In my Innovation and Change class, we read a case study about a research and development unit that had a 10% failure rate for the experiments it tried. The original goal was a 30% failure rate, and the crux of the case was deciding whether 10% should be celebrated or admonished. Was the low failure rate a good thing — or did it mean that the unit wasn’t taking enough risks? Were they just tweaking processes vs. trying out something that could be a breakthrough because of the fear of failing?
Your organization may not have measurable goals for innovation, but you can assess your leadership’s tolerance for it in a qualitative way. Do you believe your boss would find the 10% delightful, or would they have an easier time accepting a 40% failure rate because it shows you were a prolific experimenter? Do you take enough risks to have any failures at all?
Not all your ideas will turn out to be winners. Innovation goes hand in hand with missteps. If you aren’t doing one, you aren’t doing the other.
