Wikinomics: How Mass Collaboration Changes Everything

Book Description

In just the last few years, traditional collaboration—in a meeting room, a conference call, even a convention center—has been superseded by collaborations on an astronomical scale.

Today, encyclopedias, jetliners, operating systems, mutual funds, and many other items are being created by teams numbering in the thousands or even millions. While some leaders fear the heaving growth of these massive online communities, Wikinomics proves this fear is folly. Smart firms can harness collective capability and genius to spur innovation, growth, and success.

A brilliant guide to one of the most profound changes of our time, Wikinomics challenges our most deeply-rooted assumptions about business and will prove indispensable to anyone who wants to understand competitiveness in the twenty-first century.

Based on a $9 million research project led by bestselling author Don Tapscott, Wikinomics shows how masses of people can participate in the economy like never before. They are creating TV news stories, sequencing the human genome, remixing their favorite music, designing software, finding a cure for disease, editing school texts, inventing new cosmetics, or even building motorcycles. You'll read about:
• Rob McEwen, the Goldcorp, Inc. CEO who used open source tactics and an online competition to save his company and breathe new life into an old-fashioned industry.
• Flickr, Second Life, YouTube, and other thriving online communities that transcend social networking to pioneer a new form of collaborative production.
• Mature companies like Procter & Gamble that cultivate nimble, trust-based relationships with external collaborators to form vibrant business ecosystems.

An important look into the future, Wikinomics will be your road map for doing business in the twenty-first century.

Customer Reviews:

Great Book to Read.......2007-10-02

Wikinomics: How Mass Collaboration Changes Everything

As I refresh my professional career for the second decade of the 21st Century, I decided ro read this book, and I was not wrong. This is a most read book for everyone that's looking to stay relevant in the digital economy and the disrupting collaboration paradign. I highly recommeded.

Good, but not critical enough and scores high on the buzzword-meter.......2007-09-12

The book gives a quick tour of the new collaborative ways in which people aggregate and process information. It points out that collaboration can also be applied to produce new 'stuff', outside of software and even applying to manufacturing. It makes for interesting reading for people who a) know something about open source and want to know about its business implications and b) managers who don't know about open source/collaboration but would like to.

It is, imho, less interesting for those who want in-depth answers to the real thorny _business_ problems around open-source. I.e. How to make money at it, if you want to. It hints at important questions such as rewarding the community at large, not losing the family jewels as you open up, etc. Unfortunately, it never quite gets down to specific recommendations beyond "you have to find the right mix of proprietary vs. open source IP".

Not to criticize it overmuch. Wikinomics often jars your thinking with insightful nuggets. For example, it cites Goldcorp as the example of a mining company which opened up its secret prospection data to outsiders. Wikinomics, probably rightly, uses that as a counter-intuitive example of enlisting external help for a type of company that never shares that kind of data. Hmmm, why not share? If the prospection data applies to land on which only your company can operate, isn't that a pretty safe gamble? I don't know, really, but the point is that the anecdote makes you think of things differently. Same with IBM's success at getting a new OS (Linux)almost for free, while gathering goodwill from the community and genuinely collaborating. How far Big Blue's embarrassing anti-trust proceedings seem now...

Less helpful is Wikinomics' recurring use of cherry-picked anecdotes by sector, rather than a broad analysis of various businesses. First of all, it rarely compares its chosen 'smart companies' to their competitors. Yes, BMW is opening up. Does that make their cars any better? How is their stock doing? vs. Toyota? How is their reliability? How innovative are their cars?

Red Hat is a huge success story in Linux, but its dominance also highlights the relative failure of other Linux vendors. No explanation is given for that - network effects? first mover?

I would have welcomed some case studies of failures for big corporations in opening up. What caused those failures? What can be learned from them?

Google is also cited as a big example of openness. That is only partially true and could have served to highlight the necessary(?) split between proprietary information and public openness. Google opens up its APIs and the search is certainly free. I am a big fan myself. However, they have not chosen to release much code back to the community (cf. MapReduce) , mostly by sidestepping the GPL because they don't distribute their software. Their choice, and probably motivated by good business logic. Apple also walks a fine line between leveraging open source and keeping its business very much a secret.

This is just the kind of case studies Wikinomics could sink its teeth into, but it spends way too much time gushing over all the boundless possibilities of collaboration.

Conclusion: a good eye-opener but take it with a grain of salt. Note that my perspective is that of a developer interested in open source _and_ business profits.

An interesting read........2007-09-04

I liked this book, and it opened my eyes to many other "community-driven" technologies/companies. While I thought a lot of the ideas were very "common sense", it was well written, and had some great anecdotes. I recommend this book for anyone interested in social networking, building communities, etc.

The community is the company.......2007-09-02

Wikinomics is about opening your company to the world where communities come together, individuals share ideas, intelligence, peer produce, innovate; the communities are driven primarily by self-motivation or respect from peers. The idea is awesome; the authors are right that this is a new era; some of the most successful companies in the world use wikinomics; the most successful Internet companies are based upon it. The companies cost is dramatically cut, they become trustworthy, and individuals create what they want.

But the book is almost irritating to read. They paint a world where wikinomics is practically perfect, where the communities created by the company are utopian, and the companies who refuse the wikinomic ideology as evil. According to the authors, the companies that don't jump on the bandwagon will ultimately fail because they can't compete with speed and innovation that wikinomic companies can produce (compare wikipedia with any encyclopedia).

The reality is the communities created are often not egalitarian. Digg is a good example -- the community is driven by a faction of a top 100 users who control the front page content, any article or comment outside the digg mindset is quickly buried, and websites have been created where you can pay to get dugg.

In addition, the book ignores wikinomic companies who have failed completely or to a large extent (amapedia, a million penguins, la times wiki editorial, the thousands of 2.0 clones) and they give the reader no idea how to start a successful web 2.0 company. The book is also too long and each chapter adds little to the last. The entire book is read in the first chapter.

While I feel companies opening up to the world is an awesome concept and many of the ideas in the book are right, I would have preferred a more balanced book which makes this book unsatisfying. In the end, I still question whether wikinomics is just a bubble going to burst.

