Innovation and Entrepreneurship: Practice and Principles (Hardcover)

~ Peter Ferdinand Drucker (Author) "Innovation is the specific tool of entrepreneurs, the means by which they exploit change as an opportunity for a different business or a different service..." (more)
Key Phrases: specialty skill niche, entrepreneurial judo, entrepreneurial bank, United States, World War, New York (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"A remarkable book about the economic futre of the United States." -- --National Review

"A remarkable book about the economic future of the United States." -- National Review

"By far the most trenchant analysis of a phenomenon that, if the author is correct, may be the key to our economic growth and continued prosperity." -- New Times

"Drucker believes entrepreneurship is not only possible in all institutions, it is essential to their survival. Just how to manage entrepreneurship is what thisnew book is all about." -- Venture

"Far from being dated, Peter Drucker's Innovation and Entrepreneurship has survived the past decade in considerably better shape than many Fortune 500 companies that ignored its lessons...Thoughtful, concise and useful." -- Technology Review

"If you read only one book on management this year make it Innovation and Entrepreneurship by Peter F. Drucker." -- D & B Reports

"Our most enduring commentator on the practice of management and the economic institutions of society." -- Business Week --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Description

Innovation and Entrepreneurship deals with 'what, when and why'; with policies and decisions; opportunities and risks, structures and strategies; staffing, compensation and rewards. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 277 pages
• Publisher: Harpercollins; 1st edition (April 1985)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060154284
• ISBN-13: 978-0060154288
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 5.8 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (26 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #969,092 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

51 of 53 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great book for guidance on trying to identify opportunities, August 16, 2001

By	Peter Hupalo (MN United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Innovation and Entrepreneurship (Paperback)

Drucker's recurring theme is that good entrepreneurship is usually market-focused and market-driven.

Drucker gives us guidelines for identifying innovative opportunity. For example, unexpected successes or unexpected failures within an industry often point to opportunity. Drucker also suggests that innovative opportunity exists where there is "an internal incongruity within the rhythm or the logic of a process" or a process need.

As a great example, Drucker tells us the story of William Conner, a salesman to the medical industry who decided he wanted to start his own company. Conner went out and spoke with surgeons about the problems and difficulties the surgeons faced.

While talking with surgeons, Conner learned that the process for cataract surgery was generally routine and easy, except there was one incongruity making the surgery difficult and unpleasant for physicians. During the surgery, surgeons had to cut one ligament which involved some risk.

With research Conner learned that there was an enzyme that dissolved this ligament. Conner also learned that new methods of storage could preserve this enzyme allowing it to be used in surgery. After patenting his compound, Conner quickly captured a niche market providing his compound to surgeons performing cataract surgery. No longer did they need to cut the ligament. They could dissolve it. With process need, the market already exists for the innovation. Drucker notes this is a relatively low-risk type of entrepreneurship.

While process need is a great area of entrepreneurial innovation, Drucker also suggests demographics may provide opportunities. I'm more dubious of this. Even though we may know how the population will change in ten years, capitalizing on this change isn't easy. Further, most entrepreneurs already tend to be focused on a particular industry or market and large-scale demographic changes wouldn't induce them to change their company's focus. Plus, there are entrepreneurial opportunities even in declining industries.

Sometimes, there is a dissonance between reality and the perception of reality in an industry. This may offer innovative opportunities, according to Drucker.

For example, Drucker mentions the evolution of the ship container industry. While established shipping companies focused on cutting transit time and cost by making ocean-going ships faster and more cost effective, this really wasn't the key. Ships were already very efficient in transit.

Rather, the real problem with the shipping industry was the loading and unloading of cargo, which kept ships in port and tied up valuable harbor space. When the shipping container was developed, it could be pre-loaded on land before the ship arrived. The pre-loaded container could then quickly be loaded onto the ship when the ship arrived in port. This made ocean transit much more cost effective and efficient. Drucker notes that the big cost of ocean transit was having ships held up in port, effectively tying up a capital asset without being able to utilize its full earnings capability.

Drucker discusses entrepreneurial management, claiming three keys to building a successful new organization are:
--having a market focus
--financial foresight, i.e., cash flow budgeting and planning for capital needs
--assembling a top management team

Other topics covered in "Innovation and Entrepreneurship" include creative imitation, entrepreneurial judo, and filling a specialized, ecological niche. "Innovation and Entrepreneurship" provides great insight into seeking entrepreneurial opportunities.

Peter Hupalo, author of "Thinking Like An Entrepreneur."

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Forget about that MBA - buy this book and read it!, February 19, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Innovation and Entrepreneurship (Paperback)

This is my pick for the best business book of the 20th century. I have read this book three times, have taken extensive notes on it, and still learn a great deal with each re-reading. Peter Drucker has written many excellent business books, but this one shines. Unlike other books with "entrepreneurship" and "innovation" in their titles, this book does not go through the mechanics of setting or running up a business, but instead focuses on the essence of good business planning and practice.

16 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Lays down the foundation for serious entrepreneurship, August 30, 2000

By	Gregory McMahan (Tottori, Japan) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Innovation and Entrepreneurship (Paperback)

With the publication of this book, which goes all the way back to the mid-eighties, Drucker has set the standard for serious entrepreneurship. Drucker tells the reader that innovation and entrepreneurship go hand in hand, and that both innovation and entrepreneurship can be practiced by large and small companies.

Using a plethora of available case studies, Drucker shows how many companies large and small, known and unknown, have successfully implemented entrepreneurial practices. Drucker tells the reader how to go about implementing an entrepreneurial culture, and more importantly, what not to do when trying to develop such an outlook and culture in the organization.

Drucker identifies seven sources of innovation, and explains very clearly how to go about sowing the seeds of and nurturing an innovation. He then lays down the principles of entrepreneurship, and gives the reader some entrepreneurial strategies. Throughout the text, he gives both the pluses and the minuses of his ideas.

This book, first published in 1985, was way ahead of the curve. It literally predicted the profound effects of the IT revolution, coined the concept of lifelong learning, and identified the pivotal role of sound managerial practices in entrepreneurship and the new venture. Those of us who are active participants in the 'New Economy' should sit up and take notice of this book.

These days, it is very fashionable to call oneself an 'entrepreneur', but only Drucker has a clear concept of what an entrepreneur really is. Any person who wants to practice serious entrepreneurship, whether they work for a big company or are involved in a new venture, must read this book.