How to Foster Breakthrough Innovation 3M Way
Innovation at its Core
3M’s innovation culture comes from the times when the five entrepreneurs who created a company to explore a mine of what they thought being corundum, realized that all they had was a low grade anorthosite, which would not meet the requirements of the booming abrasive industry as they initially believed. Quickly they had to adapt and focus on producing sandpaper products. But it was with McKnight, who joined the company in 1907 has a bookkeeper and later would become Chairman for more than 40 years, that 3M really developed a culture towards systematic innovation. Since then, 3M has been characterized by McKnight’s principles of supportive management which encourages employee initiative and innovation:
“Mistakes will be made. But if a person is essentially right, the mistakes he or she makes are not as serious in the long run as the mistakes management will make if it undertakes to tell those in authority exactly......
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Approximate Word Count: 1482
Approximate Pages: 6 (260 words per double-spaced page) |