DRIVE FOR INNOVATION. Take intelligent risks. Innovation, improvement, and success don’t come from playing it safe. They come from a thoughtful and intentional willingness to try the unconventional and to ask “What if?” Don’t be afraid to make mistakes. We learn the most when we try something new. Use sound judgment.
Innovation is another of our Core Values and one of my personal favorite Fieldamentals! I really think that innovation is one of the driving forces that makes Field a unique and special organization. To have a real drive for innovation, you must first have a deeply rooted desire to make things better. Innovation stems from a healthy discontentment with the current state or process, even if it is really good. Driving for innovation means we can’t settle for good enough or be satisfied with the way we have always done things.
Including “intelligent risks” in the definition, makes it clear that we accept that driving for innovation can include the chance that something may go wrong. I want to encourage you to think through the potential risks that could happen as you try to innovate and be willing to make the decision to try something different. When you have an idea that may make things better, think about the potential risks, weight them against the potential improvement and determine the best way to test or validate the new idea. When you are considering an innovative idea, you need to respect the current process & procedure while you test the new approach. Discuss the idea with others involved and set parameters to evaluate the concept. Refine this multiple times if necessary.
A really effective way to develop innovative solutions is to ask “what if?” Thinking “outside the box” is another way of looking at something that may lead to an innovative solution. How can we improve the way we secure new customer business? How can we decrease the time to implement a new VMI system? How can we improve the technical support services we provide our customers? How can we operate more efficiently with our suppliers? How can we improve internal efficiencies & reduce errors? There is no end to list of potential ways we can innovate at Field!
Don’t be discouraged if the idea doesn’t work at first. Assess the situation, learn from what worked and what didn’t, make adjustments and try again. Share what you learned with others so we all can utilize your experience as look for more ways to drive for innovation.
Let’s have an innovative week!