More Details On The 8 Productive Tensions Of Innovation - Summary
Overall Summary of 8 Productive Tensions of Innovation
Success is about tackling these productive tensions of innovation. Need to be able to recognise and reconcile the persistent inconsistencies.
"...The tensions inherent in innovation are enduring inconsistencies that arise for competing aims: efficiency or flexibility? Consistency for change? Product or purpose? They provoke anxiety, consume leaders' time and require solutions. The conundrum is that leaders are often unable either to identify these tensions or to navigate their way through them competently..."
Christopher Bingham et al, 2022a
Need to be careful that the tensions are not regarded as impossible trade-offs that are only handled by choosing between narrow conceived paths.
Most of the tensions require mutually-exclusive solutions.
Need to view the tensions as productive and find ways of harnessing them effectively; don't view them as negative, ie see them as a blessing, not as curses.
Realise that different tensions will appear at different times and in different contexts, ie it is not a 'tick the box' or 'flick and tick' exercise.
There are times when opportunists need to be more strategic, and when strategists need to be more opportunistic. Generally younger people and new organisations are more opportunistic than older people and more established organisations.
Some of the tensions include
"...Should they focus on what's known and basic key decisions on extensive data? Or should they trust their mental models of the future and improvise a way forward? Is it better to rely on concrete roadmaps or compelling visions? To emphasise efficiency and risk being rigid or to embrace flexibility and risk being wishy-washy? To seek sustainable advantage or temporary wins?..."
Christopher Bingham et al, 2022a
Often failure is attributed to lack of money or talent, or bad luck. However, research reveals different insights, ie the need to embrace and effectively navigate fundamental tensions (including persistent contradictions, etc) inherent in innovation.
"...how do you excite customers about novel products they've never imagined? How do you maintain stakeholders trust, and keep supporters on board, during a major course correction?..."
Christopher Bingham et al, 2022a
Summary of productive tension
| "...Tension |
Key questions |
Why tension is critical |
| Familiar v. Novel |
How can we frame innovation to garner resources, attention and traction? |
Human perception - perhaps more than technological benefit - will determine whether new products and services thrive or die |
| Accept v. Reject |
When should we defer to data, and when should we ignore it? |
We live in an age of data. Digital platforms, wireless sensors, apps, and mobile phones amass quantities of data; its volume doubles every few years |
| Selection v. Execution |
How can we Sure new growth opportunities most effectively? |
Mature corporations, growing businesses, and new ventures all face concerns about how to select and execute opportunities |
| Inside v. Outside |
How can we leverage the knowledge of others both inside and outside the organisation? |
Leaders need others' help to drive innovation since their information is incomplete and what they know is distorted by cognitive bias |
| Differentiation v. Borrowing |
How can we determine which points of differentiation will be most important to customers? |
Brand-new markets are like wormholes in science-fiction, where the usual rules of time and space do not apply |
| Efficiency v. Flexibility |
How can we build on the past but adjust in the present? |
To meet competitive threats and adapt, most organisations tend to add more structure over time which inadvertently makes it harder to change |
| Consistency v. Change |
How can we maintain trust in a project with a consistent vision amid inevitable adaptation? |
To succeed, ventures must rally others around a good story. But often that story turns out to be wrong, and leaders realise that they need to change direction |
| Product v. Purpose |
How can we create a unique brand advantage and sustain it over time? |
Well-designed 'purpose brands' can sell themselves, enable premium pricing, and lock out competitors. But far more new brands fail..." (source: Christopher Bingham et al, 2022a) |