Stone Payton, The Desai Group

These first two weeks of 2009 have been a period of renewal for the Payton family. We've cleaned out both the garage and the basement, finally let those orphaned socks go, and even reorganized the pantry in anticipation of preparing healthier meals.

We've fielded calls from a ½ dozen agencies in search of clothing we no longer need or want, and proudly met their requests with enough to outfit several families. I've made several trips to Goodwill, and pushed Waste Management's tolerance to the absolute edge on just how much trash they're willing to pick up from one customer on any given Wednesday. Everyone here is "toeing the line" as my wife repeatedly instructs . . .

"Find A Place For This (Right Now), Or TRASH it."

I mention it because: As I learn more and more from the world's most innovative organizations, I'm seeing one particular discipline surface over and over. Without exception, these truly innovative organizations (and the people who lead them) diligently monitor their innovation efforts for ROI. This pattern is so pervasive and taken so seriously by every executive and expert I've spoken with in the last several weeks, that I'm quite comfortable in publishing yet another one of those "Stone Declarations" . . .

Innovation: Track It Or Trash It !

ROI on Innovation consistently outperforms ROI from virtually any other strategy. In fact, much ROI typically attributed to efforts like quality initiatives, cost-cutting, change projects, mergers & acquisitions, and all those "re's" (re-branding, re-tooling, restructuring, reengineering, org. redesign, etc.) only shows up in the first place when these efforts are coupled with genuine Innovation.

Conversely, when these efforts fail to produce intended business results (most research indicates this happens well over 70% of the time), it's usually because they were planned and executed without the benefit of any appreciable Innovation.

WHY then, do so many CEOs and their senior teams seem to resonate with (and be prepared to invest in) these strategies more than -- or in the absence of -- an enterprise-wide Innovation Mandate and the infrastructure required to execute it?

If this is happening in your organization, then I'd bet my best pair of boots that one or both of the following is also true:

1. Innovation (if present at all) is not directly tied to your business strategy.

2. Innovation is not being valuated, TRACKED, and reported.

Recognize Reality: Innovation efforts cost money and other resources -- so do coffee filters, staplers, desk chairs, computers, and all of the initiatives described above.

Equally True: Each can and should create value for the organization -- above and beyond the original investment. But the only way you can know this is happening (and prove it) is if you TRACK it in the first place.

Bottom Line: Don't be afraid to assign costs to your innovation efforts -- capture this, and make sure your leadership knows what they have invested in Innovation.

Track the value your innovation efforts are producing . . . and let your leadership know about it. Yeah I know, sounds simple . . . Most good ideas are -- and this simple discipline (Valuate, Track, Report) works -- every time.

Top performers in every arena do it. It's the best way - perhaps the only practical way to: manage money, lose weight, advance your career, manage change, improve your tennis game . . . accomplish any worthwhile goal.

And I guarantee you it's the best way to start getting your leadership genuinely engaged and properly contributing to Innovation for your organization.

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