Required reading for Strategic Thinkers.......2007-08-29

In this interesting and example filled book, Authors Tapscott & Williams explore how convergence of the New Web (technology) and the Net Generation (demographics) have reduced transaction costs within the knowledge economy (or the knowledge element of the industrial economy) to create or allow for mass collaboration. Citing four (4) principles underlying this mass collaboration - openness, peering, sharing, and acting globally - they identify seven (7) trends that are transforming existing business models and challenging leaders to create entirely new business models.
1. Peer Production - building intellectual property bit by bit thru open source
2. Ideagoras - buying and selling solutions to problems / research
3. Prosumers - new product design by consumers/users (think hackers)
4. New Alexandrians - sharing science / thinking on a massive scale
5. Platforms for participation - global stage for partnering to create value and build new businesses
6. Global plant floors - transport technology across borders/organizations for local fab labs
7. Wiki workplaces - really workspaces, where playgrounds replace more traditional business processes
While one may argue with the distinctions between these seven, somewhat overlapping trends, the authors provide ample examples to stimulate thinking and help the reader see how this new world might be integrated into current business models or force us to create new ones. This book is recommended as required reading for anyone responsible for strategic thinking - for themselves or for their business.

The Art of Innovation: Lessons in Creativity from IDEO, America's Leading Design Firm

Average customer rating:

Kudos to Ideos
Innovation for All
Innovation and creativity "how-to" guide
El arte de innovar estilo IDEO
Skip it and go right to 10 Faces

The Art of Innovation: Lessons in Creativity from IDEO, America's Leading Design Firm
Tom Kelley , Tom Peters , and Tom Peters
Manufacturer: Currency
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Strategy & Competition | Management & Leadership | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 0385499841
Release Date: 2001-01-16

Amazon.com

IDEO, the world's leading design firm, is the brain trust that's behind some of the more brilliant innovations of the past 20 years--from the Apple mouse, the Polaroid i-Zone instant camera, and the Palm V to the "fat" toothbrush for kids and a self-sealing water bottle for dirt bikers. Not surprisingly, companies all over the world have long wondered what they could learn from IDEO, to come up with better ideas for their own products, services, and operations. In this terrific book from IDEO general manager Tom Kelley (brother of founder David Kelley), IDEO finally delivers--but thankfully not in the step-by-step, flow-chart-filled "process speak" of most how-you-can-do-what-we-do business books. Sure, there are some good bulleted lists to be found here--such as the secrets of successful brainstorming, the qualities of "hot teams," and, toward the end, 10 key ingredients for "How to Create Great Products and Services," including "One Click Is Better Than Two" (the simpler, the better) and "Goof Proof" (no bugs).

But The Art of Innovation really teaches indirectly (not to mention enlightens and entertains) by telling great stories--mainly, of how the best ideas for creating or improving products or processes come not from laboriously organized focus groups, but from keen observations of how regular people work and play on a daily basis. On nearly every page, we learn the backstories of some now-well-established consumer goods, from recent inventions like the Palm Pilot and the in-car beverage holder to things we nearly take for granted--like Ivory soap (created when a P&G worker went to lunch without turning off his soap mixer, and returned to discover his batch overwhipped into 99.44 percent buoyancy) and Kleenex, which transcended its original purpose as a cosmetics remover when people started using the soft paper to wipe and blow their noses. Best of all, Kelley opens wide the doors to IDEO's vibrant, sometimes wacky office environment, and takes us on a vivid tour of how staffers tackle a design challenge: they start not with their ideas of what a new product should offer, but with the existing gaps of need, convenience, and pleasure with which people live on a daily basis, and that IDEO should fill. (Hence, a one-piece children's fishing rod that spares fathers the embarrassment of not knowing how to teach their kids to fish, or Crest toothpaste tubes that don't "gunk up" at the mouth.)

Granted, some of their ideas--like the crucial process of "prototyping," or incorporating dummy drafts of the actual product into the planning, to work out bugs as you go--lend themselves more easily to the making of actual things than to the more common organizational challenge of streamlining services or operations. But, if this big book of bright ideas doesn't get you thinking of how to build a better mousetrap for everything from your whole business process to your personal filing system, you probably deserve to be stuck with the mousetrap you already have. --Timothy Murphy

Book Description

IDEO, the widely admired, award-winning design and development firm that brought the world the Apple mouse, Polaroid's I-Zone instant camera, the Palm V, and hundreds of other cutting-edge products and services, reveals its secrets for fostering a culture and process of continuous innovation.

There isn't a business in America that doesn't want to be more creative in its thinking, products, and processes. At many companies, being first with a concept and first to market are critical just to survive. In The Art of Innovation, Tom Kelley, general manager of the Silicon Valley based design firm IDEO, takes readers behind the scenes of this wildly imaginative and energized company to reveal the strategies and secrets it uses to turn out hit after hit.

IDEO doesn't buy into the myth of the lone genius working away in isolation, waiting for great ideas to strike. Kelley believes everyone can be creative, and the goal at his firm is to tap into that wellspring of creativity in order to make innovation a way of life. How does it do that? IDEO fosters an atmosphere conducive to freely expressing ideas, breaking the rules, and freeing people to design their own work environments. IDEO's focus on teamwork generates countless breakthroughs, fueled by the constant give-and-take among people ready to share ideas and reap the benefits of the group process. IDEO has created an intense, quick-turnaround, brainstorm-and-build process dubbed "the Deep Dive."

In entertaining anecdotes, Kelley illustrates some of his firm's own successes (and joyful failures), as well as pioneering efforts at other leading companies. The book reveals how teams research and immerse themselves in every possible aspect of a new product or service, examining it from the perspective of clients, consumers, and other critical audiences.

Kelley takes the reader through the IDEO problem-solving method:

>Carefully observing the behavior or "anthropology" of the people who will be using a product or service

>Brainstorming with high-energy sessions focused on tangible results

>Quickly prototyping ideas and designs at every step of the way

>Cross-pollinating to find solutions from other fields

>Taking risks, and failing your way to success

>Building a "Greenhouse" for innovation

IDEO has won more awards in the last ten years than any other firm of its kind, and a full half-hour Nightline presentation of its creative process received one of the show's highest ratings. The Art of Innovation will provide business leaders with the insights and tools they need to make their companies the leading-edge, top-rated stars of their industries.

Customer Reviews:

Kudos to Ideos.......2007-08-28

Excellent book with good insights. If you are in the business of innovation, this is one book that you shouldn't miss. I also recommend EIGHTSTORM: 8-Step Brainstorming for Innovative Managers.

Innovation for All.......2007-06-29

Through anecdotes, Kelley demonstrates how stumbling blocks to innovation can be overcome. He shows an appreciation for experimentation, momentum, and embraces failure as a true path to knowing. Failed prototypes are wonderful learning tools. Kelley's perspective keeps spirits high. He leaves much of the innovative process open ended - nearly encouraging innovation on innovating.

