in leaders. More than half of employees distrust leadership, responding that their CEOs are somewhat or not at all credible. So, when these leaders propose change, their employees resist.
• No one likes making mistakes. Change often involves experimentation. There's always a chance of failure or errors when change happens.

Understanding the reasons behind resistance to change is key to managing and overcoming it. Organizations and leaders who handle change better can embrace innovation.

Reasons Why Organizations Need to Change

"The only constant in life is change." - Heraclitus

As leaders we need to focus on improving and understanding the difference between change leadership and change management leadership. We need to be good at change leadership and have a strong change management process in place because change is happening around us all the time.Here are some examples of external changes:

• Regulatory Changes: Regulations keep changing. Organizational changes are needed to stay compliant. The last thing we'd want is a lawsuit.
• Economic or societal crisis: Unexpected crises can come from anywhere and are often outside our control. This requires everyone to respond quickly and adapt. A proactive response can mitigate the negative impact of the crisis.
• Competitive Pressure: The competition is fierce. Organizations need to evolve and innovate. Failure to adapt can lead to market loss.
• Growth Opportunities: Organizations need to evolve to get a jump on growth opportunities. You could expand your market. Diversify your product offerings. Acquire other businesses.

How to Lead with Innovation Towards Change

It's not enough to just give directions to lead change. To be successful, leaders must employ these strategies to all change initiatives:

1. Be Transparent with the Change Goals: Clearly explain what the change initiative is for. Everyone should understand the need for change.
2. Create a Sense of Urgency: Get people excited about the change by creating urgency. This excitement gets you results faster. This can be done by promoting the benefits of the desired future state, and/or explaining the negative impacts of not changing.
3. Make a Compelling Change Story: Tell a story that explains what the change is all about. Sharing compelling stories makes a business transformation nearly six times more likely to work.
4. Build a Strong Team: Find the right people to lead the change. Get support from many different levels and departments.
5. Empower Your Employees: Involve everyone in the change process. Ask for their input and feedback. Provide training and resources. Offer support to help employees adjust and build confidence. And give them time.
6. Manage Resistance Effectively: Not everyone is going to adapt that easily. Make sure employees can voice their opinions. Encourage an open dialogue.

It's easier to get through change when you follow these steps. Leading through organizational change makes you more adaptable and resilient.

Unleashing the Potential of Your Organization

Leaders have a big role in bringing innovation and change within organizations. They inspire their teams to welcome change. When this happens, everyone evolves and thrives. Effective leadership that welcomes change produces innovation and thought leadership, which in turn produces lasting success. 

If you'd like to learn more about how to build and create a great vision, or other ways you can take the simpler path to creating a great business, connect with us or consider attending one of our upcoming leadership events.