When you’re trying to make a difference, whether that’s transforming a project, engaging stakeholders, or leading change, creativity isn’t a nice to have. It’s absolutely essential. Innovation is what turns ‘business as usual’ into ‘business that matters’, and in my experience, unlocking innovation isn’t about waiting for inspiration to strike, it’s about building the mindset, environment and processes that allow creativity to thrive.
Here are some practical ways to unleash creative and innovative thinking to engage your stakeholders more effectively.
Start with curiosity, not certainty. We often approach stakeholder engagement with our plans already written and our minds already made up. But innovation begins with curiosity, asking better questions, and really listening to the answers.
Try this:
- Before your next stakeholder session, challenge yourself to ask open questions. Instead of, “Do you agree with this?” ask, “What might we be missing?”
- Adopt the mindset of a learner, not an expert. You’ll discover fresh insights and unlock perspectives that could completely reshape your approach.
Create a space where ideas feel safe. People won’t share their boldest ideas if they fear being judged. Creativity dies in an atmosphere of criticism or hierarchy.
Tip:
- Build psychological safety into your meetings. Let people know that there are no wrong answers.
- If you’re leading a session, model vulnerability yourself, admit when you don’t know something, and celebrate when others offer a different viewpoint.
A good rule of thumb: if your session feels too comfortable, you’re probably not innovating.
Use playful methods to spark ideas. Serious challenges don’t always need serious methods. Playfulness unlocks creativity, breaks down barriers, and engages people in unexpected ways.
Try this:
- Run a ‘Worst Idea Wins’ session. Ask your team to come up with the worst possible way to solve your challenge. You’ll be amazed how quickly it flips into useful, original thinking.
- Use visual tools, storyboards, mind maps, or even Lego, to help people show rather than tell their ideas. It’s not about artistic skill; it’s about opening up different ways of thinking.
Cross-pollinate perspectives. Innovation rarely comes from people who think the same way or share the same background. The magic happens in the mix.
Advice:
- Bring together stakeholders who wouldn’t normally meet. Blend technical experts with end users, policy leads with front-line teams, and communications pros with engineers.
- Use techniques like ‘rotating conversations’, where people move between groups, to spread ideas and build shared understanding.
It’s often the unexpected connections that generate the most powerful breakthroughs.
Prototype, don’t perfect. Perfection is the enemy of innovation. The goal isn’t to produce a flawless idea, it’s to test something quickly, learn fast, and adapt.
Practical step:
- Build ‘quick and dirty’ mock-ups of your ideas. This could be a storyboard, a sketch, or a simple digital demo.
- Take it to stakeholders early. Ask for their feedback before you’ve invested too much time, that way, they become co-creators, not critics.
Stakeholders who help shape an idea are far more likely to champion it.
Build creative habits into everyday work. Innovation isn’t a one-off workshop; it’s a mindset that needs feeding.
Tips:
- Start meetings with a quick creative warm-up, something as simple as asking, “What’s the most surprising thing you learned this week?”
- Keep an ‘ideas wall’ or shared digital board where anyone can post sparks of inspiration.
- Reward curiosity, not just delivery.
Creativity flourishes when it becomes part of how you work, not an occasional exercise.
Stay resilient when innovation meets resistance. Let’s be honest, not everyone loves innovation. Change is uncomfortable, and creative ideas can feel risky. But resilience is what separates the dreamers from the doers.
When people push back, don’t see it as rejection. See it as feedback. Ask yourself, what are they really worried about? and how can I bring them with me?
Remember: every innovative breakthrough looked impossible until it was done.
Unlocking innovation isn’t about wild creativity or random brainstorming, it’s about purposeful imagination. It’s using curiosity, courage, and collaboration to engage people in new ways and create real impact.
If you want to engage stakeholders effectively, think less about managing them and more about involving them. Creativity is your bridge, and once you cross it, you’ll find endless possibilities on the other side.
Rapport North 