The Innovation Fatigue Grid: Nine Leading Fatigue Factors

There are nine main “innovation fatigue factors” that we discuss in the book. They are summarized in the grid shown below (click to enlarge). Nine of the twenty-four chapters of the book deal specifically with these. Innovation fatigue can come from three primary sources: interpersonal factors (“people fatigue”), organizational factors, and external factors such as laws, regulations, and tax policies. These three sources of fatigue factors correspond to the three columns of the grid. Each of the three rows have some commonalities as well. The top row corresponds to fatigue factors due to loss of trust and challenges to rights (IP rights). The middle row deals with systemic flaws (inventor deficiencies, organizational flaws in judgment and decision making, and challenges in public policy and law). The bottom row involves barriers to collaboration, including the “Not Invented Here” syndrome that can hinder collaboration within a company or university – often an expression of personal pride or arrogance, plus organizational barriers to open innovation and the external factors (among others) that hinder collaboration between industry and universities (or national labs and other non-profit organizations).

The Grid of Nine Leading Innovation Fatigue Factors.
For a larger version, click here.

Where should a company start? Fatigue factor #4, “Breaking the Will to Share,” is one of the most insidious and difficult to detect using normal organizational metrics. It’s easy to detect if you understand it and look for it. This silent innovation killer can devastate innovation even when companies feel they are firing on all cylinders when it comes to innovation. If you only have time to read one chapter in the book, the one on “Breaking the Will to Share” may be the place to start.