Interestingly, Kelley notes how medicine is becoming personalized and that the future can not be perfectly predicted. Still, he says we must aim at it. This was an important nugget of wisdom for me, a research coordinator at a think-tank-like public health research group, the Healthcare Innovation and Technology lab at Columbia University. On a daily basis we deal with innovation to improve healthcare and need to effectively innovate. Given that we tread a very specific territory - health and technology - and that Kelley's book could be so useful to us, it is obvious that he really has something to offer to everyone.

Innovation and creativity "how-to" guide.......2007-06-07

The Art of Innovation explains many of IDEO's creative techniques and in so doing paints a picture of the physical context in which all that creativity occurs, namely IDEO's office, your average geek's idea of paradise brimming with high-tech prototypes, foam cubes, "tech box" caddies with giant Post-Its and coloring pens ... and yes, it does look more like a playschool than Dilbertesque gray cubicle-land. Teamwork, friendship and a shared passion for helping clients innovate is clearly what binds people together and stimulates their creativity, while a supportive and forgiving management structure doesn't just tolerate weirdness, it actively encourages it. IDEO seems to have taken Tom Peters' advice "If you want to do weird, hire weird people" to the next level. In IDEO-land, "normal" people would probably stand out a mile.

Two creative techniques - brainstorming and prototyping - are particularly well described, in a way that encourages the reader to try something different. I've learnt some new tricks and even started applying them since reading the book.

El arte de innovar estilo IDEO.......2007-06-01

IDEO ha hecho de la innovación un arte, el cual es un proceso sistematizado, con pasos muy definidos, congruentes y faciles de llevar por las personas que conforman dentro sus empresas los equipos de innovacion y diseño.

Skip it and go right to 10 Faces.......2007-03-19

I recently read both this book and the Ten Faces of Innovation. My recomendation is to skip this book. It is written more like an advertisement for IDEO and was left feeling like Tom has crossed the line into arrogance. If you read it as a stand alone book there is a lot of useful information. However most of the concepts are covered in Ten Faces. If you have time read both books but if time is of the essence then jump right into the Ten Faces, you won't be disappointed.

Average customer rating:

Cute but useful book!
Whack-tastic
Yes, great pack!
Truly Useful
Lots of great ideas!

Creative Whack Pack
Roger Von Oech
Manufacturer: U.S. Games Systems
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Cards

General | Puzzles & Games | Entertainment | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 0880793589

Product Description

An illustrated deck of 64 creative thinking strategies that will whack you out of habitual thought patterns and enable you to look at your life and actions in a fresh way. Use the cards alone or with others to seek innovative solutions to issues. Created by best-selling author von Oech, the cards have been used by many organizations, including NASA, in strategy development and problem solving. Complete with detailed instructions.

Customer Reviews:

Cute but useful book!.......2007-10-08

This book comes with poker-like cards to remind you think different all the time. You will find that it is the small book that you will reread again and again! To me, it is just like a tool. Every one should read to break the ordinary thoughts.

Whack-tastic.......2007-09-27

When you're stuck, this helps get you unstuck. The cards force you to change your train of thought - helpful for when you can't seem to think of anything new. I write a lot of press releases on somewhat mundane and repetitive topics, and the whack pack has inspired some new ideas and made the task less tedious.

Yes, great pack!.......2007-04-12

It's amazing that this product gets five straight stars from all the reviewers. Nothing is worth a perfect score like that, but this product does. This is truly an amazing product. I used these cards all the time (well, maybe not all the time, but when I need a little boost of creativity, these cards really help.) I've had these cards in my arsenal for over ten years. I have not lost a card yet.

The author asks you to challenge the rules and ask questions. As President and Creative Director of a highly creative web design company called AUDIN Web Design, these cards resonate deeply in my creativity. These cards are rule breakers.

The author challenges you to:

"Think like a kid"
"Change its name"
"Look somewhere else"
"Listen to you dreams"
"Check you timing"
"Exaggerate"
And finally:
"Be whacky"

Bottom Line: If you don't like to read (a book) and you want to stimulate your mind, get these cards. They will totally change the way you think about creative (and maybe not so creative) problems.

Truly Useful .......2006-12-03

I think everyone should have a pack of this cards because everyone sometimes feels stuck with a problem to the point that he is unaware of other possible solutions. The ideas in this pack help to look at the perplexing issue from many different perspectives. Sooner or later one may see the light, an open door, most likely many, many doors leading to numerous possible solutions. These cards are a valuable tool for brainstorming ideas, prompting the person to think of ideas that might have never crossed his mind otherwise. The wonderful think about coming out with creative ideas is that you also have lots of laughs while you're doing it because you begin to think of wild, whacky and outrageously fun things.

Lots of great ideas!.......2006-10-31

I've never seen so many great ideas, and tools to break-through creative thinking!

The War of Art: Break Through the Blocks and Win Your Inner Creative Battles

Average customer rating:

Exactly whats needed to move out of fear and doubt...
Resistance is so powerful! Read this to get through it in writing.
More Guilt of the Right Kind
Like a cup of coffee - works but doesn't last
Decent book

The War of Art: Break Through the Blocks and Win Your Inner Creative Battles
Steven Pressfield
Manufacturer: Grand Central Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Creativity | Self-Help | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

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Rich Dad's Before You Quit Your Job: 10 Real-Life Lessons Every Entrepreneur Should Know About Building a Multimillion-Dollar Business (Rich Dad's)

ASIN: 0446691437

Book Description

DO YOU:-+dream about writing the Great American Novel?-+regret not finishing your paintings, poems, or screenplays?-+want to start a business or charity?-+wish you could start dieting or exercising today?-+hope to run a marathon someday?If "yes," then you need#133;THE WAR OF ARTNow, in this powerful, straight-from-the-hip examination of the internal obstacles to success, bestselling author Steven Pressfield shows readers how to identify, defeat, and unlock the inner barriers to creativity. THE WAR OF ART is an inspirational, funny, well-aimed kick in the pants guaranteed to galvanize every would-be artist, visionary, or entrepreneur.Steven Pressfield enjoys great international success as a bestselling novelist.But in order to reach the top he had to do a lot of work to fight the inner demons that told him he couldn't make it.THE WAR OF ART is his challenge to creative block, and his succinct, straight-from-the-hip style will help every reader unleash their personal ambitions, be they literary, artistic, or business-minded.According to Pressfield, the internal obstacle to success is Resistance.Resistance is the difference between the life you lead and the life you want to lead, and can take many forms.Pressfield shows readers how to identify and defeat Resistance at every turn and challenges them to change their amateurish, unsuccessful habits into a professional attitude that can get the job done. Finally, Sun Tzu for the soul!Inspirational, funny, and a great kick in the pants, THE WAR OF ART is the perfect book for anybody who had a goal circumvented by life and circumstance:which is to say, you and everybody you've ever met.

