{"id":363,"date":"2015-04-08T16:12:50","date_gmt":"2015-04-08T21:12:50","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/leiferreport.com\/?p=363"},"modified":"2018-10-14T22:10:32","modified_gmt":"2018-10-15T03:10:32","slug":"health-care-handle-true-innovators","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/leifer.com\/?p=363","title":{"rendered":"Can Health Care Handle True Innovators?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Imagine that you are scanning through resumes of your latest job applicants, and you come across an individual whose job history includes: university professor, healthcare executive, consultant, professional photographer, karate instructor, advertising executive, executive coach, and author? Would you discard it out-of-hand concluding that the applicant was a wacko malcontent or would you say, \u201cWow, a renaissance man?\u201d<\/p>\n

While the average American will change jobs 11 times over his or her lifetime, rarely do such changes involve complete reinvention of one\u2019s career. Such tectonic shifts in our professional lives are understandably pathologized by a society that rewards stability, and frowns on unpredictability.<\/p>\n

Yet, far from being pathological, such shifts may identify individuals motivated by a profound need for meaning in their lives rather than by the rewards associated with climbing the corporate ladder. Though such individuals may grace an organization but for a short time, if properly managed, their positive impact can be profound.\u00a0 After all, if they can successfully reinvent themselves on numerous occasions, imagine what they can do relative to innovation in your corporation!<\/p>\n

So what traits do these professional shape-shifters have in common? Here\u2019s a list \u2013 what\u2019s important here is to know what your organization can and cannot live with before bringing this rare creature on-board:<\/p>\n

#1: Innovators have difficulty following standards pathways or protocols\u2026preferring to intuitively seek out more efficient or effective ways of managing challenges. Their solutions are often far outside the box.<\/p>\n

#2: Innovators are relatively intolerant of organizational resistance to change –neither understanding nor appreciating the value of an organization\u2019s muscle memory. They are the antithesis of the legions of Six Sigma black-belts of whom your organization may be so proud. Innovators are the employees who will poke management with a sharp stick if they fail to get the response they seek.<\/p>\n

#3: Innovators are relatively fearless when it comes to change\u2026change is as natural a part of their lives as breathing. Their worth and identity is not tied to the current job\u2026it is based upon where they are at in their existential search for meaning.<\/p>\n

#4: They do not suffer fools well\u2026and can exhibit amazing impatience when they perceive that they are dealing with ignorance.<\/p>\n

#5: They may disregard corporate protocol as being superfluous and annoying\u2026including such things as chain of commanded.<\/p>\n

#6: They may not filter what they say or how they say it. After all, it is the truth, from their perspective, and, as such, needs not to be framed or apologized for.<\/p>\n

#7: They do not revere loyalty in the traditional sense. You won\u2019t be rewarding these innovators with a gold watch after 30 years of service. The most you can hope for is to part company as valued colleagues\u2026and wish the innovator well as he or she moves on to yet another reinvention.<\/p>\n

Such individuals need to have a culture that can embrace and adapt to their idiosyncratic nature. Many of these traits are immutable, though good innovators can be coached on how to get their ideas across in a semi-politically astute manner.<\/p>\n

If you can create the right conditions for such an innovator, you should expect:<\/p>\n