Cody Carroll MGMT 535- Innovation

     Innovation and creativity in the Army is an everyday occurrence. On the enlisted side of the Army, we always joke about it because the innovation and creativity usually comes from the officers. We call them "good idea fairies" because that's all most of them do. While the enlisted Soldiers are working hard to earn their paycheck, some officers don't have much to do besides side there and figure out ways to re-invent the wheel. 

    With that being said, the Army has been around for a very long time and the majority of our field training/practices have been the same. We keep them the same because they are effective and work. Most of the time, the new innovation and creativity ideas come along because people need something to claim for their yearly evaluation. In one of my last blogs, I spoke about how Non-Commissioned Officers (NCOs) get a yearly evaluation report card. Well, officers get them same thing. So, when they have not done anything all year, the good ideas come up as a filler on their report card to show they tried to do something.

    When an idea for innovation or creation come up, it usually goes to the highest officer in the unit for review. They would look at the written implementation and plans all together. They try to find any holes in the plan to see if it would be 100% effective and accomplish the mission easier. After that approval, it will get implemented at all lower echelons, after training is conducted. Then, we try to do the plan and see if it works. Sometimes, there are great new ideas, but then there are other times where it is just a waste of time. This plan is passed to every echelon to ensure it will work for everyone and not just a specific group. Every group will add their own adjustments, if necessary, depending on the mission. 

    In my workplace, I tell my Soldiers that I am open to any and all new ideas. If it will help us accomplish our mission faster and easier, then let's try it out. In the Army, you have to do a lot of trial by error in order to figure out which plan can work with the specific group of people you have. Some work better in groups, some by themselves, and even some perform better when it is enjoyable and a new technique. Knowing your audience in these situations can go a long way in building the team to work better with each other.