Tell me and I’ll forget.

Show me and I may remember.

Involve me and I’ll understand.

– Confucius

Now is as good time to really start thinking about embedding innovation into the DNA of your company. A recent survey conducted by Business Week asks readers if taking risks is more important than stability. Fifty-four percent of the 602 respondents who answered the question said “taking risks” is more important, and the remaining 46% said “stability.”

What caught my attention even more is that readers think that by “encouraging employees to submit ideas for new products” will most likely inspire risk taking, while appointing a Chief Innovation Officer is less likely.

While I think this is a good start, I think this is a problem of perception where another title with a fancy name is indicative of another boss. You should always encourage employees to submit ideas for new products/services, but if you want to create a company wide religion of innovation you need someone to lead the charge.…