"Good artists copy. Great artists steal." From my experience, I always encourage my team to experiment and build on existing ideas, as creativity often comes from trying new approaches and pushing boundaries. I emphasize the importance of taking risks, even if it means making mistakes, because each experiment is a step toward innovation. I make sure my feedback is clear and helpful, highlighting what worked well and offering practical suggestions for improvement. Creating a safe space where mistakes are seen as learning opportunities keeps the team motivated and results in a culture of continuous creativity.

Delivering constructive feedback to foster innovation requires a thoughtful approach. Start by creating a safe, open environment where ideas are valued. Highlight strengths first to build confidence, then address areas for improvement with actionable suggestions. Use “I” statements to focus on observations, not judgments, and tie feedback to the team’s goals. Encourage brainstorming solutions together, showing trust in their creativity. Keep the conversation collaborative, ensuring they feel heard and supported. Follow up with recognition for implemented ideas or progress, reinforcing a culture of growth. When feedback is constructive and empowering, it becomes a tool to inspire innovation and drive success.

Separate the process of coming up with ideas (ideation) from the process of choosing which ideas to pursue (judgement). During the ideation phase, praise all ideas, no matter how far out or impractical. Encourage your team to come up with even more ideas, no matter how wacky. In this phase, all of your feedback should be positive and encouraging. Later, start the judgement process where you and your team evaluate each idea, even the far out ones. Encourage your team to think about how a far out idea could be made feasible, or how ideas could be combined to create innovative and potentially feasible solutions.

Allow the team to get into their individual and collective zone. Creativity does not need gate keepers ( managers of traditional assembly line models). Be that guy or gal for the team. You are your team and the team is you. Creativity is not mechanical and it has to be let out through channeling and navigation. The rest is history. Cheers, good luck for 2025 and beyond.

To create a diffrentition in your offerings its must to be innovative & creative in your approaches 1. Open communication & actionable constructive feedback: Its vital take complete team in confidence & have a candid conversation with each member leveraging on their strengths guide them to bring in desired improvement & help them with available resources to foster culture of Diversity,Equity, and Inclusion to be innovative & creative 2. Delegation: Delgate certain specific tasks to desired team members based on their work domain proficiency & knowledge wherein they can learn from failtures & improve subsequently 3. Constructive review mechanism :Have a structured review & emphasise positives of team mates & areaswhere improvement needed

Delivering constructive feedback to enhance innovation and creativity should focus on the work rather than individuals. Start with strengths before addressing areas for improvement, highlighting what’s working well, such as originality and effort. Be specific and clear, offering concrete examples and practical suggestions. Frame feedback as a conversation with open-ended questions like, “What inspired this approach?” to encourage collaboration. Creating a safe, supportive environment is essential, normalizing trial and error in the innovation process. Provide feedback promptly and respectfully to ensure it feels constructive. Reinforce a growth mindset by emphasizing creativity’s iterative nature, and follow up to acknowledge improvements.

Encourage ideas by acknowledging effort and intent: Show appreciation for creative contributions. Provide clear context for feedback: Link suggestions to team goals and outcomes. Focus on growth: Highlight strengths first and then suggest areas for improvement. Ask questions to spark reflection: Guide team members to refine their ideas. End with actionable steps: Offer specific next steps to enhance the idea or project.

As per my experience I will create an environment where team members feel comfortable, safe, and confident. Always gives opportunity to colleagues to come forward to discuss and provide input prior to take any initiative because open communication & actionable constructive feedback play a vital role to complete for improvement of any step.

Two ways communication would be a great strategy to boost skills of team members. As I believe in the philosophy of communication that the most powerful sense humans ever have is sense of hearing.