What's Holding You Back?: Ten Bold Steps That Define Gutsy Leaders

Chapter 8. PRINCIPLE VII: Demand Accountability and Decisiveness; Avoid Consensus

Creating a climate within your organization that fosters excellence in innovation is not easy. Too many organizations experience long periods with no significant innovation. Often this is due to the complicated way decisions are made. The people you are counting on to innovate need to know that the buck stops with them; they are accountable to generate meaningful innovation. They also need to know that there is a sense of urgency, that they need to get on with things. They need to be decisive and not rely on teams, task forces, committees, or other consensus-oriented vehicles, which encourage compromise and eliminate distinctiveness, a key element of innovative ideas. ...