What I learned this summer at KIN Global 2011: 

Eric Kacou encapsulated the key point of the summit in 7 words: "leadership in innovation requires a mindset change" - he repeated it 3x to make sure we all heard it - I loved it when he did that.  I heard more conversation about the so-called "soft" skills related to innovation - most folks, (e.g., GE's Beth Comstock, Cisco's Carlos Dominguez, AT&T's Gregory Dardis, emphasized that the soft skills are no longer viewed as merely important - they have proven to be as equally essential as process when it comes to innovation success.

Harry Kraemer Jr from Kellogg reminded us that successful innovation requires conscious leaders - who practice a values based kind of conscious leadership. His book "From Values to Action" endorsed by Jeff Immelt of GE, Gregg Steinhafel of Target, & many others hits on four key principles:

1) Self Reflection: know thyself to lead thyself before you try to lead others 

2) Balance: ideas & process, yin & yang, walt & roy, room & appreciation for both - don't try to be right, seek to understand the other side of the story

3) True Self-Confidence: not the pretend kind of confidence that makes us act like we know the answer, but instead the kind that loves asking the questions

4) Genuine Humility: skills + work hard + luck + timing = universe conspiring to help me

Beth Comstock from GE authentically embodied these principles in every aspect of her presentation - from the motivational emphasis on inspiring her teams with profit + purpose to the consciousness raising watch-out of "beware of your bias."  She closed with these reminders: 

 - Without process innovation is chaos; without tension, innovation is timid.  

 - Everyone is capable of innovating.  

 - Failure has to be an option - what did you learn? 

 - Think in terms of new models.

Beth mentioned at the beginning of her comments that GE was over 100+ yrs old - it reminded me again of the common longevity factors of corporations that not only survive longer than the average 45yrs lifespan of a F500 company, but also those that prosper. Here are the key longevity factors (source: Arie de Geus - The Living Company) that tie back to key points heard at KIN: 

1 – Sensitive learners, adapt quickly to environment, society, economy

2 – Focused on community & identity - sense of belonging matters

3 – Tolerant, aware of interconnectedness in & out of the company - decentralized tolerance

4 – Conservative financing - ability to govern their own growth & evolution independently = flexibility of action  

Anna Catalano asked the best question of the summit - highlighting the innovation paradox very nicely asking something like "why is it so hard then for us leaders to employ the soft skills & positive emotion that are key for us to create successful learning environments that are required for successful innovation?"

Here's why...according to behavioral scientists & psycho-social learning - it is evident that we share universal human tendencies that work agains us:

1.To remain in control

2.Maximize winning – minimize losing

3.Suppress negative feelings

4.To be rational

5.To avoid embarrassment/threat/vulnerability/failure

Soft leadership is hard - KIN reinforced why we're wrestling with this paradox in the context of innovation. 

Thank you Rob Wolcott (the ultimate Innovation MC) & KIN community.