Customer Reviews:

Exactly whats needed to move out of fear and doubt..........2007-10-03

The main theme in this book is we all have a talent, a gift, a purpose. To develop our unlimited potential requires awareness of the big R, resistance.

The author opens up and in short, concise, easy to read chapters shows us what stops us. Our excuses are all exposed for what they are in an instant. This book is in your face, no hold back, tells it like it is. Sure we are a work in progress, we all have unhealed, undervalued parts of ourselves but are we going to use that as an excuse to stop developing our potential?

Creating anything requires working with the good, the bad, and the ugly while moving forward. Die trying, taking action, and you will have lived a good life.

This book got me more determined to take action. I must do verses just think about what I want. Action takes me closer to my goal.

If doubt and fear stop you from becoming who you know you really are this book will be a great kick in the behind. He nails every excuse under the sun made for not following through. Excuses have no where to hide as you turn each page. In the end you will be recharged and ready to move forward.

The War of Art feeds your energy to make life happen. Procrastinate no more.

Resistance is so powerful! Read this to get through it in writing........2007-10-01

A friend of mine reccommended this book and I am glad he did. I am a writer at heart even though I never knew I was, this book gave me the courage to start writing and overcome the resistance he talks about. No matter what your resistance is you can get some great methods and insights from Pressfield. Put it this way, I am a note taker and highlighter with post-it flags, this book has dozens protruding through the edges!

More Guilt of the Right Kind.......2007-09-27

Pressfield's book has been extremely helpful in getting me to sit down at my table and write. It is too bad that the book seems so poorly and haphazardly written. The beginning, in which he defines resistance, was useful, but after that I wanted more depth and found many of the things he said contradicted one another. I found the sections on angels and muses especially didactic and opaque. He never answers the question of why we create resistance for ourselves. Is it because we are afraid of success? That seems a little simple to me, but he doesn't even offer that as an answer. Pressfield shows us a landscape and points out the mountains and lakes in great detail, but he doesn't give us any understanding of the glaciers and tectonic forces that shaped these landmarks, leaving us ultimately unsatisfied. Perhaps a good complement to this book would be Flow.

Like a cup of coffee - works but doesn't last.......2007-09-14

Nothing completely mindblowing or enlightening really, but definitely energizing and motivating for anyone in a lull, particularly creative folk. It's like a cup of coffee or popping a speed pill - gets you pumped for sure, but of short-lived effect.

Decent book.......2007-08-16

This was an enjoyable book to read. Seems the better self-help books have a simple premise: you have to actually put in the effort and do the work. Just being a couch potato reading self-help books doesn't really work. Its like reading Men's Health and expecting to get in shape without actually going to the gym. I didn't find the book to offer life-changing advice, but it was still a good read. Remember...it takes effort, not just the want of effort.

The Elegant Solution: Toyota's Formula for Mastering Innovation

Average customer rating:

The Elegant Solution
Nice stories, little new content
Good nuggets, lots of fluff, some really sloppy thinking
"Keep it lean. Scale it back, make it simple, and let it flow."
Easy Reading

The Elegant Solution: Toyota's Formula for Mastering Innovation
Matthew E. May
Manufacturer: Free Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Strategy & Competition | Management & Leadership | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

General | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Japan | Asia | History | Subjects | Books

Industry | Automotive | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Foreign | Automotive | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0743290178

Book Description

"Toyota is becoming a double threat: the world's finest manufacturer and a truly great innovator . . . that formula, a combination of production prowess and technical innovation, is an unbeatable recipe for success."

-- Fortune, February 2006

For the first time, an insider reveals the formula behind Toyota's unceasing quest to innovate and do more with less, a philosophy that has made it one of the ten most profitable companies in the world (and worth more than GM, Ford, DaimlerChrysler, and Honda combined). In a rare look into Toyota's ability to consistently achieve breakthroughs that outperform the competition, The Elegant Solution explains what Toyota associates have known all along: it's not about the cars. Rather, Toyota's astounding success is just the visible result of a hidden creative process that begins with a seven-digit number.

One million. That's how many new ideas the Toyota organization implements every year. These ideas come from every level of the organization -- from the factory floors to the corporate suites. And organizations all over the world want to learn how it's done. Now senior University of Toyota advisor Matthew May shows how any company can achieve an environment of everyday innovation and discover the kinds of elegant solutions that hold the power to change the game forever. World-class benchmarks like Lexus, Prius, Scion -- even Toyota's vaunted production system -- are simply shining examples of elegant solutions.

A tactical playbook for team-based innovation, The Elegant Solution delivers powerful lessons in breakthrough thinking in a provocative yet practical guide to the three core principles and ten key practices that shape successful business innovation. Innovation isn't just about technology -- it's about value, opportunity, and impact. When a company embeds a real discipline around tapping ingenuity in the pursuit of perfection, the sky is the limit. Dozens of case studies (from Toyota and other companies) illustrate the universal power and applicability of these concepts. A unique "clamshell strategy" prepares managers to successfully lead and sustain the innovation effort.

At once a thought-starter and a taskmaster, The Elegant Solution is a vital prescription for anyone wanting to truly master business innovation.

Customer Reviews:

The Elegant Solution.......2007-10-08

This is an excellent (and yes, elegant) overview of the Toyota quality "mindset." The book is a "must read" for for anyone interested in business strategy development. The book offers a readable summary of the principles of the Toyota Way with an emphasis on the development of the Lexus and Prius lines including practical examples of the elements of the approach advocated. When a company has amassed assets greater than GM, Ford, Chrysler, VW and Honda combined, their approach may be worth deeper study. I highly recommend this practical, important, and very readable book.

Nice stories, little new content.......2007-08-27

I excepted a lot from the elegant solution. It has been recommended by a lot of persons as a must read. Honestly, I was dissapointed. It's still an good book, but didn't find it as "classic" as people had suggested to me.

"The elegant solution" is about tools for creating innovation on your job. These tools are based on Toyota's tools and practices. The book is devided in three parts. The first part sets three general principles. The second part, by far the largest, provides the tools for innovation, the practices. The last part talks about implementing these practices.

The three principles are "the art of ingenuity", "pursuit of perfection" and "rhythm of fit". They were interesting principles, but not really new or shocking. Sometimes I found them even a little too vague.

