Are These Myths Quietly Killing Innovation at Your Company?

Kim Getgen, Founder, InnovationForce | Driving Innovation for a Better World. Top 500 Female Founders and Fast Company's Top 10 Most Innovative Workplace solutions of 2024.

Everyone wants to be innovative. But few organizations truly are. Why?

Because despite all the energy, investment, and good intentions poured into innovation, most companies are still clinging to outdated assumptions—myths, really—that quietly kill momentum before it starts.

At InnovationForce, we work with some of the world’s most complex organizations to help them transform innovation from a buzzword into a measurable, scalable process. And time and again, we see the same set of myths creating unnecessary friction and failure.

Let’s bust a few of them.

Myth #1: Innovation fails because of a lack of money.

Truth: It’s time, not money, that’s the real killer.

It’s easy to blame budget constraints for stalled innovation—but the bigger issue is how long it takes for ideas to move through the system. When ideas sit too long waiting for approval, testing, or feedback, they lose relevance. As we say often: “When ideas are stale, they won’t scale.”

Organizations don’t need more money—they need to reduce cycle time. Our work shows that when teams have the right process and cultural support, they can cut decision time by 85% and complete pilots up to 65% faster. That’s real impact.

Myth #2: Innovation is the result of a lone genius.

Truth: Collaboration, not silos, drives breakthrough innovation.

The “lone wolf” inventor trope is romantic but outdated. In today’s interconnected world, the most transformative innovations are born in ecosystems—when people with diverse perspectives, roles, and expertise come together around a shared challenge.

Dr. Linda Hill, InnovationForce co-founder and Harvard Business School professor, calls this collective genius. And we’ve seen it in action: cross-functional teams who collaborate early and often move faster, de-risk their work, and deliver solutions that scale.

Myth #3: Outsourcing innovation is the fastest way to get results.

Truth: Insourcing—when done right—is more sustainable and impactful.

Consultants can spark ideas, but long-term innovation must be built from within. The most successful companies create innovation programs that upskill employees and empower them to contribute meaningfully to solving real challenges.

When people inside the organization feel ownership over the innovation process, they’re more likely to follow through and drive execution. It’s not about occasional “innovation theater”—it’s about making innovation part of your operational core.

Myth #4: Innovation is about brainstorming and ideation.

Truth: Innovation is a repeatable process that can be measured.

Ideation is just one piece of the puzzle. Without a structured process to test, learn, and scale, most ideas go nowhere.

Innovation is a business process, not just a creative exercise. That’s why we built InnovationWorks—to help organizations go from “idea to impact” through a guided, measurable workflow. Like Agile or Lean, innovation can be tracked, refined, and optimized—if you treat it like a discipline, not a one-off event.

Myth #5: Only “high performers” are cut out to innovate.

Truth: Anyone can be an innovator with the right tools and support.

We’ve seen frontline workers, back-office staff, and early-career employees contribute some of the most game-changing ideas—when they’re invited into the process.

Innovation isn’t a personality trait—it’s a muscle. And like any muscle, it gets stronger with use. Organizations that democratize innovation—making it accessible to everyone—create more buy-in, uncover more relevant solutions, and build a culture that sustains itself.

Myth #6: Start with the solution.

Truth: Start with the challenge. Always.

One of the biggest traps in innovation is falling in love with the “shiny object”—a new technology, tool, or idea—before fully understanding the problem it’s trying to solve. And then ending up with too many ideas that can not be executed and are in no way aligned with the North Star.

The most successful innovators begin with a clearly defined challenge statement. And, top innovators know how the challenge aligns to the North Star. This ensures alignment, focus, and a better outcome. It also helps avoid “pilot purgatory,” where ideas get stuck in testing without ever being adopted.

At InnovationForce, we encourage organizations to flip the script: Start with the challenge. Then find the best solution—together. When you start with the WHY your innovation program produces impact faster.

In Summary: Real Innovation Means Rethinking How We Think About Innovation

It’s time to leave the myths behind and embrace a new model of innovation—one that is inclusive, structured, measurable, and focused on real-world impact.

Ready to learn more? Check out the Portland General Electric Innovation Impact Report to see how a large, complex and highly regulated organization is getting it right!