Fostering a Culture of Innovation

How might we cultivate, spread and scale a culture of innovation throughout our classrooms and schools to catalyze people for positive change? This is the powerful question that we’re exploring in my school district, Richland School District Two  in Columbia, SC. Coming to a common understanding about what a culture of innovation means has been essential in the development of our vision. An innovative school culture fosters community, encourages new ideas to solve complex issues and is the foundation for successful schools and ultimately for successful students. It’s easy to talk about creating a culture of innovation, but it’s harder to implement. And if trust in the culture is broken, it’s much harder to rebuild.

Many great resources are available to assist schools in reimagining culture and taking steps for a culture shift. Some of my favorite resources include the Johnson and Scholes Culture Web and *Gartner research on steps that lead to a culture of creativity.  We can also learn from companies like Inteland Google and how they create a climate for curiosity, agency, risk taking, and collaboration.  Based on my own experience and the research of others, here are six steps you can take this year to build a culture of innovation in your classroom and school.

Six Steps to Building a Culture of Innovation

1. Change your perspective. Use design thinking techniques for observing and interviewing to get a sense of what is going on in your school or classroom. Observation gives you fuel for thought, but you need to follow up with interviews to find out more about what people are thinking and feeling. Shadow a student or colleague for a day to change your perspective and put yourself in someone else’s shoes. You can read more about this from my Intel Visionary friend and colleague Melissa Lim. In her post on the Intel IT Peer Network, Setting Goals for the New School Year, she talks about being a mindful listener and being aware of implicit biases.
2. Activate others to use their talents. How we welcome our staff, learners and community sets the stage for how everyone engages in the school culture. Little steps like sending hand written invites to an event, setting up a room for collaboration and incorporating mixer activities can make a big difference in participation and engagement. In a typical meeting, 20% of the people take up 80% of the time. To create a culture of innovation, organize the structure of classes, workshops and design sessions so that 100% of the attendees are involved 100% of the time. Follow-up after events by sending out thank you notes and giving shout outs to participants. Remind people of next steps and provide ongoing support, check-ins, and road block removal.
3. Create rituals and routines to foster innovation. Rituals are a way to bridge the gap between our desired beliefs and behaviors and the current state.  They can be used to create a group identity, raise team spirit, put people in a mindset to think creatively, or encourage collaboration. Ideas that can easily be incorporated include using design thinking methods in team meetings, providing exercise or mindfulness breaks, and celebrating new students and staff members through recognition programs. Think about your desired results and then design rituals to achieve those results.
4. Position yourself as a learner. It’s easy to get into a routine of doing work that we know instead of reaching out to learn new content, methods or skills. Time constraints and daily work make it challenging for us to take on new growth opportunities but we need to model learning to be successful in creating a positive school culture. Step outside of your comfort zone and try something new to rewire your brain. We need to unlearn old habits to make way for new ways of working. In the video, The Backwards Brain Bicycle, Destin Sandlin, explores how difficult it is for us to unlearn habits and biases. Keeping ourselves challenged and in flow will help to develop a culture where risking taking and learning from failure is valued. Encourage practices like 20% time to provide students and others in your organization with time to work on their passions.
5. Build a network of trust and collaboration. Building an innovative community is achieved by creating opportunities for others to have discussions and collaboration.  In The Power of Onlyness, Nilofer Merchant emphasizes that each person in a network brings their own unique contribution (onlyness) that becomes amplified by the onlyness of others. When people come together for a common cause, they can have a powerful influence on the naysayers. During a recent visit to Nashville, I was reminded of the power of networks while visiting RCA Studio B. This small room produced some of the most well known singers and musicians with over 1000 hits. By giving everyone a place to share their voice, we build trust which is an essential ingredient for a thriving, innovative community.
6. Be a storyteller. To be successful with shifting to a culture of innovation, you need to share stories. Create opportunities for students and educators to share their ideas and tell their stories. Innovation events and activities promote collaboration and provide a way for people to share both their successes and their failures. As more stories are told, more people will be willing to try new approaches and share their experiences.

