Customer Reviews

Leading for Innovation: And Organizing For Results

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Some 23 experts on management from academia and the private sector share their ideas on how you can take that bloated bureaucracy and turn it into a nimble and innovative machine. The book offers no quick fixes, as illustrated by the authors' observation that innovation is a culture, and not an event. Of special interest is the included list of practices that squelch innovation. We [...] recommend this book, which was inspired by management science pioneer Peter F. Drucker, for executives and all devoted students of the management arts.

Most collected volumes have a few good essays and then you can take or leave the rest. But all of the essays in this book are more than worth the price of the whole book. I was blown away by the depth of wisdom and insight in this collection. You get Charles Handy, Margaret Wheatley, Clayton Christensen, Jim Collins, and Rosabeth Moss Kanter.

I'm always pressed for time and I loved how each one of these essays offered me something I could use in my daily work. There are so many things that can get in the way of being an effective leader and this book helped me think in new ways and look at my organization-an myself-in a new way.

I get the Drucker Foundation's journal, Leader to Leader, and always get great stuff out of it. This collection met all of the expectations I had of a book from the Drucker Foundation.

The Drucker Foundation has done it again. Gathered a remarkable collection of thought leaders (see the list below) and asked them to write on a critical issue -- leading innovation.

Each chapter is short and easy to absorb, but the collection provides a powerful set of ideas about how leaders can make innovation happen in their organization, whether it's a business, a nonprofit, or a government.

Get a copy for yourself, and one for your boss!

International Thought leaders
James Burke, Jim Collins, Arie de Geus, Max De Pree, Charles Handy, Margaret J. Wheatley

Academics
Clayton M. Christensen (Harvard Business School), Howard Gardner & Kim Barberich (Harvard School of Education), Rosabeth Moss Kanter (Harvard Business School), Dorothy Leonard (Harvard Business School), Henry Mintzberg (McGill University), Jeffrey Pfeffer (Stanford Business School), Walter Swap (Tufts University) Dave Ulrich (University of Michigan)

Corporate leaders
John Kao (Idea Factory), Robert E. Knowling, Jr. (Internet Access Technologies), Ann Livermore (Hewlett-Packard), Bill Pollard (ServiceMaster), David S. Pottruck (Charles Schwab), Daniel Vasella (Novartis)

Consultants
M. Kathryn Clubb, Marshall Goldsmith

Government
William J. Bratton (former Chief of NYPD), Stephen Goldsmith (former mayor of Indianapolis)

Leading for Innovation was the core text in a Master of Science course taken by this reviewer. Innovation is in many ways an intangible quality that resists strict scientific definition. There are no pure techniques that have been identified that will translate from organization to organization with predictably positive results.

However, there are certain characteristics that tend to create an environment more conducive to innovative results.

In moving in that direction the editors arrange in the book in 4 primary sections:

1. Leading the People Who Make Innovation Happen.
2. Creating an Environment that Encourages Innovation.
3. Changing How You Think About Leadership and Innovation.
4. The Practise of Innovation.

Every section presents several stand alone essays that come from very diverse backgrounds and yet tie into the primary theme for each section. Most present some insight or nuggets that can be gleaned and applicable in any organization.

Therein lies the value to this compendium. This is not a book attempting to provide "the" answer, but rather one that skirts the perimeter and makes several forays in from which the reader can take the information and tie it into their own particulat situation.

Overall, despite having been on the market for more than several years, this information is still current, relevant and will be helpful to most innovation leaders.

5 stars.

Bart Breen

Excellent compilation on Leadership attributes for innovation and is a collection of well written articles which made me think and connect to a real world phenomenon. I enjoy reading Peter Drucker's books and the content of the book has Peter Drucker's flavor to it. The Clarity and style of this book is truly outstanding.

I enjoyed the format used to present the various segments by different authors. The text is well organized and illustrated.

I just started the class not even a week ago so I haven't gotten through the book to give that great of a review however I can say that it is well written through the first two chapters. As an academic scholar, if the author can keep a student interested and provide well written content the first two chapters then it is fair to say that the rest of the book is well written. I would like to come back and finish this review however I won't be able to. I will leave with the note that I have a Shelfari web site and I will be posting on it the further I advance in chapters.