Fear of failure holding back innovation, TBWA global chairman warns

Innovation is being hampered by a fear of failure as brands, and employees with an eye on their career, look to protect their reputation, the chairman of TBWA Worldwide has said.

Jean-Marie Dru warned that unless marketers and creative staff approach their work in a bolder fashion, and are prepared to see ideas flop, companies will struggle to truly innovate.

Speaking at an Australian Association of National Advertisers (AANA) conference in Sydney today, Dru said 10 or even 20 initiatives may have to fail before one succeeds.

Asked to identify some of the major barriers to innovation, Dru said: “The first one is a fear of failure. You might have to fail many times before you get it right but companies are afraid of failure.”