My first consulting project was peculiar. I was asked by a restaurant owner to help make it better. I was new in the game and had no idea of where to start and what “better” meant. I called my then management accounting Lecturer for guidance, “if you are challenged to help improve a restaurant, how do you go about it and where do you start?” If you were with me and listening to that call, you would have heard the advice that would change your life. I know because it changed mine. He said: find out what the problem is…

The lie: form an innovations committee to explore novel ways of winning. An innovations committee will transform your company. Why it is a lie: individuals innovate. However, teams, committees, and groups implement faster. Committees do not innovate. They may help evaluate ideas. If you want to find novel ways of winning, share your vision, and empower individuals to find better ways of solving your challenges and then you may have a committee to evaluate the best idea. Insight in detail During a strategy retreat which I facilitated at a financial institution client, one of the participants reacting to the recommendations…