The practices range from "thinking in pictures" to "master the tension". Each chapter shortly states the practice and explains the key ideas. After that it uses stories to clarify the practice. Lot's of stories are from inside Toyota. Some stories related to Lance Armstrong, a little too many in my opinion and they were somewhat boring. Anyways, in general, the stories were what made the book interesting.

The third part didn't provide very much content.

In summary, I enjoyed the book, for the stories. I didn't find the practices new and the book didn't provided me with any new insight that other lean books did not provide. The book was written a little bit too much in a "popular style" which annoyed me.

Worth reading for the stories. When wanting to know more on lean or toyota I'd recommend other books like "Toyota way" or "Lean product and process development".

Good nuggets, lots of fluff, some really sloppy thinking.......2007-08-22

I came to this book via the Shampoo Problem that's been floating around the internet these past couple of weeks (which he published in his Change This manifesto). The puzzle is this - a high-end health club puts nice shampoo in their showers, but customers keep stealing it. How do you implement a solution that takes no time to implement, doesn't inconvenience customers at all, and doesn't require any money? That's a lot of constrictions, but the author claims it can be done! (you can search for the answer yourself, I don't want to spoil your fun.)

The question itself reminded me of so many bad professors who would ask totally subjective questions and disregard legitimate answers until they found someone who agreed with them. "Who can give me an example of an apple that's tasty? Macintosh? No too sweet. Granny smith? No too bitter. Golden delicious? Why yes Bobby, you get a star."

This is the tone in my head while I read the book - condescending. Maybe he didn't write it that way, but that's how I'm reading it, and honestly, it fits. On page 21 he chides psychologists for loving "to explain our uniquely hardwired capabilities in hugely complex terms. Sixteen types, thirty-four strengths, etc." and then goes on to give his "easier, more elegant" (but no less arbitrary "four basic buckets of natural ability." (Four because the ancient Greeks loved the number four.) Of course, what he fails to mention is that the psychologists he's referring to all write for pop magazines like Cosmopolitan and their articles appear alongside such classics as "10 ways to improve your sex life" and "5 ways to tell if your man is cheating on you." He also never mentions the "four basic buckets of natural ability" again and they have absolutely no bearing on the rest of the book. (The book is filled with useless random made up facts like those.)

He also throws out sentences that have huge presumptions built in to them, but have absolutely no evidence to back them up. Stuff that, in a seminar you wouldn't want to question him on because "there is no right answer" or the facts are obscure enough that he could bluster his way though most arguments that weren't from an expert on the subject. In book form, though, and knowing better myself, I read this stuff and think "well there's a very poor and inaccurate description." Luckily there's an only 50% chance that even the next sentence will depend on you agreeing with that statement, much less the next page.

In a later section he rehashes "the scientific method" (I put it in quotes because he botched his basic characterization of it) and compares it to other four step iterative processes, mostly those developed by the military - Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA), Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA), Observe-Orient-Decide-Act (OODA), Scan-Analyze-Respond-Assess (SARA), etc. and comes up with his own version, cleverly called IDEA - Investigate, Design, Execute, Adjust. It's not much different than the others, but it's his and he can teach it in seminars as his own. FWIW, "While Toyota officially recognizes only PDCA (not IDEA), they actually use all of these (methodologies) to some degree." (page 73-4)

Well of course they use all of the methodologies to some degree - they all describe the same basic thing, and very few organizations are so button-down that they actually only use a single methodology and follow it to the letter each time.

The very next sentence is "Let's look closer at the process." But that's pretty much the last time PDCA is mentioned in the book, the next section is about process in general and why it's good to "Insist on a common approach."

Another example of sloppy leaps in logic and condescending attitude is the Edsel. (page 93) Ford did their research and designed a car that people would want - except nobody wanted it. Why? "The problem was, all the research was based on a forty-year-old market belief... that buyers fell into one of four income segments: low, low-middle, upper-middle, and upper... Except markets don't think that way. When it comes to cars, consumers were thinking `lifestyle,' not income."

I like how he swaps an old marketing tool for a modern one as if that's the answer to all the world's problems. Lifestyle marketing was originated in the 70's and 80's as a result of - surprise surprise - new market research techniques developed by psychologists who were using statistical analysis more and more in their psychological research. (I wonder if he thinks those psychologists are too complex now.)

He also utterly fails to get into the concept of lifestyle marketing - he tells you why the Edsel failed, and what they should have done, (or his completely arbitrary and baseless versions of them) but what they should have done is literally one word. "lifestyle." Shame on Ford in the 1950's for not using an 80's marketing concept to understand how the market thinks. Why didn't they use the word "lifestyle" instead - then the Edsel would have been a huge success.

Hansei is another example of this sloppy, condescending thinking. "Hansei is the rigorous review conducted after action has been taken. It's a huge and absolutely vital part of learning. And with few exceptions, our Western culture is just plain miserable at it." Of course there's not one mention of the term "post-mortem" which is a western term and performs the exact same function. Sure most businesses don't do it (most businesses don't follow a lot of best practices), but don't pretend that Toyota or "Eastern culture" somehow invented the concept and that nobody in the west does it. If there's an existing best practice that we understand, then why not just tell us about it rather than pretending that it came from the fount of the Toyota godhead?

"Ford hadn't gone to the field to see what was actually happening. They remained in the office and believed the data. Big mistake. The Edsel was dead on arrival, a complete and utter failure."

Of course the next chapter is about how Toyota did the same basic thing, but managed to succeed. Their data told them that the youth of today would be the car buyers of tomorrow (startling, I know). The case study for the Scion reveals absolutely nothing about the techniques they used to study the market - it's the after report.

"Where are these kids going to buy the car? There's no time or money for new stores. That's a problem. That means they go to a Toyota store. Okay, so they'll know it's a Toyota. How do we get around that? Think? We don't. It's not the ugly stepchild. It's legit, but different. It's Scion, offspring of Toyota. Don't ignore the Toyota link, it's got cred...."

Note the use of the magical word "Think" in that paragraph. He totally neglects to address what "Think" means. Think is the Elegant part of the solution (he also likes the word "Intuitive" and uses it liberally), yet he doesn't describe it at all.

"Think" is where all the magic happens. Katie Lucas calls this the "Run really, really fast" step for "how to win a marathon" methodologies. It's the step where all the real difficult, nitty-gritty stuff magically happens. South Park summarizes it "Step 1: Steal underpants. Step 2...... Step 3: Profit."

