the innovation strategy on a pyramid

There are so many books and articles on innovation.  Some of them describe a strategy that is completely in conflict to others.

For example: during brain storm, is it really better to have to criticism? Some say yes and the new research says no.

For example: a team that has high mutual trust is more innovative?  Actually now.  Some mistrust and tension seems to make people more innovative.  But complete antagonism will almost minimize innovation.  So where should we be?

My proposal Tao's pyramid of innovation is to follow the Bloom's taxonomy or  Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs, put the innovation in a clear structure so we can have difference strategy for difference level of innovation.  Just like we have to deploy very difference skills to fulfill the different type of needs in the hierarchy.

The pyramid of innovation

Level 7 - major strategic, out-of-box direction (new enterprise)
Level 6 - major strategy that break or make a company (major product line)
Level 5
....
Level 1 - minor change of procedure in existing practice

Leading Innovative Teams - first draft

Innovation is the current buzzword, but it is as ancient as life.  All living organism exists today because they innovate better than their competitors.  Since the human being now is at the top of the biological innovation on earth, many of us tend to like to control our environment  making them structured, predictable, streamlined, under complete planning and control.  And often it leads to disasters, such as the now defunct communism.

To be innovative, we need to be more flexible, to open the boarders, to be interdisciplinary, to allow ambiguity, to seek not only efficiency but also novelty, to encourage serendipity.  We often want to protect our own turf, make everything under our control, have a clear boundary so we can tell "us" from "others".  It is comforting to do so, but it will not lead to innovation and progress.

The most innovative environment is at the edge of two ecologies, called edge effects, exist not only in biology but also arts, sciences and technology.

There is a reason why universities in the U.S. is the most innovative organization in the world.  It stressed on interdiscipline, e.g. the GE system, it allow free flow of ideas, it values questions and verification, it protects freedom to explore, it rewards sharing, it downplays hierarchy, it treat learning, teaching, generating, perserving knowledge as the highest value.

Idea: "What if the entire society is more like a university"