What's in a Name? A Lot When It Comes to Innovation

Here is a great article from the Harvard Business Reivew.  Here is a snippet.  Let me know what you think. 
Companies often launch separate teams focused on growth, especially when they don't have exploratory capabilities woven into the fabric of their cultures. Protected from short term demands, these teams can focus on opportunities beyond the core. So when one of our clients created such a team, we weren't surprised. But this launch was unique: it included a contest to name the group. But, why was the name of the team so important?

After examining other new business groups, we realized that the name of a group is quite revealing. It reflects the company's frame on ambiguous growth problems. Inherent in the name is a point of view about the way the group will pursue new business efforts.

Three types of names predominate:

• Skunkworks: names that imply something unappealing about a group
• Special Ops: names that suggest elite forces tackling a problem on the battlefield
• Artisans: names that highlight the artisanal nature of a group's work

Skunkworks groups work in isolation

During World War II, Lockheed set up its original Skunk Works team, setting the model for teams that would later develop the U2 and the first stealth fighter. This structure, which segregates innovation teams from the core business, has proliferated in industries from online search to consumer packaged goods. The premise that underlies each is the same: innovation is about as welcome as a skunk at a garden party. While corporate leaders know they need growth, they also know that the exploration of new growth opportunities often acts as a distraction to the core business. Cordoning them off is the only way that disruptive projects can thrive.

Special Ops teams parachute in to solve high-stakes challenges
Nike's former new business team described themselves as "an elite group of Navy Seals." Like their U.S. military namesake, Nike's team responded to specific issues: tackling new categories, entering new markets, fending off competitors, and capturing new consumers. Each project was a mission, with a problem to solve, a short time frame to solve it in, and a small but elite team of specialists to accomplish the objective. This "special operations" frame reflects the belief that growth is a battle that can be won or lost. While these groups may be limited in their impact to a finite set of projects, they are able to bring new tools, methods, and thinking to bear on some of the thorniest growth problems within an organization.

Source:  Harvard Business Review - Full article here