The next steps is to get started! Bring together a team, establish a common vision for a culture of innovation and brainstorm ideas that you can prototype and test. I look forward to hearing how these approaches work for you!

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References and Suggested Reading:

• *Drive a Creative Culture Through Activities, Education and Attitude, Gartner Analysts Jackie Fenn and Mary Meaglio. June 10, 2016
• School Culture Rewired by Steve Gruenert and Todd Whitaker
• Braving the Wilderness by Brene Brown
• The Power of Onlyness by Nilofer Merchant

Partnerships: Beyond the Pizza Party

We’ve all been there before. Running out to pick up pizza for a school party or to keep people energized as they work long hours. I can’t begin to count the number of pizzas that I’ve purchased in my career as an educator for events like yearbook work sessions and after-school department meetings. And let’s be real. Pizza is easy. It’s cheap. No plates are needed and most people are happy to grab a slice and get back to work.

But the easy way isn’t always the best way. I recall returning to work from a conference a few years ago. There was cold, leftover pizza in the workroom refrigerator. I asked about the pizza and discovered that it was delivered to me from a business partner. Days old pizza is not so good. The partner didn’t think beyond the easy way to determine what might be a better method to show appreciation for our team.

This discussion with colleagues about pizza led to a conversation about partnerships and the importance of engaging with partners in a meaningful way. Partnerships are a two-way street, and I hope that schools as well as organizations that partner with schools will benefit from this post. Partnerships cover a wide spectrum from a classroom teacher connecting with a business partner for mentoring to a school district engaging with a partner for a variety of services including consulting, professional development, or products. With so many businesses and organizations offering services, we must be careful to engage with the right partners. We don’t have money or time for everything and can’t afford to be burned by failing initiatives.

Here is my eight slice pizza with tips to guide you as you engage with partner organizations and businesses:

1. Research – Do your background research by looking at credible sources and calling other schools that have used the product or service. Talk with people beyond those who are recommended by the potential partner. Testimonials on a website are great but they don’t tell the whole story.
2. Customer Success – Does the organization or business have a customer success representative who is assigned to work with you? Organizations that don’t invest in someone to make others successful are setting themselves up for failure. I recall a recent conversation when I called a customer service center about repairs needed to my home Internet access. I was very frustrated with the response time but the support person on the phone with me never once got mad. He continued to talk calmly and worked with me on a solution. If your organization is receiving services from an business and you provide feedback, they should welcome feedback and work with you on solving the problem.
3. Ongoing Support – The beginning of a partnership is a lot like a honeymoon. You and the partner will spend a lot of time together and you get used to this support. What happens after the honeymoon? The partner will move on to find new clients. Will they continue to check in with you and provide ongoing support? Will the cost go up over time? Ask support questions before you enter into an agreement.
4. Agreements – Is there a partnership agreement that clearly spells out what services or products you’ll receive? If you’re receiving a discount on a software product, what are the expectations from you in return? If a partnership fails, what are the loose ends that you’ll be left to tie up? How will the partner help you with the transition beyond the awkward breakup?
5. Privacy – If you’re using an online platform provided by the partner, are there clearly defined privacy statements about ownership of data and how that data will be used? In the age of analytics, all businesses are collecting data about customers. Take some time to discuss the privacy policy with others and include your attorney if there are questions about the policy. If the partnership ends, does the business still have access to your student or teacher data and can they continue to use that data?
6. Total Cost of Ownership – Beyond financial costs, what is the cost that your school will pay for implementing a product or service? How many hours will people devote to the project and is it sustainable in the long run? Ask what it’s worth to you and always be clear with the partner about your goals for the partnership.
7. Outcomes – What is your vision for the partnership? Doe your definition of success align with that of the partner? Metrics and funding are important, but the bottom line is that you achieve the desired outcomes for your partnership.
8. Opportunities – Most important, what opportunities will be opened up for your school and the teachers and students who engage with the partner? Will the product or service benefit your organization? Will professional development and consulting services empower participants with skills and tools to improve learning?

