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Who drives breakthroughs in organizations?

Organizations must innovate to survive. But how? A professor of management science and engineering explains.

Put experts in the right organizational role to boost breakthroughs. | iStock/mathisworks

Put experts in the right organizational role to boost breakthroughs. | iStock/mathisworks

Organizations must innovate to survive, but research shows that experts don’t always drive breakthroughs.

A medical-device startup that appoints the world’s greatest heart surgeon as its CEO might be better off putting her in a more hands-on role, according to Stanford’s Riitta Katila, a professor of management science and engineering. In this video, Katila shares evidence-based tips that organizations can implement today to boost innovation, instead of trusting gut instincts to decide what to build or who to hire.