Your organization probably has more good ideas than you realize.

The challenge is what happens next.

Employees learn quickly whether an unconventional suggestion is genuinely welcome, whether failure will be treated as information or incompetence, and whether leadership is open to an outcome it did not already choose. When those answers are unclear, people protect themselves. They offer safer ideas, wait for direction or stop speaking up entirely.

In this episode, Naomi Titleman Colla speaks with Fiona Stevenson about the human dynamics that cause innovation to stall. They explore why fear of taking action can be stronger than the fear of doing nothing, how leaders unintentionally become more rigid when the stakes are high, and why psychological safety must be built into the work rather than treated as a separate culture exercise.
Fiona also shares a practical process for moving from a clearly defined problem to human insight, inspiration, ideas, iteration and implementation. For HR leaders, the conversation offers a clear challenge: examine whether your performance measures, reward systems and everyday leadership behaviours actually support the experimentation your organization says it wants.

Guest Resources

  • Website: fionastevenson.com
  • Open State (with co-founder Alyssa Kerbel): openstate.ca — bringing nervous system regulation, music, and movement into the creative process
  • Kindness at Work: kindnessatwork.com — inaugural Workplace Kindness Awards ceremony in New York City during Kindness Week (November); nominations now open
  • LinkedIn: Connect with Fiona Stevenson

About Our Guest

Fiona Stevenson is CEO and founding partner of the Idea Suite, where she helps organizations turn human insight into commercially viable ideas. With a background in psychology, more than a decade at Procter & Gamble and experience leading hundreds of innovation projects around the world, she brings a deeply human and practical perspective to how ideas move through organizations.

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