Don’t Let Hierarchy Stifle Innovation

Much of the know-how required for innovation comes from the bottom of the organization. Yet many non-management employees consider innovation outside the scope of their jobs. Even when they want to participate, they don’t because the organization’s tacit norms discourage it. Authority bias — the tendency to overvalue opinions from the top of the hierarchy and undervalue opinions from the bottom — eventually turns into exaggerated deference to the chain of command. Unleashing bottom-up innovation is largely a matter of neutralizing this side effect of hierarchy. But how can organizations create a true idea-meritocracy in which they become more agnostic to title, position, and authority and truly debate issues on their merits? How do they achieve cultural flatness: a condition in which power distance doesn’t restrict the flow of information? The author presents three practical steps leaders can take to neutralize authority bias, embrace cultural flatness, and unleash bottom-up innovation.