At the forefront of this research are international leadership consultants Karin Hurt and David Dye who believe employee creativity and curiosity is the key to business survival.

Inspiring Innovation

It’s tough for a traditional business to survive in the age of automation and gigs, and in 2020 it will be even more challenging. Automation may soon render entire businesses or industries obsolete. While the gig economy has facilitated business for freelancers, it does just the opposite for traditional businesses. Many companies lose their best and brightest employees to the freelance workforce. Next year, these issues are expected to not only continue but to grow.

How can a traditional business survive these obstacles? New research released this month offers some valuable insight for business owners, giving them management techniques and actionable plans to increase productivity.

At the forefront of this research are international leadership consultants Karin Hurt and David Dye who believe employee creativity and curiosity is the key to business survival.

“For a traditional business to survive in 2020, it needs micro-innovators at every level. It’s not the big game-changing ideas that usually lead to success…it’s the small incremental improvements as they add up if everyone micro-innovates…”

…says Dye who, with partner Karin Hurt, (in collaboration with the University of Northern Colorado’s Social Research Lab), released a white paper documenting their research this month entitled: “Inspiring Innovation: Fostering a Courageous Culture of Micro-Innovators, Problem Solvers, and Customer Advocates”. Hurt and Dye’s inspiration for the research came from their extensive consultant work which exposed frustrating disparities within the business culture. One major issue they identified across broad sectors is the growing disconnect between employees and employers. Leaders are often frustrated by a lack of problem-solving ideas from their teams. When executives are asking for employee input, what exactly suppresses suggestions and creates distance between the C-Suite and the workforce? Is it a communication gap that confounds executives and stifles productivity?

“Many of today’s business leaders genuinely believe they foster an open environment that encourages employees to speak up; yet, they are shocked when they learn that their employees are actually holding back…”

…says, Hurt. Although this employee reticence may seem minor, it can have profound implications for business success. To help companies thrive in the turmoil of information overload, rapidly automating systems and freelance talent, their work seeks to improve corporate culture with a new paradigm for employee relations. The data includes: an in-depth review of research on workplace psychological safety, courage and daily innovation; a robust survey (1,400 respondents) across a statistically significant research sample; best practice interviews from executives and managers around the globe; and, in-depth case studies from five diverse industries (Telecom, Healthcare, Banking, Engineering, and Non-Profit).

You can access the white paper and research HERE.

“Many of today’s business leaders genuinely believe they foster an open environment that encourages employees to speak up; yet, they are shocked when they learn that their employees are actually holding back.”

– Karin Hurt

In An Interview/Article, Karin Hurt & David Dye Can Share:

• How business owners can survive in the age of automation & gigs
• How to not lose employees (or relevance) in the rapidly changing business landscape
• Why employee creativity & curiosity is the key to business success
• Techniques to foster micro-innovation at every level of business
• How managers and employers can cultivate an environment of solutions-based people
• Groundbreaking new research on Business survival in 2020: “Inspiring Innovation: Fostering a Courageous Culture of Micro-Innovators, Problem Solvers, and Customer Advocates”

Hurt and Dye are on a mission to empower business owners and organization leaders by sharing this research which identifies both the origin of the problems and also what to do about it. They have advice for all levels to survive in the age of automation and gigs.