Innovation: A Very Short Introduction: (Very Short Introductions)

What is innovation? How is innovation used in business? How can we use it to succeed? Innovation - the ways ideas are made valuable - makes an important contribution to economic and social development, and is an increasingly topical issue. Not so long ago, there were no information technologies, commercial airlines, or television companies. Our parents were born into a world very different to today's, where television had yet to be invented, and there was no penicillin or frozen food. When our grandparents were born there were no internal combustion engines, aeroplanes, cinemas, or radios. In the last 150 years our world has been transformed - largely in part due to innovation. This Very Short Introduction looks at what innovation is and why it affects us so profoundly. It examines how it occurs, who stimulates it, how it is pursued, and what its outcomes are, both positive and negative. Innovation is hugely challenging and failure is common, yet it is essential to our social and economic progress. Mark Dodgson and David Gann consider the extent to which our understanding of innovation developed over the past century and how it might be used to interpret the global economy we all face in the future. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.

Table of Contents:
Prologue 1: Josiah Wedgwood: The world's greatest entrepreneur 2: Joseph Schumpeter's gales of creative destruction 3: London's wobbly bridge: learning from failure 4: Stephanie Kwolek's new polymer: from labs to riches 5: Thomas Edison's organizational genius 6: A smarter planet? Further Reading

About the Author :
Mark Dodgson's research interests are in the areas of corporate strategies and govenment policies for technology and innovation. He has authored over 50 articles and book chapters, as well as written seven books. David Gann is responsible for a large portfolio of research in collaboration with firms in design, manufacturing, engineering, and construction. He is also co-Director of the EPSRC Innovation Studies Centre at Imperial College London.

Review :
Despite the difference in surnames, Mark Dodgson and I are brothers. I have known him and his faults all his life. How he wrote a book like this with David Gann I have no idea, but here it is, and a very good book too. It tells a fascinating story, and one of growing importance. The ability to innovate is both expected and valued in the worlds of science and the arts: here we read about its importance in the field of business, and about how vastly our lives have changed and continue to change because of the innovative talents of individuals, and the innovation strategies of forward-thinking companies. There is a great deal here to fascinate not only those who are professionally engaged in business, but everyone who takes an intelligent interest in how our world is managed. Innovation has always been fundamental to leadership, be it in the public or private arena. This insightful book teaches lessons from the successes of the past, and spotlights the challenges and the opportunities for innovation as we move from the industrial age to the knowledge economy.