Managers are paid to solve problems. They see something wrong and they fix it--and that's a good thing. Yet if your managers are spending most of their time fixing things, addressing unacceptable performance or simply putting out fires, your organization will never grow and will likely fall behind your competition.

Problem solving by definition merely brings a level of performance back to the agreed upon standard. It restores the norm. It rarely moves performance to a higher level. Innovation, a key ingredient essential for growth, comes about when managers dare to increase the standard or raise the bar.When managers solve problems and innovate-particularly when innovation is greater as a percentage of time, good things happen. You need both.

Encourage managers to continuously push the standard, to seek innovation, to anticipate changes in the marketplace. Strive to be an exemplar like 3M. They have created a culture and workplace that is continuously evolving, changing and profiting from continuous improvements, creativity and innovation.

Create an environment in your organization that encourages employees to innovate, take risks, make mistakes, work smart, and challenge the norm.

Receive up-to-the-minute advisories, leadership tips, and legal updates by joining me on Linkedin, Facebook, and Twitter.

3M is considered to be one of the world's great innovators. We all know the story of the Post-It-Note. But how do they encourage innovation? To drive innovation, they use their "15% rule" where technical people spend up to 15% of their time on projects of their own choosing or initiative, the "25% rule" where each division produces 25% of annual sales from new products and services introduced in the previous five years (it has now increased to 30%), and the "Golden Step" award, given to those creating successful new business ventures originated within 3M. 3M has created an innovation machine. What are you doing to encourage innovation?

In the last few months, I have given a number of radio and journal interviews, written many articles and contributed to several blogs. Most of them have been focused on current world and business events including the President's State of the Union address, the medical marijuana controversy and Bret Favre's sexual harassment suit. Since most of these interviews appeared in various national venues, you probably never saw or heard them. Now you can. I have many of them posted on my web site for your review. Hope you find them helpful. And let me know what you think.

Employers looking to recruit members of Generation Y for their workforce might want to consider their organizations' social media strategies and incentives, according to survey findings from university students from the Class of 2011. For one, this generation-also known as Millennials and born from about 1980 through 2000- doesn't mess around with job boards and employer postings. More than 87% say they will target their employers of choice and submit job applications directly to them, up from 49% in 2010, according to an online survey Experience Inc. Recommendation: make sure you web job board appeals to this younger generation.

A number of tools and booklets to help you manage your workforce are available now. These include:

• Sexual Harassment Prevention Toolbox
• Preventing Discrimination & Harassment Guide
• Strategies to Survive a Tough Economic Downturn Guide
• Guide To Massachusetts Employment Laws for Managers
• Employment Laws for Maine Organizations

A new study from CareerBuilder shows the playground isn't the only place one will encounter bullies. 27% of workers report they have felt bullied in the workplace with the majority neither confronting nor reporting the bully. Comparing genders and age groups, the segments that were more likely than others to report feeling bullied were women, workers age 55 or older, and workers age 24 or younger. Where bullying occurs, productivity plummets. Recommendation: Educate your workforce about preventing bullying in your workplace.