Businesses spend billions on innovation with very little to show for their investment or effort. This book challenges some of the ‘ingrained truths’ of innovation and suggests a different approach. Innovation is not the creation of a novel idea. It is the successful commercialisation of that novel idea. Rather than starting with a costly, time-consuming problem assessment that seeks to push potential solutions through an innovation funnel, an ‘impeller approach’ starts with possible solutions and gets the market to pull the best ones forward so they can fail fast or flourish fast. This approach is made possible by the addition of a ‘bee’ – a new type of integrative thinker who can harvest the existing knowledge from the ‘meadow of experts’. Completely reversing the innovation process means organisations are much better placed to win in the market rather than focusing on finding theoretical solutions or clearing innovation stage gates. In addition, this approach also recognises that the people who shepherd the solution through the ideation and testing stage are not the same people who must then take that solution to market for successful commercialisation. Given the current innovation failure rate, coupled with the fact that society is beset with multiple wicked problems, it’s time to think differently and innovate innovation itself. This book is essential reading for Heads of Innovation and Commercialisation, Directors of Marketing, Heads of New Product Development and New Service Development, Strategy Directors, Chief Technology Officers, Government advisers and policy makers.

In today’s frenetic, uncertain world, the “same old, same old” routines are perfect ways to go nowhere fast. What has worked for you before—professionally or personally—no longer gets results. Whether you’ve been downsized, reached the end of a long relationship, or found yourself questioning where you are in life, it’s clear you need to change. To innovate. Make it new. Make yourself new. Now, in this invaluable book, the world-renowned “Dean of Innovation,” Jeff DeGraff, shares his tried-and-true techniques on how to reinvent yourself—creatively and with maximum impact. Innovation You reveals DeGraff’s unique four-step program to bolster your ingenuity and remake your life. From forging ahead in a new career to losing weight to finally pursuing that long-held dream, DeGraff’s strategies are effective and easy to follow. Inside you will learn to • Rethink Innovation: Find ways to think outside the box, seek out diverse opinions, and pay attention to the next great trend. • Rethink Your Approach: Use the Competing Values Framework to identify your natural innovation profile—do you compete, collaborate, create, or control?—and then deliberately draw from the other styles to augment your usual tactics. • Rethink Your Methods: Put your reinvention plan in motion—set specific, realistic, and meaningful targets, cultivate relationships with relevant mentors and experts, and try alternate methods to achieve your goals. • Rethink the Journey: Understand that innovation is a process and that progress comes in cycles rather than a quick straight line. Accept uncertainty, question assumptions, and acknowledge areas where you can improve. Full of invigorating ideas, engaging anecdotes, practical wisdom, and inspiring success stories, Innovation You is your personal road map to reach your highest potential—and experience a bold new way of living.

Innovation Theology: A Biblical Inquiry and Exploration invites seminary leaders to explore an uncharted territory--theology for innovating. This unexplored terrain of practical and applied theology holds gems of substantive and practical wisdom for innovating in the marketplace, society, and church. Innovation Theology brings theological perspectives to the challenges of innovating and promises to transform how we make sense of change and where (and why) we choose to innovate. Innovation Theology makes the case that God continues to create and continues to invite us, through change, to co-create new value for others (i.e., innovate). Innovation Theology explores where discovery, invention, and value creation intersect (or not) with the intentions of God. Not to be confused with workplace spirituality, business ethics, or critiques of technology, theology for innovating can encourage scientists, engineers, and entrepreneurs to aim their innovating toward the common good, not just in response to the invisible hand of the market. Innovation Theology invites us to make meaning before money, aim for plumb lines before bottom lines, and reattach extrinsic to intrinsic value. The one for whom all things are possible is interested, invested, and engaged in innovating. Are we innovating with him, or not?

