Three
Circles: Igniting Innovation and Transformation
Every
organization says that the human capital that walks
home every night is its greatest asset. Yet, often the
case, this human talent is not engaged to bring its
best at work and is only contributing a fraction of
its creative energy. Meaning, tools, processes, feedback,
trust and engagement are important for people to offer
their best. But most organizations don’t seem
to have appropriate mindset or clarity on how to create
the right culture for igniting innovation and transformation
in their people.
So
how could an organization foster the cultural mindset
to provoke incessant innovation? It is not going to
happen by just focusing on what is in it for the company
to survive while negotiating with its employees and
unions. Companies have to focus on aligning company
goals with employee aspirations. On the other hand,
the individuals have to take responsibility as well.
How could individuals contribute to creating a different
culture that allows them to be authentic, creative and
further personal and professional goals?
Working
with over 30 companies in 7 countries in the last 16
years, I found that there are some fundamental conflicts
between individuals and organizations that cannot be
addressed by just focusing on business or management
domains alone. We have to dig deep into what makes human
beings ‘individuals – in divisible or whole?’
I
find that most of these conflicts arise due to the apparent
polarities between the business, technology and spiritual
domains. Some spiritual people look at businesses wearily
due to their focus on generating profit and material
wealth. Businesses think that scientists and technologists
sometimes take unrealistic and idealistic stands on
certain issues and don’t understand how businesses
are run. Scientists and technology gurus often conflict
with religious and spiritual perspectives as they don’t
fit into rational and logical mindsets. Employees and
ordinary people who get exposed to all the three domains
get confused and lose their ability to innovate and
transform.
Business,
technology and spirituality are the three most influential
forces that affect our capacity, capability and genius.
At an individual level, business represents the body
– the domain of actions, feedback and results;
technology represents the mind – the domain of
ideas, tools, products and services; and spirituality
represents the heart – the domain of passion,
energy, meaning and spirit. These are the fundamentals
that line the fabric of our society and they shape our
deepest beliefs and values.
Reflecting
on my own life, I had the privilege to be exposed to
all the three intimately. I grew up in a family in India
where I was taught Sanskrit from an early age. And a
Hindu Temple formed the base for many important activities
that shaped my childhood. I grew up studying physics,
mathematics and chemistry and ended up getting a doctoral
degree in physics and worked in a University (of Utah)
for six years as a research scientist and a teacher.
Then I was seduced by Apple Computer technology and
spent next several years working as a technology consultant,
marketing manager, and research fellow at Apple Computer.
Finally, for past 16 years, I have been working with
scientists, engineers, entrepreneurs, business leaders,
non-profits and spiritual leaders - both trying to understand
people, business, spirituality and technology and integrating
them in my own life at home and at work. Hence my focus
on the confluence between the three domains.
By
focusing on the intersection of the three domains, I
found, we begin to connect and align our body, mind
and heart; we begin to take risks despite our fear of
failure. It is when our creativity manifests into innovation
we find meaning in our work and provide invaluable contributions
to the organizations we serve. By learning to operate
in the middle and drawing from all the three domains,
we operate with a transformed mindset where spirituality,
business and technology do not generate conflict but
confluence. Because of this transformed mindset, we
tap into our “genius” and operate from a
state that makes us effective, innovative and successful.
Since
1990, I have been learning and experimenting with designs,
approaches, processes and tools that allow people to
ignite their genius within and bring alignment between
their body, mind and heart. I am still very much a student
in the area of ‘igniting innovation and transformation’
and am interested in sharing what I have learned and
dialoguing with you on what you have learned. Together,
we can discover more about making people and organizations
to be aligned in their goals and success. Future newsletters
will elaborate on my questions, learnings and dialogues
at the intersection of the three domains and hence the
name ‘three circles’ for the newsletter.
Are
you interested in exploring the confluence between three
circles? What resonates with you so far? How do you
deal with conflict between science/technology, business
and spirituality? What worked for you? What questions
do you have? Do you have stories to share? Please let
me know and let us explore three circles together. Mail
me at pkaipa@kaipagroup.com.
Announcement:
Kaipa Group is doing a research project on
Leadership Initiatives by companies interested in innovation.
More on the project. If you or anyone you know would
be willing to be interviewed by us, please email my
associate at ragunath@kaipagroup.com. |
profiles Dr.Prasad Kaipa in the article