Innovation as a management approach is dying, giving way to a culture. Rather than relying on dedicated innovation teams or hired talent, organizations must cultivate creativity as a foundational process and culture to stay competitive as AI accelerates competition across all fields. Alina Golava, Solutions Sales Director at Mercaux — a startup named among the 50 Global Tech startups powering the New Retail world — describes six key shifts in mindset and practices for leaders to build a team that innovates rather than forming an ‘innovation team.’ Relying on Amy Edmondson’s principle of ‘teaming,’ the Dreyfus Model of Skill Acquisition, and methods from cognitive psychology and creative problem-solving, this article explains how to create a space where diverse perspectives are actively sought and valued, where the fear of failure is replaced by a commitment to growth, and where autonomy empowers teams to explore, innovate, and execute with confidence.
“Culture eats strategy for breakfast.” This quote, often attributed to renowned management consultant Peter Drucker, has been cited thousands of times, but its true meaning for teams that innovate and an innovative company transitioning from an early startup to big tech is profound. Remember the story behind Nokia? Back in 2007, Nokia held over 50% of the phone market but failed to recognize the growing importance of software, focusing on hardware improvements instead.
This oversight allowed competitors like Apple and Android to dominate the smartphone market with superior software offerings, ultimately leading to Nokia’s decline. The company had a solid strategy but over-relied on principles, which had worked before, and it missed the crucial moment for change. The moral of the story is that while startup culture is easier to maintain in the early stages, it becomes increasingly challenging to preserve as the startup grows. Also, larger corporations must stimulate an innovative culture to ensure they don’t miss out on new opportunities.
According to McKinsey, while over 80 percent of executives rank innovation as a top priority, fewer than 10 percent are satisfied with their organizations’ innovation performance. Many established companies excel at optimizing existing core businesses but struggle to produce innovations.
Sustaining Innovation
The management approach described in the article is shaped by my experience across different industries, ranging from small teams, agile collectives, and startups to large brands I have worked with, such as Kia Motors, United Colors of Benetton, Pfizer, AGC Flat Glass, and Energizer (Schick). Over my past 10 years of working at the e-commerce solution startup Mercaux, named among 50 Global Tech startups powering the New Retail world, my role as a Product Expertise and Partnerships Manager has allowed me to gain insights from both sides: practices necessary for sustaining innovation at different stages of startup growth and the practices implemented by our clients, involving those who are integrating innovative solutions into their traditional business models.
In observing and interacting with both sides, I’ve noticed that one of the most counterintuitive challenges for managers is to think beyond their previous experience and the established practices they rely on. While experience is undoubtedly one of the most valuable assets, it can also be the very thing that limits the ability to think outside the box.
As Ron Shevlin recently wrote for Forbes, “Innovation as a management fad is dying,” giving way to “the creativity imperative.” Rather than relying on dedicated innovation teams or hired talent, organizations must cultivate creativity as a foundational process and culture to stay competitive as AI accelerates competition across all fields. Here are six key shifts in mindset and practices for leaders to build teams that innovate rather than forming an “innovation team.”
1. From Periodic Training to Incremental Learning
To build internal teams that innovate, an effective learning process must be arranged and staged. Companies need to build and maintain expertise on an ongoing basis. Employees’ skills can and must be developed, and companies need to understand and foster this development process. Building expertise through a random, unsystematic training approach, individually or occasionally, is uncontrollable and unpredictable.
The Dreyfus Model of Skill Acquisition offers a structured approach to skill development, methodically guiding team members from novices to experts. This model ensures that learning and growth happen methodically and incrementally, which is fundamental for effective team development.
The Dreyfus Model is built on the idea of iterative learning — a process where knowledge and skills are repeatedly revisited, refined, and applied in different contexts. At each stage, team members learn through experience, reflection, and gradual mastery, which helps them develop deeper understanding and more intuitive problem-solving abilities. This approach ensures that learning is not just a one-time event but a continuous journey that adapts to the evolving needs of the individual and the organization. Project by project, businesses can create a dynamic environment where continuous learning and improvement are embedded in the culture, driving sustained innovation and excellence.
