President Connie Ledoux Book: Advancing an innovative culture

The Fall 2022/Winter 2023 issue of the Magazine of Elon has several stories about moments of engagement at Elon that resulted in new understandings, new solutions and new processes that moved our community and world forward.

Elon is now ranked sixth in the nation in innovation by U.S. News & World Report, and we are in excellent company. As a leader of an engaged and innovative university, I’m often asked about the essential ingredients to advancing an innovative culture. Here are four for you to think about that I often share on campus:

A strong sense of ownership

Harvard Business Review published a piece that described the differences between renting and owning. Think about how you treat a rental car versus one you own. The cars we own are usually on scheduled maintenance and have accessories we’ve invested in. When we rent a car, we don’t pay as close attention to checking the oil or taking it to a car wash. We say, “Someone else will take care of that.” At Elon we advance a culture of ownership that is deeply rooted in the power of shared governance. Wisdom is a collective asset, and we empower committees to try out new ideas. We encourage students to take informed risks. We create structures that encourage people to bring their talents and ideas to the table. You’ll read about our Innovation Council and how it supports good ideas and pilots programs with resources. This culture of ownership is one of the critical ways Elon advances innovation.

Shared values

The common value for everyone at Elon is student success. We say it out loud and often at most of our meetings. I recall when I was a young faculty member at Elon, there was an exchange between two professors who strongly disagreed. It was 2003 and we were considering developing a School of Information Technology. What kept the conversation focused on what mattered was that both professors were committed to student success and Elon’s ability to deliver a high-quality student experience that led to engagement, graduation and employment. While they had some disagreements on what that pathway should look like, neither professor was willing to recommend an action that would have resulted in a diminished student experience. Strong but civil dialogue for several months, and poring through the data, ultimately led to a committee recommendation of “not at this time” on the formation of a new school. Observing that process was a learning moment for me about the power of shared values when creating a strategy on how to move forward.

Low walls and no silos

I am wholeheartedly invested in the success of my colleagues, who have deep knowledge in their respective leadership areas. This strong commitment to each other’s success is a key asset of an innovative culture. This means that I take time to listen to the strategies under consideration by my colleagues in other divisions and units and respectfully provide informed feedback. I encourage our community to work across divisions and units to provide insights from different perspectives. We also have a community practice of gathering on the first Friday of every month to offer feedback in a structured environment on a topic that is announced beforehand and is typically tied to the strategic plan. To facilitate this exchange, the university provides a special free lunch with great desserts to all faculty and staff. Hundreds of Elon employees show up hungry and ready to engage.

Humility

Strong innovative cultures embrace a culture of humility — an understanding that we absolutely don’t know everything and that everything can be made better. I often tell the community, “Don’t love Elon so much that you don’t want to make it the best it can be.” This mindset creates a continuous improvement loop. Part of every program or event includes an after-action phase to analyze what worked and what didn’t. We also take time at the beginning of every strategic decision or project to consider the ways we will measure success. The Boldly Elon strategic plan has 63 objectives, each measurable, posted on the university’s website. We update it regularly and hold ourselves accountable to achieving the goals and humble enough to change direction when we realize it is necessary.

Innovation at Elon is about learning something new and using those lessons to advance change. Those are the stories that fill the pages of this issue and the lives of our alumni. An innovative mindset is one of the hallmarks of an Elon graduate and another testament to why the world needs Elon graduates.