Convergence in innovation: the perception of synthesis in articulating a new strategic vision

The collaborative creation of a new strategic vision is recognised by scholars and practitioners as a key factor for the success of innovation initiatives. However, it is still unclear how people converge towards a new vision, as creative abrasions and tensions can occur when different ideas are brought together to create a shared interpretation. Whereas literature about synthesis has described extensively how this mechanism can be used to integrate different perspectives to generate a novel outcome, there is a lack of research regarding the perception of synthesis within a setting where a sense of agreement and ideological alignment is needed to allow people to pursue innovation. This study investigates how people perceive a collaborative process based on synthesis when converging towards a new strategic vision. It has been developed within the research programme IDeaLs in partnership with Sorgenia, an Italian utility company. As part of an action research project, a collaborative process based on synthesis has been jointly developed and applied to engage 60 employees to let them converge towards an innovative vision. Results enrich previous literature in collaborative visioning, showing how individuals feel different perceptions according to their role in the collaborative process, whether they propose an idea or improve those of others. Enhancing an idea can lead individuals to side with other viewpoints, while evaluating others’ contributions could be detrimental for idea integration. We suggest how leveraging contradictions through criticism can help individuals deepen concepts and develop a meaningful outcome, enriching literature about synthesis in innovation management.