The Innovator's Way: Essential Practices for Successful Innovation [Hardcover]

Peter J. Denning (Author), Robert Dunham (Author), John Seely Brown (Foreword)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 13, 2010

Innovation is the ruling buzzword in business today. Technology companies invest billions in developing new gadgets; business leaders see innovation as the key to a competitive edge; policymakers craft regulations to foster a climate of innovation. And yet businesses report a success rate of only four percent for innovation initiatives. Can we significantly increase our odds of success? In The Innovator's Way, innovation experts Peter Denning and Robert Dunham reply with an emphatic yes. Innovation, they write, is not simply an invention, a policy, or a process to be managed. It is a personal skill that can be learned, developed through practice, and extended into organizations. Denning and Dunham identify and describe eight personal practices that all successful innovators perform: sensing, envisioning, offering, adopting, sustaining, executing, leading, and embodying. Together, these practices can boost a fledgling innovator to success. Weakness in any of these practices, they show, blocks innovation. Denning and Dunham chart the path to innovation mastery, from individual practices to teams and social networks.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Denning and Dunham have set a new standard for the inquiry and practice of innovation. Their approach is fresh and revolutionary. Their eight practices are practical, wise, and usher in a new and much-needed perspective on the how of innovation. Standing on solid research and experience this book transcends theory and takes you to the practices that allow innovation to flower. The Innovator's Way belongs on every leader's desk." Richard Strozzi-Heckler, author of The Leadership Dojo

"Denning and Dunham have taken innovation out of the realm of mysterious abilities into a very concrete set of practices. The Innovator's Way is a well researched book that walks its talk." Julio Olalla, President and Founder, The Newfield Network

"Denning and Dunham make clear something I have been muddling through for decades. I wish I long ago had their checklist of eight practices of The Innovator's Way would have saved me a lot of wasted time." Bob Metcalfe, Ethernet inventor, 3Com founder, National Technology and Innovation Medalist

"Innovations (adopted inventions) become platforms for the next innovation. The World Wide Web could not have existed without the Internet and has itself now become the next platform for new innovations. This book amplifies the importance of adoption to turn invention into innovation." Vint Cerf, Chief Internet Evangelist, Google

"This book will directly appeal to all those involved with inventions, innovations, and research and development-including those in computer and information science areas, as well as business leaders responsible for organizational renewal through innovations." C.S. Arora Computing Reviews

"Truly innovative thinking about innovative thinking but it's the authenticity of the authors' experience that makes this book uniquely valuable and valuably unique." Michael Schrage, Research Fellow, MIT Sloan School Center for Digital Business

About the Author

Peter J. Denning is Distinguished Professor, Chair of the Computer Science Department, and Director of the Cebrowski Institute for Information Innovation and Superiority at the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California. He is the author of The Invisible Future, Talking Back to the Machine, Beyond Calculation, and other books.

Robert Dunham founded the Institute for Generative Leadership and the consulting company Enterprise Performance.

John Seely Brown is Former Chief Scientist, Xerox Corp and former director of its Palo Alto Research Center (PARC), and co-author of The Social Life of Information.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 464 pages
• Publisher: The MIT Press (August 13, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0262014548
• ISBN-13: 978-0262014540
• Product Dimensions: 6 x 0.9 x 9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #69,638 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #43 in Books > Business & Investing > Management & Leadership > Teams

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars FINALLY a book that is prescriptive about innovation October 27, 2010

By Adora Avalos

Format:Hardcover

There are many books out there that have the word "innovation" in the title. THIS one was satisfyingly different in that it actually took me through the process of innovation. Other books talked ABOUT it, and this one was prescriptive and applicable with every chapter. The authors are incredibly well versed on the topic, and bring a rigor that I was not expecting to find with the recent trend of "light business books." This book is certainly not light, it was informative and entertaining while giving practical step-by-step suggestions.
This was time well spent...I'm curious where the authors will go from here.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Daniel Paulin's Review of Denning and Dunham's "The Innovator's Way" May 8, 2011

By Arthur M. Diamond, Jr.

Format:Hardcover

Length: 9:42 Mins

Daniel Paulin's review was made as part of a critical review assignment for the Spring 2011 Economics of Technology seminar at the University of Nebraska at Omaha, taught by Art Diamond. (The course syllabus stated that part of the critical review assignment consisted of the making of a video recording of the review, and the posting of the review to Amazon.)

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A great roadmap for personal and professional growth March 7, 2011

By Brian Branagan, PMP

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

Over the past several years I've had an opportunity attend workshops with the authors and started learning these practices. They really work! They have helped me deliver projects in both a startup company and in a S&P 500 company.

As a PMI-certified Project Management Professional, I can tell you from my personal experience that these eight practices really work. They zero in on the essential outcomes that you have to achieve if you want your idea adopted into practice. All you need to do is make sure that certain conversations are happening.

For me, the simple beauty of these practices is that you don't have to spend a lifetime mastering them first before you can become successful. I was getting results almost immediately when I learned how to have conversations that secured reliable commitments.

Most people will discover that they have natural abilities in some of the innovation practices and may seem to be weak at two or three of them. That's why I really appreciated the checklist of actions I can take at the end of each chapter so I can focus my practice in those areas and improve. I don't need to be a master to succeed; I just need to be competent at the practice, which can happen in a month or so. The only effort needed is paying attention to how you're learning.

Sure, if you devote yourself to being a master of innovation and spend your lifetime at it, you will probably be able to do some amazing things that bring innovations to large numbers of people. But, as the authors point out, most innovations start in much smaller communities which are then "cross-appropriated" by others once the success of the innovation is established. This makes becoming an innovator something that is within the reach of anyone and doesn't require a lifetime to get there.

Another thing I like about this book is that the same eight practices define innovative teams, companies, and networks. You don't even need to be good at all eight. All you need to do is put the right team together -- and make sure they coordinate -- and your team can be successful at getting their ideas adopted into practice.

This approach is really empowering. With these practices, you can intentionally generate innovations!