Pacing Innovation: Why Full Throttle Isn't Always Best

Forbes

15-04-2025

At Rayburn, our members ultimately pay for every cost. This means we constantly balance innovation with value.
At Rayburn, we talk all the time about our core value of innovation, but there's a nuance to it that often goes unspoken: knowing when to push forward and when to pause. True innovation shouldn't be about constant, breathless change. It's more about maintaining the right mindset while respecting your team's capacity for transformation.
We say all the time that status quo is not company policy, and it's not. But that doesn't mean everything must change. Every organization has core principles and values that define who they are. Innovation isn't about abandoning identity. It's more about evolving to remain relevant and agile.
Organizational innovation requires balance: the courage to question established processes, even successful ones, while still having the wisdom to implement change at a sustainable pace. It reminds me of that classic I Love Lucy episode where Lucy and Ethel are working at a chocolate factory. The conveyor belt starts moving faster and faster until they're desperately stuffing chocolates in their hats, shirts, and mouths just to keep up. That's not innovation—that's chaos.
On the other hand, there is a real danger in moving too slowly—or worse, not being willing to move at all. When organizations cling to the 'that's how we've always done things' mindset, they unknowingly accumulate costs that won't show up on any balance sheet until it's too late.
These costs include factors like losing market relevance and missed opportunities as top performers move to more agile and efficient competitors. The longer an organization delays or avoids needed change, the quicker it risks becoming irrelevant and eventually obsolete.
Pushing past hesitation takes effort, discomfort, and sometimes pain. Even though I'm not a runner (unless something's chasing me), I understand the concept of 'hitting the wall.' Runners describe that moment when your body screams to stop, your muscles burn, and your lungs feel like they're on fire. It's the body's natural resistance to change and exertion.
Organizations experience something similar when pushing innovation. The instinct we all have to do what is predictable, known, and safe—in essence, to maintain the status quo—is that organizational 'wall.'
Who doesn't like the comfort and assurance of predictability? But in an organization, this mentality is ultimately limiting if prolonged.
The real danger isn't in pacing innovation; it's in not being willing to move at all.
Like running, you can't go from zero to sixty without a proper warm-up period. I tend to get very excited about new ideas. There's a certain satisfaction in pushing the boundaries of what's possible. Our organization is full of people like me. We're drawn to the challenge of redefining the limits of what can be done.
However, I have learned to acknowledge the natural tension between idea generation and implementation. Good ideas don't succeed just because they're innovative. They succeed because they are implemented at the right time and in the right way. You have to give people time to sit with the innovation, try it out, play with it, mold it, and eventually implement it.
When you do, that innovation gets better. Collaboration will bring out the strengths and weaknesses of ideas better than anything else, so I try to make a habit of slowing down and allowing innovation to take the time it needs. Leaders have to know when to apply the gas and when to put on the brakes.
Another thing I've learned is that inefficiency is inherent in innovation. That may sound counterintuitive. The whole point of innovation is often to become more efficient, after all. But you have to be willing to sacrifice some short-term efficiency to achieve long-term gains. This is especially true with technology decisions, where we aim to be on the leading edge, not the bleeding edge. There's a difference between being an early adopter and being the first to try something that isn't fully proven.
At Rayburn, our members ultimately pay for every cost. This means we constantly balance innovation with value. Sometimes, the answer isn't 'No, we're not changing.' It's 'We're not changing yet.' The timing has to be right, and the value proposition has to be clear.
By continually looking in the mirror and checking for blind spots, we stay ahead of disruption rather than becoming victims of it. When we say status quo is not company policy, we really mean that nothing should be beyond questioning. Even our most trusted processes and beliefs should be regularly examined to ensure they're still serving our purpose. The market is constantly shifting, and the goalposts are always moving. Yesterday's innovations are today's standard practices.
Thriving organizations embrace the constant, healthy tension between stability and change, honoring their foundation while building new structures upon it. This balance keeps them vibrant, relevant, and ready for whatever comes next.