Organizations often claim to encourage risk-taking, but are typically reluctant to greenlight experimental innovation efforts for fear of failure. What’s more, by the time an “experimental” project is set to launch, layers of management will have likely reviewed and approved the “risky” project in advance.
The issue is that there’s always going to be a natural failure rate when taking risks. Expecting 100% success only rewards safe bets. Not only is this approach stale and uninspired, but it also discourages employees from implementing new ideas that could lead to positive business outcomes.
While there is no silver bullet for building a culture of experimentation, one way executives can help spur innovation in their organizations is by practicing servant leadership.
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