Can process management stifle innovation?

Do process management programmes (TQM, ISO 9000, Six Sigma,…) discourage Innovation? Such is the question posed by Mary J Benner, Assistant Professor of Management at Wharton university of Pennsylvania. Benner is a seasoned specialist in innovation and management and she and fellow researcher Tushman have been studying this subject since 1998. Lester Craft from Innovate Forum is adding a few comments on this subject too. Craft believes that such programmes can indeed entice companies to go for incremental innovation versus disruptive innovation, and therefore adopt what in essence is a minimalist approach to innovation. Benner doesn’t deny that corporate process programmes are having positive effects. On the contrary. She is a former GE manager and she must know about six sigma. In fact, she merely suggests that Managers try and apply these principles in a more appropriate and maybe less systematic manner. More on Ross Mayfield’s Weblog