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I recently returned to the Digital: Disrupted podcast for a follow-up conversation with host Paul Muller. We explored how organizations should define innovation, and how people, problems, and processes come together to build a true culture of innovation.
You can listen to the full episode or read a summary of the key takeaways below.
Defining Innovation Beyond Technology
Technology is often treated as a shortcut to innovation—“let’s add AI and fix everything.” But that’s not how real innovation works.
Innovation is the process of solving problems in new, better, or different ways. Technology is simply an enabler. True innovation starts with people—understanding their challenges through empathy and creatively finding ways to improve their experience.
It’s not a tool. It’s a mindset and a process that anyone can learn.
Why “Innovation” Is Often Misunderstood
The word “innovation” gets used everywhere—but rarely defined.
Organizations frequently say they want to be innovative without clarifying what that actually means. Is it incremental improvement, or is it something transformational?
Without a clear definition, innovation becomes empty language—more about signaling intent than driving action. The first step for any organization is to define what innovation means in their specific context.
The Innovation Mindset: Curiosity Over Certainty
At an individual level, innovation starts with curiosity.
Curiosity drives learning, experimentation, and discovery. Unlike traditional problem-solving—where there’s a single “right” answer—innovation allows for multiple valid approaches.
A simple analogy: solving a math problem versus building with Legos. With Legos, five teams can solve the same challenge in five different ways. That’s innovation—exploration, iteration, and improvement.
Building a Culture of Innovation
Most organizations already have creative people—they just aren’t always empowered.
Building a culture of innovation means:
- Encouraging curiosity
- Supporting experimentation
- Accepting that not every idea will succeed
One of the biggest barriers is the expectation that every project must succeed. If failure isn’t an option, innovation won’t happen.
Managing Risk Through Small Experiments
Innovation is often seen as risky and wasteful—but it doesn’t have to be.
The key is starting small.
Instead of large, high-stakes initiatives, organizations should:
- Run small, low-cost experiments
- Test ideas quickly
- Learn and iterate before scaling
This “stage-gating” approach reduces risk while still enabling meaningful innovation.
Why Innovation Needs Room to Breathe
Traditional organizational structures can unintentionally slow innovation down.
Multiple stakeholders, approval processes, and rigid systems can stall momentum. For early-stage ideas, speed matters more than perfection.
That’s why innovation often needs to happen outside normal workflows—giving teams the freedom to experiment quickly without unnecessary friction.
Creating a Sustainable Innovation Process
The innovation process itself is transferable across industries—from startups to government agencies.
What matters is having a structure in place. This ensures innovation continues even as leadership or team members change.
Without structure, innovation efforts often fade when the individual driving them moves on.
Connecting Innovation to Purpose
Innovation is most powerful when tied to a larger mission.
Organizations that clearly define their “why” can better inspire employees to solve meaningful problems. Whether it’s improving energy systems or creating better user experiences, purpose drives engagement—and engagement fuels innovation.
Innovation Starts with Everyday Problems
Innovation doesn’t have to start at the executive level.
It often begins with everyday frustrations:
- Inefficient processes
- Redundant tasks
- Poor user experiences
Anyone in an organization can identify these problems and start improving them. Small changes can have a big impact.
Creating a Safe Environment for Ideas
A true culture of innovation requires psychological safety.
People need to feel comfortable asking questions, sharing ideas, and challenging assumptions—without fear of being dismissed.
Empathy plays a critical role here. When organizations value diverse perspectives and encourage open dialogue, they unlock more creative and effective solutions.
At its core, innovation is about understanding people, solving real problems, and creating better ways of doing things.
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