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The idea of using constraints to fuel innovation may appear counterintuitive and frustrating.  After all, isn't innovation about breaking free from limitations and pushing boundaries?  

While it's true that innovation seeks to explore new horizons, research has found the role of constraints in driving innovative thinking is often significantly underestimated.   

Constraints, whether they are resource limitations, time restrictions, system parameters or even regulatory hurdles, serve to focus and channel creativity, pushing people and teams to devise novel solutions that might not have been considered or developed as fast under more comfortable and open circumstances.   

And without constraints research has also shown we are in fact hard wired to take the path of least resistance.  Meaning we are more likely to convince ourselves the easiest solution we find is best.

It is only when constraints become too tight that they start to limit creativity and innovation.

So, getting the right balance of constraints and freedom can help you get the best results from your projects.   “Frugality drives innovation, just like other constraints do.  One of the only ways to get out of a tight box is to invent your way out.” says Jeff Bezos.

In this article, I provide insights from research that show how constraints and limitations can fuel innovation and provide practical tips on how you can use them on your projects.

The Paradox of Constraints

Constraints, in essence, represent limitations or boundaries that define the parameters of a problem or situation.  In workplace projects they can take various forms, such as financial restrictions, technical limitations, regulatory requirements, specific result hurdles or even tight deadlines.

At first glance, constraints might seem like barriers to progress, stifling creativity and limiting possibilities.

However, a peer review of 145 empirical studies on the effects of constraints on creativity and innovation by Oguz A. Acar at the King’s College London found that individuals, teams, and organisations alike benefit from a healthy dose of constraints.  Constraints provide a focal point and set of hurdles that inspires individuals to explore and link information from various sources, which generates fresh ideas for new services, solutions and products.

Steve Jobs famously used constraints to drive innovation.  When developing the original Macintosh computer and faced with limited resources and time, Jobs enforced a constraint that the Macintosh team could only use a specific amount of memory chips in the computer.  This limitation led the team to explore innovative ways of designing software and hardware to optimise the use of those limited resources. The result was a breakthrough product that revolutionised personal computing.

Richard Koch, author of The 80/20 Principle and a former Bain strategy consultant used constraints thinking to find an innovative solution to a profitability problem at his former Oxford University college.  Tasked with finding a way to overcome losses on undergraduate students each year, Richard systematically reviewed all constraints until he found one that opened the door to a solution.  

He couldn’t increase the number of undergraduate students or the price they were charged because these were regulated by the government. But what he could do was open up the College to a limited number of alternative students because undergraduates were on campus for only 26 weeks of every year.  

The strategy he recommended was to provide an 8-week sabbatical program for burnt out senior executives teaching a non-business curriculum including the history of art, philosophy and meditation.  Profitability would improve significantly because the College could charge a premium fee for each student based on the value to the sponsoring organisation of returning the senior executive recharged and full of new ideas to implement.   Without constraints this idea and strategy is unlikely to have been conceived.

When there are no constraints on the creative process, complacency tends to set in and teams can often focus on the easiest path to a solution.   Psychologists call it following the path-of-least-resistance – where people choose an idea that’s intuitive and easy to act on rather than investing in the development of better ideas.    

Findings from a University of College London study showed we hard wired to take the path of least resistance.  It’s like when you are faced with picking fruit from a tree.   With no other constraints, you’ll probably look to pick the lowest hanging fruit because it’s easiest.  What happens is our brain tricks us into believing the easiest to find solution is the best.

Advantages of Constraints

Constraints provide the following advantages when innovating:

• Focus and Clarity:  Constraints force individuals and teams to laser-focus on what truly matters. When faced with limitations, there is a need to prioritse ideas and solutions, leading to a clearer sense of direction and purpose.

• Creativity Through Scarcity:  Scarcity of resources can breed creative thinking. When conventional options are unavailable, people and teams are compelled to invent new ways of achieving their goals, often leading to novel and resource-efficient solutions.

• Encouraging Risk-Taking:  In constraint-driven scenarios, the fear of failure can take a backseat. Since the usual risk of failure is already inherent in the constraint, there is a greater willingness to take calculated risks and experiment with unconventional approaches.

• Cross-Disciplinary Collaboration and Teamwork:  Constraints often require collaboration between different teams or functions with varying expertise. This cross-disciplinary interaction can lead to the convergence of diverse ideas, resulting in innovative solutions that wouldn't have arisen in isolated silos.