Ostensibly the whole book is about that one word "Think" but the tools he provides - the IDEA loop, mind mapping, story boarding are nothing new, and the book is utterly lacking a cohesive whole. They're just scattered ideas, praised one second, and then dropped in the next chapter. He even mentions the Toyota "dashboard" which is a tool for getting a quick overview of a problem - except he (again) utterly fails in to a dashboard. "Dashboard" doesn't even appear in the index of the book, and if it did, the only occurrence would be on page 113.

Here's all the text on page 113. "Creative Visual Control - Visual control is an integral part of Toyota's methodology. The Project Management Office of Toyota's North American Parts Operation (NAPO) used creative visual `dashboards' to track performance in their Stretch Goals Initiative (see Chapter 9)."

Chapter 9 is on how to stretch goals, not about dashboards. He clearly states "Visual control is an integral part of Toyota's methodology" yet it's explained nowhere in the book in any depth.

In fairness, Toyota did do something Ford didn't do (or at least something he claims Ford didn't do) - they got to know their market. Really engage them and have a conversation with them. Learn about them, and let those learnings drive their product, and he does get into that in the book.

The main thrust of the book - if I can understand it all because it's couched in so many superlatives and it jumps from topic to topic so fast that it's really difficult to tease core themes out - seems to be something like: Move forward by getting hands-on experience with your product and your customers. Don't dictate strategy based on numbers alone, or build bureaucracies - get down and dirty and get to know the product you're selling and get to know the marketplace. Come up with grand "elegant" visions for the future, but innovate little by little - tiniest bit by tiniest bit. Listen to everyone and implement every good idea, then standardize it so that the whole company benefits. Don't let the numbers do all the talking; learn the context, the story behind the numbers. Which is a pretty good message, and he does give you some tools to do that, but the tools are often vague, and you feel that the real tools are mentioned only in passing.

The subtitle of the book is "Toyota's Formula for Mastering Innovation." If this book was about the "formula" for Coca-Cola, it would say something like "cola syrup and seltzer" and go on about the intuitive and elegant way they matched cola syrup to the bubbling process and created a dynamic new soft drink and how the other soft drink companies of the day - lemonade, sugar-water and apple-juice - failed to really understand the problem, which is why they didn't come up with the cola + seltzer combination first and why they lost so much market share. (If only apple juice had thought "lifestyle" instead of "income segment!")

Overall, it's an okay read and a decent introduction to the subject of business innovation, though for a book that's supposedly written by a guy who's on the ground floor with this stuff, I would expect a *lot* more meat and a lot less fluff. Get it if you think you'll like it, but don't expect as much as the other reviewers seem to be hinting at.

"Keep it lean. Scale it back, make it simple, and let it flow.".......2007-05-22

The subtitle of this book ("Toyota's Formula for Mastering Innovation") is not inaccurate but somewhat misleading. Although, yes, Matthew E. May has much of interest and value to say about the Toyota Production System, his attention is by no means limited to it and to the remarkable organization within which it was developed and within which it continues to flourish. Today, Toyota is one of the ten most profitable companies in the world and worth more than General Motors, Ford, DaimlerChrysler, and Honda...combined. Obviously there are reasons for such extraordinary success but it would be incorrect to assume that other organizations can achieve the same success once they know what Toyota's "formula for mastering innovation" is.

What about this book's title? According to May, "Elegance isn't about being hoity-toity. It's not about lofty concepts and grand designs. It's not about beauty or grace, or anything to do with aesthetics - ugly is okay. Elegance is about something much more profound. It's about finding the `aha' solution to a problem with the greatest parsimony of effort and expense. Creativity plays a part. Simplicity plays a part. Intelligence plays a part. Add in subtlety, economy, and quality, and you get elegance...Elegant solutions relieve creative tension by solving the problem in finito as it's been defined, in a way that avoids creating other problems that then need to be solved. Elegant solutions render only new possibilities to chase and exploit. Finally, elegant solutions aren't obvious, except, of course, in retrospect."

Elegant solutions include library, paper money, pencil, wallet, wristwatch, icebox, mortgage, Social Security, credit card, cell phone, and auto leasing. These and other elegant solutions, as May correctly points out, "universally change the world's attitudes, beliefs, behaviors, and habits." Efforts to formulate elegant solutions are guided and informed by three principles: ingenuity in craft, pursuit of perfection, and fit with society. "They're the raison d'etre at Toyota, and nonnegotiable."

Earlier, I suggested that this book takes a close look at the mindset and the process by which Toyota continues to formulate elegant solutions. In fact, the Toyota organization implements a million ideas a year. May also includes within his narrative dozens of non-Toyota cases that indicate that none of the individual concepts are new, or even unique to Toyota. All organizations that formulate elegant solutions have people at all levels and in all areas of operation who possess both an ability and a determination to collectively and completely master all of the concepts as "a way of life, not a program centered on select teams led by specialists with artificial agendas."

But what about much smaller organizations, especially those with severely limited resources? Decision-makers in those organizations will be delighted (and perhaps surprised) to find that May provides a wealth of material that they can immediately put to use, once they understand the "deeper principles" that he discusses in Part I and the "ten key practices supported by tools and techniques" that he discusses in Part II. Then in Part III, May explains "how to put the practices and tools together well to achieve a [desired] result." He helps his reader to track the course of an exemplary team through a day of searching for the elegant solution.

For me, some of the most interesting and valuable material is provided in Chapter 12, "Make Kaizen Mandatory," as May poses again (as he does in other chapters) a combination of Problem, Cause, and Solution:

Problem: Innovation is hit or miss.
Cause: Creativity is misdirected and mismanaged.
Solution: Embed the kaizen ethic.

After a brief review of the factors that came together to help embed the kaizen ethic in Japanese business ethic during the decade or so following World War Two, he goes on to explain that at companies such as Toyota, the key issue is that they view kaizen in terms of standards that are created by the individuals performing the work, and, that standards are dynamic, and not everything gets standardized. These companies establish a best practice, document the standard, and train accordingly. Then in the next chapter, May shares his thoughts about "the power of lean" thinking and execution that reduce (if not eliminate) inconsistency, overload, and (most important) waste. Here is another combination:

Problem: Too many, too much - of everything.
Cause: Assumption that more is better.
Solution: Start thinking lean.

Once again, when it comes to innovation and designing solutions, the emphasis remains the same: "whatever you do, keep it lean. Scale it back, make it simple, and let it flow."

And that is what elegance really is all about.

Easy Reading.......2007-03-25

A must read for learning how to implement and sustain continuous improvement enabking lean to become part of the compny's culture

Average customer rating:

Six Thinking Hats Review
It Works
Great Easy Read
Six Thinking Hats review
Great book! Just ask the author, he already knows.

