The Introduction to Collective Genius: The Art and Practice of Leading Innovation by Linda A. Hill, Greg Brandeau, Emily Truelove and Kent Lineback (Boston: Harvard BusinessReview Press, 2014) calls for a different kind of leader who creates organizations both willing and able to innovate. From that innocuous opening, this new study quickly moves to engage the challenges and complexities confronting those wanting to enable innovation. Much of the complexity is captured in six paradoxes – from “support” and “confrontation” to “bottom up” and “top down” – that create ongoing tension. These are then summarized in a “fundamental paradox” between “unleashing” and “harnessing” the talents in an organization. Through the dozen case studies that follow, these paradoxes demonstrate not only the potential of different kinds of leaders but the value of different kinds of thinking about leadership in fostering and driving innovation.
Image: 1998-2005 Volkswagen New Beetle photographed in USA. Category:Volkswagen New Beetle (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
