Innovating the Corporation: Creating Value for Customers and Shareholders

Innovation is not about coming up with great ideas. It's about having the mindset and process in place to bring great ideas to fruition. That's exactly what this book gives you...not just abstract theory, but tangible recommendations for you to implement now. While everyone talks about innovation, this book can actually help your company achieve it.

There are so many good ideas in this book that it's difficult to focus on just one or two, but here's an attempt. M & A is one way to achieve growth, but somewhere along the way you still have to create something of value--innovative new products or services--if your organization is going to survive. The authors properly emphasize the importance of creating the right mindset and culture. Without the right attitude toward innovation, the merger or acquisition won't work. In the simplest terms, two wrongs don't make a right:Two un-inspired, un-innovative companies don't become magically transformed by a combination. The authors lay out practical guidelines for making an innovative spirit an essential driving force in an organization's culture.The authors also show how to create the kinds of large-scale frameworks that larger organizations need and how to lead and manage those frameworks creatively in order to grow the organization productively. In particular they show practical and useful ways to measure, and therefore manage, innovation at both the platform and individual project levels.And all of this is done with a minimum of jargon and a great wealth of real-world examples and success stories. This book unquestionably is valuable reading for every Fortune 1000 executive--and probably for quite a few other corporate leaders farther down the corporate food chain as well.

This book claims to be mostly for big corporations. I can see why they play that up. But I own a small company and most of the ideas are useful for my situation too. It is especially helpful in showing what to focus on, how to think about innovation in my company, and how to make a program work for me. Considering all the hype and overpromising out there, it's nice to run across something that delivers on its promise and then goes even one better.