Innovation Through Intentional Discomfort

Sharon Steele is helping lead CIBC's transformation with AI as part of the bank's AI Platforms and Solutions team. With 15 years of experience jumping between healthcare, non-profit, and financial services sectors, Sharon brings a disciplined innovation framework that transcends industry boundaries. Her approach combines rigorous external scanning with immersive real-world experiences—from working on farms to diving in remote locations—all in service of challenging assumptions and spotting opportunities others might miss.

1. What does innovation mean to you?

Innovation, to me, is very disciplined. I always hear about "oh, what a great, innovative idea," but the idea is just that—it's just an idea. Innovation really is a disciplined approach that takes research, experimentation, and laser focus. It's really hard work, and I don't think we pay enough attention to that. But that's what innovation truly is.

2. How does your team generate new ideas?

Our team does a lot of external scanning. A lot of it is really just getting outside of our comfort zone and our day-to-day, and getting that inspiration from outside. Even this conference is one of those opportunities—I brought my colleague with me to really highlight all the different industries that are here that we can learn from. That's so critical.

Having a really global lens is important, and also always trying something new. Right now I'm in school for Environmental Studies. Someone asked me a question about the impact of AI on the environment, and I didn't have an answer. So now I am in school, probably for the next couple of years. You don't know what you don't know. I'm a lifelong student.

3. Do you have any specific rituals for resetting your team to be creative?

I get outside and drop myself into different experiences. Last year, I went and worked on a farm, cleaning and grooming horses. I've dipped off across the world, going scuba diving and just experiencing nature firsthand—going into really rural areas and just talking to other humans about what's in their daily lives.

A lot of it involves getting up out of my environment and just kind of shifting. And I don't think if you love what you do, it ever leaves you. You can think about how else can I apply this, or bring some of this into my daily life, whatever I'm doing in whatever role I'm at.

For my team, I always played the "Level Up" song by Ciara. That would be like the theme song before our team meetings, where I'd bring everyone together for a day out of the month, and we all just learned from each other. Whether it was diving into accessibility, traditional AI and machine learning, or AI service design, we all learned together to speak the same language. That really helped everyone connect the dots and have those fluid conversations that led to breakthroughs.

4. How are you leveraging AI in your innovation process? What are some unexpected benefits or challenges you've encountered with AI adoption?

We've found AI quite effective in areas that would typically take longer—from persona development to scanning through data to draw insights. We're actually getting a lift there by using AI to apply to our innovation process. More recently, I've been using a lot of image generation. I've built custom AI solutions, which are really a combination of software, AI, and design, and I'm using them as a starting point to get conversations going. That has been really impactful and such a lift to getting something out into the market.

For unexpected benefits, I heard from a coworker who commonly has no one else to work with. I think especially in the innovation space, sometimes it can get a bit lonely. I found I can leverage AI as a companion. Within financial services, we're seeing some people that are under NDA, and AI is becoming like their coworker that they can actually talk to.

You can also uncover your blind spots. I've created different job roles using AI, and then have them look at whatever I'm producing—whether it's a PowerPoint or even a speaking engagement—and provide that kind of rapid feedback from different perspectives.

5. How do you identify trends? What resources does your team use to spot trends and consumer insights?

I'm a massive subscriber to Trend Hunter, which really helps because I always want to look globally. A lot of the work I do is constant scanning of what's happening externally. It's so cheesy, but it's even like celebrity gossip and news—different sources, going through TikTok, but actually changing the region where I'm at. All these things really help shake up that isolated Toronto-focused perception.

6. What is the biggest challenge you face when innovating?

It can get lonely, and there's a lot of resistance to what you're bringing through. I've always found it's really incredible to have the right team around you, the right company, and the right leadership, because it can really wear you down. If you're spending too much time explaining or even having to defend your ideas, it really just slows down that progress.

Those are probably the hard barriers, and I've been in this space for 15 years—I have pretty thick skin. You're always going to experience that, very similar to entrepreneurship. These are just the rules of the game, and they're always going to be there.

7. Has there ever been an instance where another industry has influenced an innovation at CIBC?

A little bit about myself—I jump in and out of different industries, whether it's healthcare, non-profit, or financial services, and that's by design. I'm always coming in with a pretty disciplined innovation framework, but I can apply that to all different industries. So I'm constantly learning from the experts around me. It's been incredible to not only be inspired, but to actually go and work in those spaces and implant myself with all those experts around me.

8. What makes an innovative culture? How do you create a culture of innovation?

I think it starts with kindness and listening. I also don't hire people like me. In my previous team, everyone was so amazing at their craft, and what we did together was create a really safe area to learn from each other. We all learned together—whether it was diving into accessibility, traditional AI and machine learning, or AI service design. That really helped everyone connect the dots and have those fluid conversations that led to innovation and breakthroughs.

9. Looking to the future, how will you continue to be a leader in innovation?

I have to keep learning and getting uncomfortable. That is the biggest thing—just be uncomfortable constantly and never stop learning. Learning from other people, learning from experts, doing traditional learning. You cannot stop. Don't stop and continue to be open-minded about change and experience. Really just be uncomfortable. When you're comfortable, get uncomfortable again, and just keep going after that.