Developing Team Skills
Assessing your team’s current skill levels and identifying gaps are crucial first steps. Tools like skill matrices map out each team member’s development journey, leading to personalized learning plans with clear, achievable goals. For novices, straightforward instructions paired with strong mentorship build foundational knowledge, while real-world tasks reinforce skills and boost confidence.
As team members advance, the focus shifts to practical application and independent problem-solving. Cross-training broadens their knowledge base and nourishes versatility. Regular peer-led sessions, where employees share new skills or collaborate on projects outside their usual scope, significantly enhance team cohesion and adaptability.
Dynamic coaching plays a vital role in this process. Mentorship programs pair less experienced employees with seasoned mentors, providing continuous guidance and personalized feedback. Regular check-ins and progress reviews maintain momentum and swiftly address challenges.
The strategy for developing team skills should be simple, accessible, and right-sized to build long-term growth and adaptability. This framework can also be used to assess whether the team is making progress with its skills. Organizations cultivate an environment that drives sustained innovation and excellence by embedding continuous learning and improvement into the culture, project by project.
2. From Expecting Creativity to Building Creativity
Many organizations overlook the importance of training their teams in effective critical thinking and brainstorming techniques. Yet, these skills are crucial for driving innovation and maintaining a competitive edge. Design Thinking, a human-centered approach that helps explore a user’s problem in depth through empathy, definition, ideation, iterative prototyping, and testing, offers a powerful framework for enhancing these capabilities.
Incorporating empathy into brainstorming sessions is a key starting point. Techniques like problem framing and reframing, empathy mapping, and persona creation help teams understand end-users’ needs deeply. Encouraging your team to thoroughly explore the issue’s essence before jumping to solutions is extremely important. Methods such as mind mapping, six thinking hats, and SCAMPER (Substitute, Combine, Adapt, Modify, Put to another use, Eliminate, and Reverse) stimulate creative thinking and allow for a broader exploration of ideas.
Turning creativity into a deliberate practice shifts it from a soft skill we hope for into a process we can manage. Innovation becomes a regular outcome when these creative techniques are embedded into daily routines. As a strong advocate of Design Thinking, IBM is a prime example of this. They not only implement it across the company, educating employees in various functions, but also share their approach with wider audiences.
3. From Rigid Structures to Dynamic Teams
Traditional, rigid organizational structures limit the ability to adapt quickly and respond to challenges. To create an innovation-friendly space, it’s essential to experiment with horizontal structures and dynamic team orientations. Instead of sticking to fixed teams and organizational silos, temporary, purpose-driven groups that bring together individuals from various functions and levels can more effectively tackle specific problems.
In her book “Teaming: How Organizations Learn, Innovate, and Compete in the Knowledge Economy,” professor Amy Edmondson emphasizes the importance of teaming—a dynamic process in which teams are continuously formed, adjusted, and reformed rather than being static entities in response to the demands of the work environment.
While Edmondson does not specifically link her concept of teaming to agile methodologies, her ideas resonate with the principles of agile frameworks like Scrum and Shape Up. These methodologies also prioritize adaptability and cross-functional collaboration, where team composition can shift based on the project’s needs. Scrum, for example, focuses on short, iterative sprints that bring together diverse skills to achieve rapid progress and incorporate continuous feedback. Shape Up encourages teams that innovate to focus on solving specific problems within fixed cycles, allowing for decisive action on well-defined challenges.
Decentralized decision-making is crucial for team-oriented approaches, as it enables faster movement and real-time adjustments without the constraints of traditional top-down structures. Edmondson’s work highlights flexibility, stressing that in environments where teams often form and disband quickly, the ability to “team” effectively is essential for organizational learning and success.
Flexibility in team composition enhances this dynamic further. Allowing members to rotate or join different projects based on their skills and interests promotes a more engaged and versatile workforce. Interestingly, this represents well what’s happening with early-stage startups, where, due to the lack of resources, you’re always a part of some team created to resolve a specific purpose.
