Webster attributes 3M’s success over the past century to the formal and informal mechanisms and norms the company implemented over the years to share information and foster innovation. That success starts with the technology centers where people work on products like reflective polarizers (to manage light in a display panel by transmitting one polarization to the viewer and reflecting the other polarization back into the display). Nobody anticipated the invention of this optical film. But the formula for collaboration 3M has developed is designed to produce this kind of result, and knowledge sharing is critical to that formula.

Over the years, 3M has implemented some very explicit mechanisms that allow its employees to connect with internal and external customers. These mechanisms include its Tech Forum, technology platforms, the 3M education and learning site, Lotus Notes databases, the Idea Hopper, staff rotation, peer recognition, Six Sigma, story telling, and library and information services.