Innovation Theme Scores High at 2007 Leading Edge Consortium Jan 2008

“Change is good … you go first.”

At the 3rd Annual Leading Edge Consortium speaker David DiGiulio quoted this humorous bit of “bumper sticker wisdom,” something quite fitting to the program’s theme of “Enabling Innovation in Organizations.”

In all, there were 25 presenters who shared their experiences and research regarding innovation. Thanks to such strong content, this year’s consortium was a huge success bringing together leading edge practitioners, researchers, and business executives. Nearly 150 attendees gathered for the 2-day event in Kansas City, MO, Oct. 26–27.
SIOP has produced a smash hit with its Leading Edge Consortium series, featuring intriguing programs and engaging speakers. Plus, with the smaller size of the consortium compared to the SIOP annual conference, participants enjoyed being able to attend all sessions and interact in a more intimate setting.

Participation was encouraged and made easy with an audience response system, which enabled attendees to take part in instant polling via radio frequency keypads. This high-tech feature went hand in hand with the innovation theme to add a nice, interactive touch to the sessions.

“It’s not innovation until it’s done,” said DiGiulio, a former research and development and human resources executive for Procter & Gamble. “Creativity is getting ideas, but innovation is getting ideas done.” He used several product development examples from P&G to illustrate his points.

Keynote speaker Ed Lawler opened the consortium with a presentation that focused on change and how it is a necessity for innovation. The director of the Center for Effective Organizations at the University of Southern California, Lawler emphasized that it is a changing world, and organizations must evolve and change with time. It is enabling innovation through change that allows an organization to lead, he said.

Another keynote speaker, Ingar Skaug, said, “To keep the competitive edge we must be in the forefront of development all the time.” Skaug, president and group chief executive officer of the global shipping firm Wilh. Wilhelmsen, based in Norway, pointed out that any such edge is only temporary because competitors will copy innovations rather quickly.

During his presentation, Skaug explored the innovative methods of his firm, a leading global maritime industry group with more than 23,000 employees and offices in 79 countries. His management style emphasizes empowering employees and encouraging creativity in order to benefit customers.

Leaetta Hough, Bill Mobley, and Michael Frese chaired the consortium. Doug Reynolds also served on the Planning cCommittee. Hough presented a research paper outlining individual difference predictors of innovation and creativity. The paper, focusing on staffing for innovation, was co-authored by Stephan Dilchert.

Beyond all the positive messages that were delivered about innovation, the speakers were also candid about the topic. One of the sessions, entitled “The Dark Side of Innovation,” focused on the tensions of innovation and how to overcome its challenges.
“Innovation is wonderful. Innovation is great. ‘Yeah’ for innovation, but innovation has its dilemmas,” said Robert DeFillippi, a professor of the Sawyer Business School at Suffolk University in Boston, who headed the dark side panel.

Panelists said the dark side includes unhealthy work practices and poor quality of life, conflicts over standardization versus creativity, individuality versus collaboration, passion versus discipline, and other creative tensions. But regardless of what may be found on the dark side, the consistent message was that the positive outcomes of being innovative outweigh the downfalls. The panel examined the challenges and then suggested interventions to manage paradoxes, promote quality of life, and balance creative tensions.

Other panelists who joined DeFillippi were Jonathan Sapsed, an innovation fellow of the UK’s Advanced Institute of Management Research and principal research fellow of CENTRIM at the University of Brighton, Marianne Lewis, an associate professor of management at the University of Cincinnati, and Lucy Gilson, a psychology professor at the University of Connecticut.

Additional presenters and topics included Shaker Zahra, a professor in the Carlson School of Management at the University of Minnesota, who presented on “Opportunity and Opportunity Detection.” There were a handful of presenters on the topic “Team and Individual Creativity,” including Jim Farr, a psychology professor at Pennsylvania State University; Jacob Goldenburg, an associate professor in the School of Business Administration at Hebrew University in Jerusalem; Miriam Erez, a professor at the Israel Institute of Technology; and Jeremiah Lee, the director of Haworth Ideation Group, headquartered in Holland, MI.

Michael Mumford, a psychology professor at the University of Oklahoma, presented on “Organizational Support for Innovation.” There was a discussion on “Corporate Innovation” that included panelists Katherine Holt, the president of Peakinsight, LLC; Lee Konczak, the director of executive development and selection systems for the Anheuser-Busch Company; and Steven Kowalski, an executive development consultant for Genentech, Inc.

Daria Loi, a research scientist in the User Experience Group at the Intel Corporation, presented on “Strategies for Fostering Creativity.” David Campbell, a Fellow of the Center for Creative Leadership, also presented on this topic. Lindsey Kotrba, the director of research and development at Denison Consulting, gave a presentation focused on “Culture and Innovation.” For the topic “Innovation in the Real World,” there were two speakers, Susan Marcinelli and Joanna Starek, both consultants for RHR International.

The consortium featured several leaders of innovation from the United States, plus it provided an international flair with speakers from China, Israel, Italy, Norway, and Great Britain.

If you missed the event, you can still experience the engaging sessions via DVD, which contains all consortium sessions. You can order the 2007 consortium DVD on the SIOP Web site, or call the SIOP Administrative Office at 419-353-0032. To order online, visit the SIOP Pub Hub page at www.siop.org/pubhub/main.asp, and enter “DVD” in the “Quick Search” box.

In addition, DVDs are still available for previous-year consortia. These can also be purchased online or by calling the SIOP Administrative Office. The 2005 Consortium DVD focused on “Leadership at the Top: The Selection, Globalization and Ethics of Talent Management,” and the 2006 Consortium DVD focused on “Talent Attraction, Development, and Retention.”

Looking Ahead to Next Year

The 4th Annual Leading Edge Consortium is scheduled for Oct. 17–18, 2008, and will focus on coaching. Past SIOP president Jeff McHenry will be the general chair.

Next year’s consortium will be held in Cincinnati, OH, at The Westin Cincinnati. Information will be posted on the SIOP Web site as it becomes available.