Insight.

Innovation is not simply about introducing new technology or launching new products. It is about finding better ways to create value for customers, improve operations, solve problems, and strengthen the organisation’s future competitiveness.

The CEO sets the tone for innovation by determining whether new ideas are welcomed, evaluated, tested, and connected to strategic priorities.

Key Strategies:

1. Make innovation part of the organisation’s strategic agenda.

2. Encourage teams to identify customer and operational problems worth solving.

3. Create controlled opportunities to test new ideas.

4. Allocate resources to promising innovation initiatives.

5. Measure innovation by business and customer outcomes.

CEO Leadership Actions.

✅ Ask executives where the organisation is failing to meet changing customer expectations.

✅ Create space for teams to propose and test practical new ideas.

✅ Ensure innovation investments are connected to clear strategic objectives.

Actionable Tip.

* Ask your leadership team: “What are our customers likely to expect from us two years from now that we are not providing today?”

Why This Matters?

Innovation keeps the organisation responsive to change. When CEOs make innovation part of strategic leadership rather than leaving it to isolated departments, the organisation becomes more capable of adapting and creating new sources of value.

About the Author.

Ernest De-Graft Egyir, CEO advisor, Thought Leader and Founding CEO of Chief Executives Network Ghana, convenes the Ghana CEO Summit and served on Ghana’s Economic Dialogue Planning Committee.