'Social innovation’ can be simply defined as the new ideas and initiatives that make it possible to meet our society’s challenges in areas such as the environment, education, employment, culture, health and economic development. It is currently becoming increasingly important as a central concept for social theories and politics. This edited volume brings together interdisciplinary contributions which examine the complex interrelation between innovation and social problems, a link which has been surprisingly underexplored in academia and practice thus far. Social Innovation: New Forms of Organisation in Knowledge–Based Societies examines the mutual interdependence of innovation processes and social affairs. This interdependent relationship is characterised by a high degree of complexity which stems on the one hand from the true uncertain character of innovation and on the other hand from the different time scales in both domains. The alliance between innovation and social policy is highly relevant to the challenges which we are facing in the 21st century, such as resource scarcity, ageing societies and climate change. All of these issues demand substantial, continuous and sustainable structural change to maintain international competitiveness. Social change can only be understood by improving our knowledge about the impact of innovation processes in their co-evolutionary alliance with social evolution. The purpose of this book is to increase awareness of social participation among civil society organisations, SMEs, governments and research institutions, in order to promote economic, political and social changes that enhance collective welfare. This volume offers a key starting point for those looking to further explore this important realm of social research.

"An urgent and witty manifesto, Monopolies Suck shows how monopoly power is harming everyday Americans and practical ways we can all fight back."--

Tom Peters--brilliant, original, and perhaps the most inspiring and listened-to business thinker of our time--has a lot on his mind these days. And he wants to share it in The Circle of Innovation. The world of business is in a permanent state of flux, he argues, a state of chaos in which constant innovation is the only survival strategy--for the individual and for the organization. And he presents here a lifesaving handbook--both provocative and practical--designed to turn any organization into a perpetual innovation machine. In 400 seminars in 47 states and 22 countries in the last five years, Peters has reexamined, refined, and reinvented his views on innovation. Now he brings those seminars--and his passion--to the reader in a landmark book. It is meant, he writes, to both "terrify" and "enlighten." These are "times of matchless peril for those who fail to grasp the nettle...and times of matchless opportunity for those who do." To keep us alert, limber, and ready for action, he provokes and cajoles in chapter after chapter. Among his institutions and revelations: We Are All Michelangelos. He shows how to transform every "jobholder" into a full-fledged businessperson. All Value Comes from the Professional Services. How to convert sluggish staff units into Vital Centers of Intellectual Capital Accumulation. The System is the Solution. How to build great systems--which go far beyond nuts and bolts. Create Waves of Lust. Quality is not the automatic advantage it recently was. There is a pressing need to reverse the rising tide of product and service "commoditization." Tommy Hilfiger Knows. In a crowded marketplace, branding is far more important than ever before. It's a Woman's World. How to capitalize on the fact that women purchase/are purchasing agents for well over half of U.S. commercial and consumer goods. Little Things Are the Only Things. As the Blight of Sameness encroaches on market after market, design is often the best tool in services or manufacturing for sustainable differentiation. We're Here to Live Life Out Loud. Why transformational leaders of the future must have laser-like focus, tell the truth, and live on the lunatic fringe. The hallmarks of Tom Peters legend are an insatiable curiosity, an agile intellect, a pragmatic perspective, and an uncanny ability to gauge the global zeitgeist. These qualities are all brought to bear as Peters sets out to engage, enrage, and ultimately empower his readers, amid forces that are reshaping not only business but every aspect of human experience.

In clear language, The Innovation Mandate shows leaders a step-by-step process to continually generate great ideas, implement them, and maximize their value to benefit both customers and investors. In today’s ultracompetitive marketplace, the difference between success and failure is innovation. From small entrepreneurial startups to global Fortune 500 companies, innovation--the steady flow of new ideas--drives sustained success. It allows a company to introduce new products and services, effectively connect with customers, sharpen the supply chain, efficiently manage finances, and hire and retain the best people. Without a steady stream of new ideas, even the best company will slow down, atrophy, lose market share, hemorrhage customers, and eventually close or be sold. The Innovation Mandate offers a clear and straightforward pathway to profitable innovation. It demystifies the concept, making it easy to understand, implement, and measure. The book centers around three simple concepts: innovation generates profits; innovation, in the form of new, profitable ideas, can come from anywhere; and identifying, harnessing, evaluating, and implementing these new ideas cannot be left to chance. Additionally, the book offers a five-point checklist to ensure your company is innovation ready.