Harvard Business Publishing

Innovation inspiration can come from outside the business world. Today's source of wisdom: The Simpsons. Today's lesson: Be wary of peddlers offering skin-deep fixes for deeply rooted innovation issues.

Companies looking to boost their abilities to innovate routinely turn to companies that seem to have solved the innovation equation for inspiration. They observe elements of the company's environment (free food! no doors! online jam sessions!). They seek to mimic those environmental elements to get similar results.

The problem is that a "culture of innovation" involves much more than these superficial elements. In fact, my colleague Steve Wunker is fond of saying that culture is a lagging, not a leading indicator. Changing culture requires changing activities. Changing superficial stuff without changing the real stuff doesn't accomplish much.

If you have trouble remembering this, think back to the episode of The Simpsons when, after a random bear sighting, the town of Springfield invests heavily to guard against future "attacks." The town thinks the heavy investment pays off, because bear sightings drop by 100 percent.

One of Springfield's residents is notably unimpressed. With thanks from The Simpsons Archive, here's Lisa Simpson's conversation with her father Homer.

Homer: Not a bear in sight. The Bear Patrol must be working like a charm.

Lisa: That's specious reasoning, Dad.

Homer: Thank you, dear.

Lisa: By your logic I could claim that this rock keeps tigers away.

Homer: Oh, how does it work?

Lisa: It doesn't work.

Homer: Uh-huh.

Lisa: It's just a stupid rock.

Homer: Uh-huh.

Lisa: But I don't see any tigers around, do you?

[Homer thinks of this, then pulls out some money]

Homer: Lisa, I want to buy your rock.

It's a classic example of mixing up correlation and causation. The rock correlates with a lack of tigers--just like Google's free food correlates with a perception that Google is innovative--but it doesn't necessarily cause tigers to stay away.

Whenever someone tries to peddle you an innovation rock, ask, "Why exactly would that work?" and "What other things have to be in place for the rock to function?" If the rock peddler can't answer those questions, respectfully pass.

Out of curiosity, anyone else draw innovation insights from strange places?