An open, collaborative environment is key to maintaining a culture of innovation, said Brian Donohue, executive vice president of analytics and marketing at Exeter Finance Corp.
“For us, generating that innovative culture really comes back to making people feel comfortable that they can take a risk,” he said. “We can’t have a culture or environment where people are nervous about making mistakes, otherwise they won’t really move forward.”
To ensure an open environment, Exeter holds monthly meetings across all departments, where employees share their top projects. “What one analyst may find is really successful in one place, may also help out the other teams,” Donohue said.
The last piece is rewarding employees for success, instead of punishing for failure. “You have to make sure that you actually celebrate and reward people when they do take a leap and come up with something innovative,” he said, adding that very often innovation can come from someone you least expect.
Learn more about the tech and disruption in the industry at Auto Finance Innovation 2016, May 11 in Fort Worth, Texas. Visit www.autofinanceinnovation.com and to learn more about the Auto Finance Risk & Compliance Summit, visit www.afrcs.com
