Truth 51. You stand between inspiration and implementation

It’s one thing to have a department that generates ideas—especially great ideas—like a machine. It’s quite another thing to know how to take care of all those ideas—even the bad ones. Nobody can reasonably expect all her ideas to be successfully implemented, of course. But your people deserve to trust that you will take give their ideas respectful consideration, no matter how good or bad they are.

Your people deserve to trust that you will take give their ideas respectful consideration.

As their manager, you are the only one who stands between their brainchildren and any chance they’ll have for having those ideas successfully put to good use. You are the gate between inspiration and implementation. The question now for you is whether that gate is routinely shut or open.

Researchers of organizational creativity and innovation say that managers are the main reason why great ideas never see the light of day. There are several reasons for this. You may not know as much as your people do about their field, so you might not be able to assess the value of the innovation. As a result, you might dismiss the idea as being too risky, when it really opens a valuable channel for change. Or perhaps you built your own personal sense of stability and security based on a certain set of variables, and your employees’ ideas threaten the end of a very comfortable status quo for you. Or the innovations break certain entrenched rules—ways of doing things that your organization has become attached to. Researchers call this phenomenon goal displacement—where the rules that were once set up to support a company in achieving its goals become more venerated than the pursuit of the goals themselves.

This isn’t to imply that with managerial responsibility, you’ve become an idea-phobe, that you fear fresh thought. People rarely intentionally close their minds to new ways of doing things. It just happens imperceptibly over time. But this still doesn’t relieve you of your duty of ushering great ideas toward the next steps of implementation.

• Do a gut check. It’s possible that subconsciously your mind has been closing to the notion of original ideas—especially those coming from your subordinates—over recent years. Look back on times when employees presented you with ideas (good or bad). How do you typically react to them? Do you hear them out noncritically? Or do you immediately start looking for operational flaws even as your employee is still speaking? Do you worry that your employees might be taking up too much valuable time making sure that their ideas are bulletproof before presenting them to you? Do you find yourself routinely liking your ideas better than your employees’? If you’re not clear about these answers, ask a few employees you both respect and trust to give you the honest answer. If you’re not happy with their feedback, let your group know that you’re committed to making a change toward more idea-friendly behavior, and seek the coaching or training that will help you get back on the right track.

Managers are the main reason why great ideas never see the light of day.

• Sell the idea to the right buyer. An employee has just dropped a great idea on your desk. It’s passed your still-considerable menu of qualifications. Now it’s up to you to put it into action. Evangelize it throughout the channels only to the people who will take care of it. Who is in the best position to push it along? Will your boss receive it as appreciatively as you did and find the funding for it? Or does it need to be beta-tested first, perhaps by your own team or by volunteers and rabid fans of the company?

• Give credit where credit’s due. Your people still own the idea, even though they gave it to you. Make sure you tell them what the idea’s status is as it’s being pushed forward to implementation. And make sure everyone along the line knows exactly who originated the idea—whether it was a single individual or a team effort.

You’ll get the credit you deserve. As a manager, your job is to create an environment where other people can put their brilliance to work. As more ideas from your department are implemented, you’ll be known as the person who leads creativity into reality.

Your people still own the idea, even though they gave it to you.