There are top-down and bottom-up innovation efforts but those of us tasked with innovation know success in matrixed organizations also depends on how far our influence extends out beyond our direct circle. Do we get business units on board so they receive new ideas? What about finance, so they don't oppose and resist ideas when they get involved down the line? Or scarce IT resources? Learn how to connect people to the mission, outside your span of influence, and create Catalysts who unfreeze the middle. Catalysts don't have a formal innovation role or report to you - they may head business units, work in legal, finance, IT, dev ops, product management, and more. Their support of your efforts is essential and how you unfreeze the middle, just like rock salt melts a sheet of ice, so you can bring ideas all the way to market.

Gretchen spent 15 years as a partner in consulting firms helping Fortune 500 clients find new billion-dollar opportunities to connect with their customers. She was invited to teach MBA students and executives at a top b-school as Executive Director of Innovation and never looked back. As the Founder of DTLiveLAB, she created a “learn-by-doing” approach that combines engagement rewards, live interviews, real-world examples, and a live coached sprint. Employees emerge with vocabulary, a deeper understanding of the big picture, and excitement about how they can support organizational transformation in a way training can't, helping clients become customer-obsessed organizations at a rapid pace.