So you want to be innovative in your business?  Think about who you have on your team and you may be closer than you think!

According to Leon Segal, founder of Innovationship LLC., “When striving for innovation, you need the four following characters on your team, even if some team members possess multiple traits.”

Segal said companies must foster the right team dynamics in order to facilitate creative and productive thinking.

When building teams, Segal recommends choosing people who are good at listening, enthusiastic about collaborating and willing to reflect objectively on their and others’ progress. Reflection is particularly important since it gives people an opportunity to assess whether current methods are working and what can be done better.

Business Innovation Key Players:

Decision maker: “You want a decision maker to be part of the process so if you come up with a great idea, you don’t have to start selling it in-house,” Segal said. This person guides the group away from indecisiveness and makes sure things move forward.

Creative thinker: This person contributes ideas and helps others do the same. “You want someone really creative that everyone knows,” Segal said. A known creative can inspire others.

Information broker: These are the company’s storytellers, the ones who drum up excitement around the proverbial water cooler. “You want someone who disseminates information throughout the organization,” Segal said. “As much as you can, you want the cascading of information to be organic.”

People person: Prior to founding Innovationship, Segal was the founder and director of design firm IDEO’s studio in Israel. IDEO’s founder, David Kelley, built the company around the idea that empathy drives design thinking. Segal said this is essential. “You want someone who is sensitive, who is able to create empathy for end users… but also for the group,” he said.

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