• Encouraging Out-of-the-Box Thinking:  When faced with limitations, the conventional paths to solving a problem may no longer be viable. This pushes people and teams to explore unconventional, out-of-the-box approaches that they might not have considered otherwise.

How to Impose Constraints To Create the Right Conditions for Innovation

Imposing the right balance of constraints and creative freedom can be achieved by thoughtfully considering and balancing three types of constraints says Oguz A Acar:

1. Input constraints:  including time, human capital, funds, asset availability, system limitations, and available materials.

2. Process constraints:  including guidelines on how teams should interact (eg. agile management approach), which functions to involve, public vs private beta testing or rules for in person vs virtual meetings.

3. Output constraints:  including specifications for new products or services and financial and compliance outcomes.

Some constraints are discretionary, and others are not.  Discretionary constraints typically have flexibility and are imposed to benefit the outcomes of the project.  Non-discretionary constraints have limited flexibility are usually considered ‘must have’s’.  These include those imposed by regulatory bodies and specific limitations of available resources and time. 

When setting constraints for a project it pays to be mindful of the balance between motivating a team and overwhelming them with obstacles.  Where the space to create innovative ideas and explore possibilities is too tight, it can quickly kill creativity as the team can perceive achieving success as too far out of reach.

A typical innovation challenge should contain tight output constraints in the form of solution requirements.  These are usually paired with moderate input constraints (e.g., time to complete the project and funds available to consume) but complete freedom in terms of the process through which the team develops solutions.

To set the right balance of constraints and creative freedom, consider the nature of the project and the amount of innovation that’s required to be successful.  The more innovation needed the more the team will benefit from well-defined output constraints to focus on and relaxing input and process constraints so there’s flexibility to test and explore ideas to create novel solutions. 

Where innovation required is more moderate, such as moving office locations or rebranding a website, having tighter input and process constraints along with specific output requirements to manage time and cost in balance with outcomes will generate the best results. 

It's important to realise that a constraint can be interpreted in two ways: as a motivating challenge or a frustrating roadblock.  Not everyone interprets constraints in the same way at the same time.  Here’s where framing constraints as fuel for innovation and providing areas where there is flexibility to balance constraints helps.  

The first thought for most people is how can I make this easier.  Pushing back against constraints is an understandable strategy to try, but in reality without enough constraints it becomes harder to innovate and deliver results. 

Strategies for Harnessing Constraints to Drive Innovation

Here are seven ways you can use constraints to drive innovative thinking and develop faster more valuable solutions to your business challenges:

1. Reframe the Problem: Instead of viewing constraints as obstacles, consider them as opportunities to reframe the problem. Ask yourself how the constraint could lead to a different perspective on the issue at hand.

2. Embrace Minimalism: Minimalism, in terms of both design and functionality, can be a powerful response to constraints. Strive to extract the most value from the least resources, leading to elegant and efficient solutions.

3. Leverage Technology: Technology can often help transcend physical limitations. Embrace digital tools, automation, and virtual collaboration to overcome geographical or resource-related constraints.

4. Borrow Ideas from Other Industries: Look beyond your own industry for inspiration. Solutions that have worked elsewhere might offer insights on how to approach your own constraints innovatively.

5. Iterate and Learn: Embrace an iterative approach to problem-solving. Start with a basic solution that addresses the core challenge imposed by the constraint, and then refine and expand upon it as you learn and adapt.

6. Encourage Diverse Perspectives: When facing constraints, diverse viewpoints can lead to creative breakthroughs. Encourage open discussions and brainstorming sessions that involve team members from various backgrounds.

7. Prioritise and Sequence: When dealing with multiple constraints, prioritise them and tackle them one by one. Sequencing your efforts allows you to allocate resources effectively and generate momentum.

The next time you initiate a project to solve a problem or capture a new opportunity, consider the balance of constraints you need to apply to get the best results. 

Resist the urge to set too few constraints as this can cause a team to find the easiest solution which may not be the best.  

Also resist setting too many constraints as they can quickly become overwhelming and demotivate the team.   

Instead, set a portfolio of input, process and output constraints that match the nature of the challenge with the level of innovation required to get the best results. 

Good luck!