4. From Discrete Results to Common Goals
Engagement in the workplace is a crucial factor driving productivity, innovation, and overall job satisfaction. One of the most effective ways to keep employees engaged is by raising a sense of purpose and alignment with the company’s broader goals. When employees see how their contributions fit into the bigger picture, they feel a deeper connection to their roles and are more motivated to put forth their best effort. As a leader, it’s important to ask: “Are we creating opportunities for our team members to feel progress, to genuinely sense that they are contributing to something larger than just discrete tasks?”
Another key to maintaining engagement is providing clear paths for growth and development. Employees who understand how they can advance within the organization and who have access to continuous learning resources are more likely to stay motivated and committed. Additionally, recognizing and rewarding achievements, whether big or small, reinforces a culture of appreciation and respect, further aligning individual efforts with the company’s overarching goals.
Organizations can cultivate a highly engaged and dedicated workforce that drives sustained innovation and success by shifting the focus from isolated results to common goals and by creating an environment where employees feel valued and supported.
5. From Failures as Taboos to Failures as Opportunities
Failures are inevitable. We all know it from our day-to-day lives. Yet, for whatever reason, they often become taboo in the workplace, even though they still happen. The urge to sweep bad news under the rug and impose a positivity that leaves no room for criticism or doubt can lead teams that innovate to a place of mutual blame. How often has a retrospective meeting been filled with silence until someone finally admits they saw the project’s downfall from the start, only to see others nodding in reluctant agreement?
Normalizing failure and removing penalties for risk-taking are crucial for continuous improvement. When employees feel safe taking risks and sharing their honest opinions without fear of retribution, they’re more likely to experiment and explore new ideas. This sense of psychological safety encourages open dialogue, turning failures into valuable learning experiences.
Leaders who openly share their failures and view them as opportunities for growth help set the right tone. Retrospectives that focus on understanding the processes and decisions behind failures rather than placing blame can reveal important insights. Accountability remains important — not as a form of punishment, but as a way to understand one’s role in the process and commit to future improvement.
Balancing the acceptance of failure with a sense of responsibility ensures that while mistakes are seen as a part of the growth process, there’s still a strong drive towards achieving successful outcomes. This approach encourages learning and innovation while maintaining high accountability and performance standards.
6. From Internal Experience to External Exchange
Sometimes, the most unobvious ideas come from looking beyond the confines of your organization. Learning from other teams within and outside your company can bring fresh perspectives and insights that drive improvement. Fostering a culture of open exchange and collaboration allows organizations to tap into a wealth of knowledge and experience that transcends traditional boundaries.
One way to facilitate this exchange is through a robust partner network. Building strong relationships with other companies, industry groups, and even competitors opens up opportunities for sharing best practices.
Looking outside your industry can also be particularly enlightening. Cross-industry learning allows teams that innovate to adopt successful practices and strategies from entirely different fields sparking creativity and leading to breakthrough innovations. A healthcare company might learn about agile project management from a tech startup, or a manufacturing firm could draw on customer experience strategies from the retail sector. These cross-pollination opportunities often reveal new ways to solve problems and improve processes, leading to unexpected and valuable discoveries.
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A dynamic business environment forces organizations to cultivate an innovation culture that goes beyond traditional boundaries and encourages a synthesis of diverse ideas. This journey is about generating new concepts and embedding a disciplined, iterative approach to turning these ideas into impactful results.
To achieve this, leaders ought to foster an environment where collaboration, experimentation, and continuous learning are integral to the organizational fabric. It’s about creating a space where diverse perspectives are actively sought and valued, a commitment to growth replaces the fear of failure, and autonomy empowers teams to explore, innovate, and execute confidently.
Alina Golava
Alina Golava is the Director of Solution Sales at Mercaux, an omnichannel platform that connects online and offline retail. With over 10 years of international experience in Germany and the UK, she has a strong background in B2B retail-tech SaaS, and digital technologies. Alina has played a key role in building product partnerships and successfully implementing Mercaux’s solutions for brands like United Colors of Benetton, Dufry, and many others.
Photo by Jason Goodman on Unsplash
