I came across the following comment in an interview with Robert B. Tucker (pdf)

What should leaders do to foster a culture of innovation?

I
advise leaders to make sure they are creating an environment in which
mavericks are tolerated. The maverick is a well-documented personality
type: These people would much rather change the system than simply
perfect it. Mavericks don’t “go along to get along,” they don’t “dress
for success” and, as the vice chairman of Medtronic puts it, they are a
pain in the neck to manage. But they are absolutely necessary because
they can make those “ah ha!” connections that lead to solutions.

If
mavericks are not valued and respected, they will leave the
organization and make their talents available to a company that will
value them. Or worse, they’ll go off and start their own companies and
compete with you.