The Innovation Zone

For Steve Jobs and Bill Ford, Microsoft and 3M, a new business model of innovation has become the driving force behind their success. With strong leadership and a disciplined process, today’s leaders are creating more than great products—they are taking the role of innovation beyond R&D, placing it squarely at the center of the organization’s core competencies and changing the very nature of the customer experience. Packed with examples and stories about the way innovation takes place inside dozens of next-generation global organizations, The Innovation Zone takes a first-hand look behind the glitz of the latest gadgets to explore the methods, tools and behaviors that build increasing market value for the company, respect for the brand and long-term competitive dominance. This new playbook for developing and leading a culture of innovation debunks the traditional thinking that it all begins as a single invention or flash of insight. Instead, the author’s Innovation 2.0 framework, assessment tools and techniques and classic examples—from NASA and the space suit to the Sony Walkman and GM’s OnStar—demonstrate how the Seven Lessons of Innovation can be learned by any leader committed to creating a protected space where ideas are identified and evaluated, and championing the process throughout the organization.