The Jazz of Innovation

To jazz up your ability to innovate, turn to jazz.

The improvisation-driven model for innovation project management doesn’t discard structure, just as there is a clear structure to good jazz.

In innovation, this structure is created through roadmaps, guiding principles, business processes, systems and organizational charts. Strategic planning and road-mapping processes cannot guarantee brilliant flashes of creative insight, but they can prepare minds and increase the odds that such flashes occur in real time. Thus structure, as chords do in jazz, serves as a basis for improvisation, experimentations, discoveries and innovation.

Yin-Yang of Value Innovation

 Case in Point  Aetna Insurance

Many corporations are now working with the arts community.

Aetna Insurance brought in jazz bassist Michael Gold and his ensemble to teach improvisation. The theory is that kind reactive thinking can help employees handle competition and conflict.⁷

Finding the Right Balance Between Structure and Chaos

Balanced Organization: 5 Basic Elements

Empowered Employees (Metal):

The Jazz of Innovation

References::

1. The Art of Innovation, Tom Kelley

2. "Designed Chaos", Virtual Advisor Inc., An interview with David Kelley, founder and CEO of IDEO

3. "An Empirical Test of Nonaka’s Theory of Organizational Knowledge Creation," Richard G. Best, Sylvia J. Hysong, Charles McGhee, Frank I. Moore, Jacqueline A. Pugh

4. "Real Power: Business Lessons from the Tao Te Ching," James A. Autry & Stephen Mitchell

5. "Engaging Chaos Together," Jane F. Miller

6. "Tired of Strategic Planning?", The Times of India

7. "How To Jazz Up Innovation," Linda Stern