12-05-2025
What the world's biggest companies are getting wrong about innovation
For companies with unlimited resources, you'd expect unlimited innovation. So, why do so many get it so wrong?
You know the ones: Global brands with innovation labs, million-dollar brainstorm budgets, and more Post-it notes than sense. Yet, despite their size and spending, they struggle to move beyond safe, incremental improvements.
Here's the hard truth: Innovation isn't a function of size or money—it's a function of culture, mindset, and behavior. And ironically, it's often the very structures designed to protect large organizations that end up stifling their creativity. Let's talk about what's getting in the way, and what you can do instead.
1. BUREAUCRACY KILLS BREAKTHROUGHS
Bureaucracy is the enemy of innovation. It requires too many approvals. Too much red tape. Too many people trying to 'perfect' an idea until all the originality is polished right out of it.
I remember when we launched the Year of the Disney Side campaign—a project designed to show that 'everyone has a Disney side,' the playful, imaginative self that usually gets buried under work and mortgages.
We wanted to prove it, not just say it. So, we took over a shopping mall in New Jersey, installed an opaque screen, and hid Disney characters behind it. As real shoppers walked by, the characters mimicked them; Goofy would shadow a tall man, Dopey would mimic a toddler.
The reactions were magical. So much so that we ditched the actors we'd hired to kick things off because real people were giving us everything we needed. Over 25 million views. No media spend. Just pure, playful magic.
Why did it work? Because I refused to run it through the typical corporate approval process. Everyone wants to 'add value,' which often means adding layers—layers that dilute the original spark. At the end, someone asked, 'Where's our logo?' I said, 'He's five foot two, has big black ears, and everyone loves him. He's in half the video. You're welcome.'
The Lesson: The more hands-on an idea, the less impactful it becomes. True innovation needs ownership and speed—not a 12-person committee looking for consensus.
2. OVER-RELIANCE ON DATA, UNDER-RELIANCE ON INTUITION
Data is great for measuring what already exists. But it rarely tells you what could exist. Imagine if Steve Jobs had built the iPhone based on consumer research. You'd probably still be carrying around a Blackberry with a stylus and a belt clip. Jobs didn't ask people what they wanted—he imagined what they didn't yet know they needed.
Innovation doesn't start with a spreadsheet. It starts with a large companies, we often ask, 'What does the data say?' But the better question might be, 'What if?'
The Lesson: Let intuition lead. Let data support. But don't let data decide whether or not you're allowed to dream.
3. TURNING DOWN IDEAS TOO EARLY
Most breakthrough ideas don't arrive fully formed. They stumble in, messy and weird, wearing two left shoes. And yet, in many boardrooms, if the idea doesn't make immediate sense—or if it lacks a polished pitch deck—it gets tossed aside.
We need to stop evaluating early-stage ideas with a red pen. That's why I use the SUN method: a behavioral framework to help teams shift from killing ideas to cultivating them.
• Suspend Judgment. An idea might sound expensive, impossible, or even silly. But don't dismiss it. Early criticism shuts down creativity before it has a chance to grow.
• Understand. Get curious. Why was the idea suggested? What problem is it trying to solve? What emotion does it tap into?
• Nurture. Build on it. Don't say, 'No, because…' Say, 'Yes, and what if we…?'
The Lesson: The next time someone shares an idea, don't ask 'Will it work?' Ask, 'What could make this work?' You'll be amazed at what survives—and thrives—when it's given a little daylight.
Organizations that get innovation right protect it at the root. They don't rush ideas through the ROI gauntlet. They create cultures where curiosity, empathy, and playfulness aren't just encouraged; they're expected.
Look at Disney Imagineering, where wild ideas are welcome and prototyping is play. Or Dyson, where 5,126 vacuum prototypes came before the one that worked.
These companies don't treat ideas as fragile. They treat them as fuel. And they know that if you want breakthrough thinking, you have to create a space where being 'wrong' isn't punished, but part of the process.
INNOVATION IS A BEHAVIOR, NOT A DEPARTMENT
If you're a senior leader wondering why innovation feels stuck, don't look at your idea funnel. Look at your culture. Look at your habits. Big companies don't fail at innovation because they lack ideas. They fail because they crush them under the weight of perfection, process, and performance metrics.
So, here's your challenge: Want bigger breakthroughs? Protect wild ideas. Be bold. And get out of your own way.
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