  | Book Details Title: Fearless Innovation: Going Beyond the Buzzword to Continuously Drive Growth, Improve the Bottom Line, and Enact Change |
Book DescriptionFrom the Inside Flap “Innovation” is surely on track to become one of the most overused and meaningless buzzwords of the decade. Yet, everyone agrees that successful innovation is critical to our survival, growth, and prosperity. It’s the thing that every leader demands, yet many don’t understand why they need it, or even what it is. Despite the real competitive threat, many organizations, big and small, let the bureaucracy maintain the status quo by “celebrating” innovation, instead of truly welcoming it. So what is innovation, exactly, and how can leaders stop giving mere lip service to this crucial concept and start putting it into practice to achieve tangible results? Fearless Innovation lays out the principles and practices that will separate those who will perish from those who will thrive. Readers won’t find business jargon, vague buzzwords, or meaningless flowcharts crowding the pages of Fearless Innovation. Instead, Alex Goryachev presents simple yet proven practices that can help transform any business into an innovation machine. Provocative case studies from across industries demonstrate how these principles translate into measurable impact in the real world. Read more From the Back Cover A practical, jargon-free innovation manifesto You can read plenty of books on innovation methodologies without really understanding what innovation is, let alone how to leverage it to transform your organization and deliver pragmatic results. By working with organizations around the globe – from startups to cities, universities to multinationals, Alex Goryachev has developed a profound philosophy of innovation. Fearless Innovation is his manifesto, and your guide to seeing through the hype to make innovation real. This book is not a methodology, but an all-encompassing guide that will empower you to identify the practical steps to realizing an innovation-focused organizational culture. Do you know why exactly your organization needs to innovate? What are the results you will achieve? Can you communicate your vision across the organization? What concrete actions will you take to move your organization into the future? Fearless Innovation contains the tools, guidelines, case studies, and action steps you need to answer these urgent questions and most importantly, deliver results. Read more About the Author ALEX GORYACHEV is managing director of Cisco’s global Co-Innovation Centers. He spearheads several award-winning international programs and initiatives to accelerate innovation – whether that impacts operations, businesses processes, or technology. Alex is an award-winning Silicon Valley veteran whose resume reads like a brief history of tech disruption. He is a sought-after speaker on innovation and a regular contributor to Forbes, Chief Executive Magazine, Information Week, and other leading media outlets. Read more Customers Review: In the Introduction, Alex Goryachev suggests, “It’s time to take a breath, step back, and truly begin to understand what innovation is and what it isn’t; how it can make a difference between surviving and thriving; and how it can be applied tyo more than just our day-to-day jobs, but also to the transformation of oyr businesses, our personal and professional success, and the improved conditions of our society and planet.” He begins to share this thoughts about these key issues in Chapter 1.One of his valuable insights is potential power and impact of what he characterizes as “pragmatic innovation.” That is, a concept — with a specific mindset and methodology — that requires gradual, steady progress, each step building on the previous one. It may seem counterintuitive, but this step-by-step process will get your product or service to market faster in the end, and with much better odds of success.”I agree with Thomas Edison — and presumably Goryachev does as well — that “vision without execution is hallucination.” The value of pragmatic innovation is measured in terns of nature and extent of its [begin italics] impact [end italics]. How well does it work? Given the alternatives, how much better is it? To what extent could it be scaled?Goryachev makes skillful use of several reader-friendly devices, notably seven mini-case studies that illustrate his key points. Also, a “Summary” section at the conclusion of each chapter that suggests the essence of the given material: its key consideration(s), required action, obstacle(s) to be overcome, and most important of all, results.These are among the passages of greatest interest and value to me, also listed to suggest the scope of Goryachev’s coverage:o From Buzzword to Reality (Pages xi-xii)o The three (worst) responses to change (5-8)o Know When to Take Action (14-16)o Mini-Case Study: LEGO (16-17)o Inclusion innovation teams (27-28 and 93-97)o Mini-Case Study: Wikimedia Foundation (40-41)o Metrics (45-64)o Mini-Case Study: Trip Advisor (61-63)o Disruption (69-84)o “Thinking Disruptively” (71-74)o Mini-Case Study: Dyson (81-82)o Silos (93-97)o Diversity in innovation teams (97-102)o Mini-Case Study: Cisco (102-105)o Co-innovation (111-129)o Mini-Case Study: IKEA (127-128)o Chief innovation officers (135-150)o Mini-Case Study: Bloomberg Philanthropies (148-149)o Communicating with employees (157-163)o Mini-Case Study: Instant Pot (169-170)Alex Goryachev concedes that “pragmatic innovation isn’t the sexiest term” but he believes, as do I, that “it best describes the process that is central to innovation: creating a bold vision and strategy, setting reasonable goals, and executing that vision and strategy in small, measurable milestones.”Long ago, Einstein insisted that thinking be “as simple as possible but no simpler.” He would be delighted by this no-nonsense guide to innovation. Almost all of the information, insights, and counsel can be of substantial benefit to almost anyone in almost any organization, whatever its size and nature may be. Bravo! | |
3 reviews