Six Thinking Hats
Edward de Bono
Manufacturer: Back Bay Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Business Life | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

General | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Management | Management & Leadership | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Entrepreneurship | Small Business & Entrepreneurship | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Creativity | Self-Help | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

General | Self-Help | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

Lateral Thinking: Creativity Step by Step (Perennial Library)
Thinkertoys: A Handbook of Creative-Thinking Techniques (2nd Edition)
Teach Your Child How to Think
Cracking Creativity: The Secrets of Creative Genius
Creativity Games for Trainers: A Handbook of Group Activities for Jumpstarting Workplace Creativity (McGraw-Hill Training Series)

ASIN: 0316178314

Customer Reviews:

Six Thinking Hats Review.......2007-10-03

I thought this book is excellent. This is the perfect book for a teacher or business men. The book shows you how to think logically and clearly. I give the book 5 stars.

It Works.......2007-07-01

The proof of the pudding is in the eating. We tried the six hats in our office and it does WORK. What more can you say about the book.

Kishore Dharmarajan
Author of EIGHTSTORM: 8-Step Brainstorming for Innovative Managers

Great Easy Read.......2007-06-02

I would recommend this book to students of every discipline, as well as non-students. This book has great examples for each lateral thinking concept. It's one of those feel-good books that can be motivating and empowering.

Edward de Bono writes about using different styles of thinking that can be used for any situation. He organizes philosophies about thinking that has been around for ages into visual concepts to be applied in daily scenarios.

Brief spoiler ahead..
White Hat- State the facts
Red Hat- State the emotions
Black Hat- State the negative aspects
Yellow Hat- State the positive aspects
Green Hat- Think creatively (outside the box)
Blue Hat- Think about thinking!

Yes the blue hat is tricky, so you should buy the book and get more details.

Six Thinking Hats review.......2007-06-02

De bono's six thinking hats covers the different mind-sets for the thinker. He explains the need for different types of thinking processes, each type of thinking symbolized by wearing a different hat. The book is filled with amusing ideas and interesting philosophy about thinking. It is a easy read. I believe that if the logic of this book is followed before making important decisions, one will never rush into a conclusion they are not prepared for. Some people in life are born with the ability to think....or they have had much practice.....others follow the program previously set in place or what they are told. Practice thinking and you can become a six hat thinker. Read this book a let a thinker...De Bono....teach you how powerfull your mind can become.

Great book! Just ask the author, he already knows........2007-06-02

Six Thinking Hats is not as good as Edward De Bono may believe. Now that is not saying that Six Thinking Hats is a bad book, it is just that Edward De Bono is extremely arrogant. He promotes his method constantly throughout the entire book. Once you get over his arrogance, the ideas of his method are actually pretty interesting. Having everyone in a meeting working together on a common purpose using the six thinking hats will greatly increase the productivity. The book is pretty easy to read and it is filled with tons of good examples. His arrogance is a little annoying, but just get over it because this book is totally worth reading.

The Ten Faces of Innovation: IDEO's Strategies for Defeating the Devil's Advocate and Driving Creativity Throughout Your Organization

Average customer rating:

How many faces do you recognise?
Good stories, but very IDEO-centric
Innovation-in-depth
Easy suggestions for increasing innovation
Inspiring and fun

The Ten Faces of Innovation: IDEO's Strategies for Defeating the Devil's Advocate and Driving Creativity Throughout Your Organization
Thomas Kelley , and Jonathan Littman
Manufacturer: Currency
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Systems & Planning | Management & Leadership | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

The Art of Innovation: Lessons in Creativity from IDEO, America's Leading Design Firm
Making Innovation Work: How to Manage It, Measure It, and Profit from It
Harvard Business Review on Innovation
Ten Rules for Strategic Innovators: From Idea to Execution
Blue Ocean Strategy: How to Create Uncontested Market Space and Make Competition Irrelevant

ASIN: 0385512074
Release Date: 2005-10-18

Book Description

The author of the bestselling The Art of Innovation reveals the strategies IDEO, the world-famous design firm, uses to foster innovative thinking throughout an organization and overcome the naysayers who stifle creativity.

The role of the devil's advocate is nearly universal in business today. It allows individuals to step outside themselves and raise questions and concerns that effectively kill new projects and ideas, while claiming no personal responsibility. Nothing is more potent in stifling innovation.

Drawing on nearly 20 years of experience managing IDEO, Kelley identifies ten roles people can play in an organization to foster innovation and new ideas while offering an effective counter to naysayers. Among these approaches are the Anthropologist—the person who goes into the field to see how customers use and respond to products, to come up with new innovations; the Cross-pollinator who mixes and matches ideas, people, and technology to create new ideas that can drive growth; and the Hurdler, who instantly looks for ways to overcome the limits and challenges to any situation.

Filled with engaging stories of how companies like Kraft, Procter and Gamble, Cargill and Samsung have incorporated IDEO's thinking to transform the customer experience, THE TEN FACES OF INNOVATION is an extraordinary guide to nurturing and sustaining a culture of continuous innovation and renewal.

Customer Reviews:

How many faces do you recognise?.......2007-08-13

Building on the Art of Innovation, Kelly brings us the new theory of the ten faces of innovation. It is simple to read and easy to understand. Another book which I found just as breezy to read was Eightstorm: 8-Step Brainstorming for Innovative Managers.

Good stories, but very IDEO-centric.......2007-07-30

Tom Kelley's book The Ten Faces of Innovation defines ten personas (thankfully not "named"--Bob, Sally, etc--just titled) that exemplify roles in an innovative team. They aren't job titles or exclusive positions, and people can work across roles as well.

* The Anthropologist, who observes people and discovers ways to help them
* The Experimenter, an expert in prototyping and testing, probably the classic "innovator"
* The Cross-Pollinator, with broad interests who enjoys connecting different cultures
* The Hurdler, who champions projects and carries them over beaurocratic obstacles
* The Collaborator, who brings people together to work cooperatively
* The Director, encouraging, inspiring, supporting, organizing and championing innovators
* The Experience Architect, a specialist in designing full "experiences" that transcend simple products or services
* The Set Designer, creating spaces that inspire and support innovation
* The Caregiver, who improves the subjective, emotional aspects of products and how they relate to us
* The Storyteller, who tells stories about people and products in creative and interesting ways

The book is heavily IDEO-centric, and most of the examples are from Kelley's own 20-year career there. Not really a surprise for a book subtitled "IDEO's strategies..." but worth mentioning; this is basically IDEO in book form. It includes several weird asides that are clearly IDEO/Kelley quirks, for instance his long tangents into the power of napping at work, comfortable hotel beds, and (ugh) T-shaped people. The IDEO focus gets pretty old after a while, and makes you wonder about the broader applicability of the ideas. What works in a design consulting company that works almost exclusively on short-term projects may not be the best structure for others.

