MIT Sloan Management Review Article on Why Territorial Managers Stifle Innovation - and What to Do About It

Managers who feel insecure about their status tend not to encourage novel ideas from their employees. Fostering their identification with the organization can change this behavior.

Dilip has been working hard on a game-changing idea for a new product. But when he excitedly approaches his boss to share it and get approval for further development and testing, his proposal is quickly rejected. Instead of offering constructive feedback on how to make the idea workable, his boss vaguely refers to a lack of budget and discourages Dilip from pursuing any further ideas.

Sound familiar? Sadly, such scenarios are all too common in many organizations.

About the Author

Vijaya Venkataramani is the Dean’s Professor of Leadership and Innovation in the Management & Organization group at the R.H. Smith School of Business, University of Maryland. Rellie Derfler-Rozin is an associate professor of management and organization at the Robert H. Smith School of Business at the University of Maryland. Xin Liu is an associate professor at the School of Finance, Renmin University of China, and an affiliated visiting research fellow at the University of Bath School of Management. Jih-Yu Mao is an associate professor in organizational behavior at the University of Nottingham Ningbo China.

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