Part 2 on change management focused on the mechanics and process of innovation but, arguably, the much more nebulous idea of innovation culture is a bigger factor. Systems and methods matter, yet it often feels as though the real question is whether the culture of an organisation helps innovation to take root or quietly resists it.
The pattern of pilots
One theme that comes up often is the abundance of pilots. Leaders describe enthusiastic beginnings, proofs of concept that generate energy and teams that want to experiment. The harder part is sustaining that energy once the pilot ends. Sometimes promising projects stay in the showcase stage because there isn’t enough trust, ownership or resourcing to take them further.
McKinsey has noted that while many organisations invest in AI, only about 1 percent describe themselves as “mature” with AI fully integrated into workflows¹. That statistic resonates with what leaders describe in practice...the path from pilot to scale is narrow and fragile.
Fragmentation between functions
Culture also shows up in how functions work together. In more than one session, directors talked about projects bouncing between IT, supply chain, procurement and finance. Everyone supports the idea in principle but nobody feels complete ownership. That can make even good ideas stall.
Where I have seen more momentum, functions are aligned around a common goal and measure success together. It is not easy but it reduces the risk of innovation slipping into the gaps between silos. Harvard Business Review has suggested that culture change is not about slogans but about how systems and responsibilities are designed². That seems consistent with what directors report: that culture is shaped as much by structures as by attitudes.
Workarounds and trust
In a recent discussion about how to eliminate (or at least reduce) the use of custom spreadsheets in planning processes, the persistence of “shadow processes” came up as a common experience. Many teams still rely on files outside the core system because they trust them more. Those spreadsheets keep things moving but they also mean critical knowledge lives in pockets and is at risk of disappearing when people move on.
The same point arose in a session on decision support and optimisation. The challenge was not whether the models worked mathematically but whether staff believed them enough to act...often described as "the black box problem". One participant said their pilot “failed not because the outputs were wrong but because nobody believed them.” Without trust adoption stalls and without adoption systems never improve.
The influence of product-led innovation
I have also noticed that culture differs by sector. In markets where product innovation is central - for example fashion, consumer goods or electronics - there is often more openness to change in processes and systems. Staff expect frequent iteration and seem less resistant to disruption.
That openness is not universal. In some of these organisations operational innovation still takes a back seat until disruption forces attention. When the crisis arrives, decisions can be rushed and riskier. Research from HBR on “burning platform” change suggests that crisis-driven transformations are more likely to falter because they rely on urgency rather than learning³.
What research says about building culture
External studies reinforce what comes through in these conversations. McKinsey has argued that companies with strong innovation cultures scale digital transformations at twice the rate of their peers⁴. Deloitte has found that organisations with mature innovation cultures are three times more likely to achieve transformation success⁵. A recent Swiss study linked “developmental” cultures with greater adoption of advanced technologies, while hierarchical cultures were more likely to hold innovation back⁶.
These findings suggest that innovation culture is not fixed. It can be shaped by leadership behaviour, by how responsibilities are allocated and by whether staff feel they can experiment safely.
Conclusion
I don’t think there is a single formula for creating an innovation culture. What I take from the discussions and research is that small signals matter. Leaders showing curiosity, teams being given space to try, functions aligning rather than deflecting - these are the conditions that help innovation grow.
If culture is overlooked, even the best systems and processes can end up as isolated pilots. If it is nurtured, even modest initiatives can gain momentum. I see this as an open question and hope to hear how others experience it in their organisations.
JP Doggett
Sources
- McKinsey & Company, The State of AI in 2023: Generative AI’s Breakout Year, 2023
- Harvard Business Review, To Change Company Culture, Focus on Systems - Not Communication, 2025
- Harvard Business Review, The Burning Platform Fallacy in Organisational Change, 2019
- McKinsey & Company, How Innovative Companies Leverage Tech to Outperform, 2021
- Deloitte, Culture of Innovation: The Key to Building Competitive Advantage, 2021
- University of St Gallen organisational Culture and Industry 4.0 Adoption in Swiss Firms, 2024
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