Good partnerships are about telling each other’s stories, celebrating successes, and supporting each other when things aren’t going well. Our success as a customer means their success as a partner organization. Let’s go beyond the pizza party to form partnerships that bring value to students and teachers in our schools.

Reading Prescription for 2017

As I wander through bookstores and online communities, I pick up quite a few books for learning and enjoyment. After a great year of reading and reflecting on my learning, I'm happy to share out my reading prescription list for 2017.

Creativity and Thinking:

What We See When We Read by Peter Mendelsund - How do we visual what we're reading and fill in the gaps in the text? Understand more about your own reading and also learn how you can help students become better readers.

Originals by Adam Grant celebrates our unique talents and skills which allow us to go against the status quo and have success in our work and personal lives.

The Autistic Brain: Helping Different Kinds of Minds Succeed by Temple Grandin. Temple shares her unique and personal perspective on autism and provides us with great strategies for connecting with autistic students.

The Soul of an Octopus by Sy Montgomery. What's not to love about an octopus? This personal account by Sy Montgomery allows us to peek into the lives of these intelligence creatures and learn more about how they connect with each other and with humans.

Syllabus: Notes from an Accidental Professor by Lynda Barry. Any teacher who struggles with  creating the required course syllabus will love this interactive approach to teaching writing and creativity.

Maker-Centered Learning: Empowering Young People to Shape Their World by Edward P. Clapp, Jessica Ross, Jennifer O. Ryan, Shari Tishman. The authors provide a firm foundation in maker learning and a framework for integrating maker learning into classrooms and schools.

So Many Ideas:

What Do You Do With an Idea and What Do You Do With a Problem by Kobi Yamada. When you're facing a big problem or you have a big idea, these books will inspire you to keep going. Suitable for young children as well as adults who are young at heart.

Innovating for People Handbook of Human-Centered Design Methods by the LUMA Institute. The LUMA Institute provides a wealth of activities to use during the design thinking process. Keep this book handy!

Thinkertoys: A Handbook of Creative Thinking Techniques by Michael Michalko. Think like a genius and unlock your creativity with these techniques. Use the Thinkpak to jumpstart your thinking when you're feeling stuck.

Sprint: How to Solve Big Problems and Test New Ideas in Just Five Days by Jake Knapp and John Zeratsky. Use this book as a guide to run your own five-day design sprint to solve tough challenges for your organization.

Being Our Best:

The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business by Charles Duhigg. Take a deep dive into the research about how habits are formed and learn strategies to bring winning habits into your life.

Healing Spaces: The Science of Space and Well Being by Esther Sternberg. Our senses, emotions, and immune system all work together and can bring us a sense of well being or feelings of disaster and anxiety. Find a great place to read this book and reduce the stress in your life.

Unsubscribe by Jocelyn Glei. Unsubscribe, disconnect, and get yourself loose from those pesky e-mails and messages that take up so much of your time. Tame the beast and bring sanity back into your life.

Daring Greatly: How the Courage to be Vulnerable Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent and Lead by Brené Brown. Brené's exploration of the research behind shame led her to some surprising discoveries about our need for connection and community. By becoming shame resilient and opening ourselves up to vulnerability, we also open up the door to wholehearted living. Watch her TED Talk to be inspired!

Thrive: The Third Metric to Redefining Success and Creating a Life of Well-Being, Wisdom, and Wonder by Arianna Huffington. Through her own experience of being over-worked and stressed, Arrianna Huffington shares strategies that helped her to unplug and feel more connected at home and work.

The Human Condition:

A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman. You'll grow to love this cranky neighbor! Ove inspires readers to look beyond the exterior and see the person inside.

The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce. Walk out of the door with Harold Fry and you'll go on your own journey of self-reflection and discovery.

Off the Road: A Modern Day Pilgrim's Walk Down the Pilgrim's Route into Spain by Jack Hitt will inspire you to take your own pilgrimage and do it your way.

