The Personal Side of Disruptive Innovation

Last week, Big Think uploaded a new interview with Clayton Christensen, the Harvard Business School “disruptive innovation” evangelizer. Now Adam Singer on the Future Buzz website, lists a few ways an employee can disrupt inside his or her own company every day. The post is entitled “Be A Disrupter” and here it is in its entirety:

Are you in a corporation and see someone above you making mistakes?  Put together a case and call them out, don’t ever let someone’s title stop you from that.

Find a better way to do something that’s more efficient than the way it has always been done?  Don’t even ask permission, just put your new path into action.

Do you notice a vendor or agency you’re working with may not be the best choice?  Don’t suffer in silence, find a better partner and cut those who are dragging you down.

See people trying to spin numbers in a meeting or use excessive buzzwords but say nothing of substance?  Make notes and show how they’re wrong later to the right people.

In all of these cases, if you’re sure you’re correct – go for it.  There’s no reason to be afraid here, and it’s what being a leader is all about.

Be a disrupter, and if you know something is wrong or could be better, put yourself and your own reputation on the line and say it.  There’s no power in being silent, and no reason to maintain a situation that is bringing down the level of your work or the products of your company – whether they’re tangible or otherwise.

If you know something is wrong – by not stepping in and saying what is right, you’re doing as much harm as those who are blind to the situation or too busy to notice.  By disrupting the norm to create change for the better, you’ll be seen as a strong source of signal and light in an environment otherwise paralyzed with fear.

And that’s just what smart businesses, marketers and bloggers do every day without hesitation.