Grabbing Lightning-Building a Capability for Breakthrough Innovation

Grabbing Lightning-Building a Capability for Breakthrough Innovation; Gina C. O'Connor, Richard Leifer, Albert S. Paulson, Lois S. Peters; Jossey-Bass, San Francisco, CA; 2008; 332pp., U.S. $29.95, Canada, $35.99. The subject matter of this book is drawn from a study of Breakthrough Innovation practices at several major corporations over a period of 11 years. The difference between this study and several others is that it was carried out in "real time," as opposed to being historical. The authors, who are currently at, or have retired from, the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute's Lally School of Management and Technology, studied the institution and progression of Breakthrough Innovation systems and tried to determine best practices for success or failure. As well as support from the companies studied, the Industrial Research Institute played an important part in identifying willing participants and acting as a sounding board for ideas and concepts. The authors conclude that a Breakthrough Innovation function must not be a "bolt-on" to an existing company structure but must become a part of the culture, as did Total Quality Management, and be an integral part of the company structure. It must be supported at the highest level of the organization and must have continuity. It must be closely aligned with the company's strategic intent and vision. The company has to understand that this function operates under different rules than other company organizations, in that it cannot be tightly structured, it must take risks to be successful, and the metrics/rewards need to be different. The authors have done a good job in identifying that for a company to be successful at introducing Breakthrough Innovation products or processes to the market there are three phases: Discovery, Incubation and Acceleration (DNA!). Companies often have one or two of these phases, but all three are necessary for success. Each of these phases requires a different skill set and different timing. Management of a Breakthrough Innovation function is demanding and stressful. The person given this task must be of senior level with excellent management skills, lots of mavericks to control, and excellent political skills; he/she needs to promote the function throughout the organization, protect it and procure resources. Because this function operates under different norms than the rest of the organization, it is extremely important that the value of the function be consistently emphasized throughout the organization. This value can come in many different forms. The obvious one is a brand-new-to-the-market product or process, but others include extension of product platforms, knowledge for incremental additions to existing product lines, improved company morale, and increased credibility to customers, existing and new. …