There Is No Good Card for This: What to Say and Do When Life is Scary, Awful, and Unfair to People You Love by Kelsey Crowe, Ph.D. and Emily McDowell. The authors explore empathy and how we can connect with others who are encountering challenges in their lives.

Finding a Balance with Social Media

As social media continues to have a big impact in our society, I've been considering how to best fit it into my own life. Communications technology continues to evolve and the next evolution may be contact lenses that allow you to  overlay virtual experiences without a headset. Instead of being alone in a virtual world, we would be able to take out experience out into the world and see real time data about people and places. It's easy to imagine how this could effect our lives in both positive and negative ways.

The Netflix series, Black Mirror, recently took this idea to the dark side with their Nosedive episode. In the episode, Lacie Pound is eager to move up on the social media ladder from a 4.2 to a 4.8. She has implanted contact lenses which allow her to see the status of everyone around here. In her world, a 4.2 on a scale of 1-5 is not quite good enough. If she can boost her status to a 4.5 or higher, she has access to better housing, work and social experiences. Here life is going well when she's invited to be the maid of honor at the wedding of a childhood friend. On her journey to the wedding, her status begins to unravel as she loses her temper at the airport and ends up hitchhiking to the wedding. Along the way, she meets Susan, a 1.4 truck driver, who has lost her husband to cancer because his status wasn't high enough for the best treatments. The episode is thought provoking but I don't want to be a spoiler. Watch it to see how this finally ends for Lacie.

For me, Nosedive was too close to reality. Airlines, hotels, and amusement parks all have programs where you can boost your status to receive added benefits. We pay more so that we can have a better seat, a nicer room, or a shorter line. It feels great when you have the upgraded status and pretty awful when you're at the back of the line. And on social media like Twitter and Facebook, we get likes, shares and retweets when people approve of what we post. The impact of social media in influencing our decision making is huge. The recent U.S. presidential election is a powerful example of how social media was used to influence voters.

Nosedive also reminded me of the struggles that I had (and still have) with self worth. In high school, I always felt like I was not quite good enough. You can read my Teachers Guild post for that story. I still remember applying for Anchor Club membership in high school and being rejected. There was some secret formula, much like the Nosedive 4.8, that was required for membership. Rather than accept the status quo, my friends and I created a new club with open membership for all students. Even today, I attend events and am troubled by how online status effects how people interact with each other.

I love having the opportunity to share and connect with others online and am grateful to have so many social media tools available. The problem comes when I pay too much attention to those status reports from Twitter and LinkedIn and spend too much time editing my thoughts to 140 characters. I've learned from my work with innovators that people are at their best when they don't worry about status. They do great work because they're passionate about that work and willing to take a risk.

As I begin 2017, my goal is to find the right balance with social media. I want to continue to connect and share with others. My own personal growth is dependent on these relationships. Below are questions that I will consider (and you can too) to build a thriving online community.

• Who do you want to connect with? Follow those people online. Send them personal messages and develop a relationship. Find them at conferences and have conversations. Schedule video chats to discuss topics of interest. If they're more interested in your status than who you are, don't spend time trying to get their attention.
• Why do you want to connect through social media? Do you want to learn more about a specific area of interest? Are there places and events in your community where you can also connect face-to-face? Ask why enough times and you'll come up with some interesting answers.
• What do you want to share and what do you want to learn from others? Seek out online communities with people who share your interests. A private community through Slack might allow you to share more openly and build strong relationships.
• How will you will share your message? Instead of squeezing everything into 140 characters, create a blog or video and share the link. Start a book discussion. If you want to get to know people on Twitter, join a weekly Twitter chat.
• When will you connect on social media? Schedule several blocks of time on your weekly calendar and make it a habit to use that time for learning and sharing.

As 2017 begins,  I look forward to connecting with you online and also engaging in face-to-face conversations and activities. Thank you for being there for me and best wishes for a Happy New Year!