Making curiosity real at organizations

..But satisfaction brought it back

Curiosity killed the cat

When asked to name the one attribute CEOs will need most to succeed Michael Dell, CEO - Dell Inc., replied,

“I would place my bet on curiosity.”

Can Curiosity be learnt?Given the right conditions, all of us have the potential – look back to when we were children

MAKING CURIOSITY REAL

AT ORGANIZATIONS

THE STRUGGLE IS REAL

84% of employees feel their employers

encouraged curiosity*

60% of employees believe there are

barriers to building curiosity into work*

Legacy structures, continued emphasis on authority and routine discourage the expression of Curiosity

*Merck KGaA study 

• Establish freedom and incentives to ask questions

• Keep the questions • More genuine than

rhetorical• Exploratory not just

practical • Penetrating, but also

speculative • Bring inquiry into day-to-day

conversations, meetings and projects

# 1 Encourage Inquiry

• Proactively encourage different perspectives • Capture the minority and dissenting voices• Focus on the perspective not the individual

# 2 Examine multiple Points of View

# 3 Encourage Learning of all kinds

• Let curiosity wander outside the corporate bubble• Establish personal time policies allowing for “passion

projects” • Keep continuous conversation regarding life outside of the

office• Find meaningful ways to connect work with other interests

# 4Don’t play the Blame Game

• Avoid the ‘villain, victim, and hero’ dynamic

• Create a secure environment to fail • Empower employees with

ownership – embolden them to fight for their ideas

• Stay forward facing even in the face of failure

Building such an organization is a daunting task – but one well worth the

investment and risk

Pictures credit :Pexels.com

THE FUTURE BELONGS TO THE

CURIOUS