Any executive with half a brain knows that innovation is vital to success. The problem is that very few individuals have the combination of both brains—commercial and creative talents—to be world-class geniuses. Worse yet, those of us who are unskilled in the commercial or the creative realm are generally unaware of that fact and unable to evaluate competence—our own, or anyone else's.

That is one of the key reasons that companies struggle to generate a continuous stream of innovations. They somehow stifle the creativity that leads to game-changing ideas. In turbulent times, they often cut back on innovation efforts rather than increasing them—arguably a recipe for disaster.

Compare that all-too-common situation with companies that have truly changed the game in their industries. What you find there are distinctive kinds of partnerships, often permeating the organizations. One partner is an imaginative, intuitive "right-brain" individual who spins out new ideas every day and seems somehow to channel the wants and needs of target customers. The other partner is invariably a "left brain" executive, someone comfortable making commercial decisions based on hard-nosed analysis. This left-brain, right-brain language is just shorthand—the capabilities associated with each don't reside purely in the corresponding region of the cerebral cortex. But it's a useful taxonomy, which is why we call these companies "BothBrain®" organizations.

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BothBrain partnerships turn up in all sorts of industries. Howard Schultz conceived and developed the iconic Starbucks coffeehouse format, while CEO Orin Smith oversaw the chain's rapid growth. Former track coach Bill Bowerman developed Nike's innovative running shoes, while partner Phil Knight handled management, finance and sales. Steve Jobs famously acts as Apple's creative director, overseeing nearly every aspect of innovations such as the iPhone, while COO Tim Cook handles the day-to-day running of the business.

Some highly innovative industries put BothBrain partnerships at the center of their business model. Virtually every successful brand in the fashion industry, for instance, is run by a partnership between a creative director and a brand CEO. Fashion companies foster collaboration of this sort throughout the organization, not just at the top. They carefully spell out who has responsibility for decisions relating to innovation. Creative directors, for example, have final say over new-product decisions, but must work within commercial frameworks laid down by brand managers.

Like fashion companies, innovative organizations in other industries have begun to build BothBrain partnerships deliberately. Procter & Gamble, for instance—traditionally known for its analytic approach to brand management—has made itself into an innovation leader partly by emphasizing creative, design-oriented, right-brain thinking.

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Darrell Rigby is a partner at Bain & Company and leads the firm's Global Retail and Innovation practices. Kara Gruver, a partner in the Bain Boston office, leads the firm's regional practice areas for Retail and Consumer Products. James Allen, a partner in London, is co-leader of the firm's Global Strategy practice.

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