Preserving capacity, General Tom Lawson, Chief of the Defence Staff, Keys to Canadian SAR
Issue link: http://vanguardcanada.uberflip.com/i/304887
"Innovation" might be an overused buzzword in de- fence and security circles, but since the stand-up of the canadian Innovation commercialization Program (now Build in canada In- novation Program) and the release of the Jenkins and emerson reports, it has been central to the federal government's message. Randy Frank, technical director for 3M canada responsible for the company's new product activity, has been telling 3M's innovation story since 2005. He spoke with editor chris thatcher about 3M's approach to innovation and how those principles might be applied to a public sector organization like the Department of national Defence and the canadian Armed Forces. e eXeCUtIVe InteRVIeW THE PASSION AND PERSISTENCE 32 APRIL/MAY 2014 www.vanguardcanada.com OF INNOVATION Q Governments and industry have placed a lot of emphasis on being innovative. Every federal budget seems to include new measures or incentives to encourage innovation. Why are we not innovative (or innovative enough)? How should we defi ne innovation? The word does get used very loosely, so it truly depends on how you defi ne it. As a company, we defi ne innovation as solving a problem in a new and creative way. And solving a real world prob- lem is the key. It's not just about being creative, it's about actually getting to that practical outcome. Generally speaking, it is also not small, incremental change, and it is not obvious change; it is usually something that is out of the box and very different. That is how we defi ne innovation and the culture we try and foster in the company. Is Canada an innovative place to be? In many ways it is. There is some great work going on. But it is not so much the creative element as it is the practical element: how do you take a great idea and turn it into something real? That is the piece in the framework that needs additional support. We talk about funding, innovation process, access to markets, etc., which are all real issues, but hav- ing great people with passion able to approach problems in a new and creative way is also critical. The people part is a piece that is often overlooked, in my mind. I know from our own experiences that the most innovative products we have brought to market have been the result of very passionate and persistent people. Q Most organizations will say their strength is their people. Is there a key to encouraging and support- ing that passion that then spurs innovation? We had very early leadership in the '30s that instilled in the organization tolerance for mistakes, that allowed people freedom to do their job the way they wanted to do it. We live by a set of prin- ciples called the McKnight Prin- ciples, named after our chairman at the time, William McKnight, who really tried to instill the idea of giving people the latitude to do their job their own way. That kind of in- ternal freedom creates an environment where people feel comfortable taking a few risks – responsible