Episode 2: Unlocking innovation and innovation leadership with Robyn Bolton

Leaders complain they don't have enough ideas. Yet every organization is full of people naturally full of ideas. So what's locking those ideas up?⁠Robyn Bolton⁠ is Chief Navigator at MileZero and former innovation leader at Procter & Gamble and Innosight, Clayton Christensen's firm. She's discovered through her research that only 0.002% of ideas become million dollar businesses within a year of launch. That means you need 40,000 ideas to create a $1 million dollar product.In this conversation, you'll learn why successful organizations struggle most with innovation, how to create guardrails instead of rigid processes, and why leaders must fall in love with the problem before rushing to solutions.Robyn also shares the three resistance statements every innovation leader will face and exactly how to respond when someone says we tried that before.The conversation explores the critical role of leadership in innovation and the importance of creating a culture of idea sharing and activation. It delves into the challenges and considerations in open innovation, as well as the future of innovation and integration of internal and external ideas.She is the author of ⁠Unlocking Innovation⁠ and founder of ⁠MileZero⁠ through which she helps clients to use innovation, unlock their business’s potential and get real results. Chapters:00:00 The Role of Leadership in Innovation05:57 Creating a Culture of Idea Sharing11:56 The Evolution of Ideas into Million-Dollar Products17:49 Challenges and Considerations in Open Innovation31:15 The Importance of Loving the Problem37:19 Advice for New Innovation Leaders44:27 Managing Resistance to Innovation