But the personas are broad and--as mentioned above--not exclusive to people's job roles, so they are good signposts for anyone interested in developing their own innovation skills. I suspect it would be less interesting for a sole inventor/designer, but for people working at companies they are especially applicable.

Innovation-in-depth.......2007-06-07

The Ten Faces of Innovation describes ten complementary personas - personality types or roles that contribute in different ways to creative teams:

Anthropologist - this is perhaps the most literal title, meaning people who have been professionally trained as social anthropologists to observe people and processes and interactions `with a fresh eye'. These are probably the biggest antidote to "But we've always done it like that" thinking.

Experimenter - willing to take a chance, maybe, but also willing to explore alternatives and test concepts through prototyping, trial-and-error and applied science.

Cross-pollinator - like a bee flitting between the private parts of flowers, the cross-pollinator spreads good ideas and techniques between specialisms, breaking down silos and sharing good practice

Hurdler - able to leap tall buildings (well project hurdles anyway) in a single bound. They are adept at finding ways over (or more likely around) around immovable obstacles to reduce the banging-your-head-against-a-wall bruising.

Collaborator - knits people and teams together by finding common interests and objectives. Sometimes described as the spider who weaves the web linking everyone to everyone else.

Director - nothing to do with the title on her business card, the Director provides clarity and direction, a rallying point for the troops yet with the humility to actively listen to input from the team.

Experience architect - with an uncanny knack of putting themselves in the customer's shoes, experience architects can visualize products and services at the point of use, no mean feat when they are barely on the drawing board and even the customers are an unknown quantity.

Set designer - this is a fascinating persona: someone who creates visual spaces and physical representations relating to the job at hand. Not really office architects as such, set designers invent scenarios and contexts. They are also comfortable to break unwritten rules and help people mix fun with work (now there's a thought!).

Caregiver - in the sense of nurses and doctors (no, not the teenage version), caregivers support their colleagues, providing a sympathetic sounding board and gentle encouragement when times are tough, and motivating and inspiring people to give there all at all times.

Storyteller - anyone familiar with The HP Way or the origins of Apple and Microsoft will recognize the value of constantly telling and re-telling inspirational stories as a way of reinforcing corporate culture. It's clear that this is a comfortable personal for author Tom Kelley since both books quite literally tell a story.

The book is peppered with genuine examples, most of which involve the genesis of familiar but once remarkable products that broke the mold in some way - style, design, functionality, whatever. Some of you reading this may have bought Palm V PDAs, for instance, on the strength of their sleek looks and brilliant user interface - the Graffiti stylus script language so close to English that anyone can pick it up with a few minutes' practice. How many of you appreciate the innovative use of glue instead of screws to bond the Palm V's case together, or the flat-pack lithium batteries inside? Like many other examples, the attention to detail and the multiple overlapping layers of innovation go well beyond the obvious external visual cues. This is innovation-in-depth.

Whether you are interested in applying innovation and creativity to work initiatives or life in general, the IDEO books are inspirational, instructional and fun to read - what a combination. Recommended.

Easy suggestions for increasing innovation.......2007-05-04

Welcome to an enjoyable, easy read - which is not to dismiss Tom Kelley's fine ideas. With the aid of Jonathan Littman, Kelley works throughout this book to show how innovation can be much more painless than most people think, and more fun. Kelley makes thinking collaboratively sound like a blast. In the process, he convinces you that your organization should nurture and cherish playing with ideas. Although he admits that his consulting company, IDEO, found itself grinding along on tedious projects at times, and that he has watched people shoot down perfectly good suggestions, his underlying message is one of open possibility. He presents 10 roles you can play during meetings, any one of which would be enough to add considerable value. By showing that these roles are temporary, he sends the message that if you want to stay competitive, you can change, and even must. As he examines everything from product names to rules governing how workers decorate their cubicles, Kelley demonstrates the many opportunities you have to create something new. The cost is often little or nothing; sometimes innovation simply means getting out of your employees' way. We recommend this book to managers who wish to break old patterns and encourage creative thought companywide.

Inspiring and fun.......2007-04-17

If you want to create an environment where innovation is the norm, what do you do? Tom Kelley doesn't have a prescription, but he does have some people he'd like you to meet. This book is about the roles that people in an innovation driven organization take on to create fresh new ideas on a regular basis.

If you're an individual contributor, this is a very helpful book both to understand the people around you and your own specific skills. What's more, although in some ways Kelley is describing personality attributes, he is also describing skill sets and ways of looking at the world that you can decide to cultivate. No one is going to be excellent at all of these roles- but that doesn't mean you can't strive to be well rounded!

As a manager, the main take-away lesson is that there are many different types of creativity that can reinforce each other if put together. The most important part of building a creative organization may come at the hiring stage, where you can most easily create a mix of the different personas. But if you're in a stable organization, as most of us are, you can use the "ten faces" to identify the different styles of creativity in your people, and use that information to form teams and projects to bring out their best.

The book is very heavy on anecdote and example. Every one of the ten personas has several stories that illustrate how such an approach can generate ideas that otherwise wouldn't have been considered. The Anthropologist will put themselves in the place of the average user or consumer, as did a woman who faked a pregnancy to see how she would improve the birthing experience at a major hospital. The Experience Architect will take a commodity service and turn it into a show that customers will enjoy for its distinctiveness, like the ice cream "cooking" at Cold Stone Creamery.

The persona that I found most intriguing, and perhaps also furthest from my own, was the Set Designer. Kelley believes strongly in the power of space to shape the minds of those who inhabit it, and just reading about some of the things that go on at IDEO is enough to make my own cube - which I had thought very nicely decorated - seem drab and uninspired.

"The Ten Faces of Innovation" is not a good book to read if you want to know exactly how to change your company, but it is an excellent resource for spotting the early creative behavior every innovator should want to encourage in their team.

Kaleidoscope: Ideas And Projects to Spark Your Creativity

Average customer rating:

Nice, but.....
I Like It
Explore a different side of mixed-media
Great Book
Not a how-to...but a why-not?

Kaleidoscope: Ideas And Projects to Spark Your Creativity
Suzanne Simanaitis
Manufacturer: North Light Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Instructional & How-To | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

General | Crafts & Hobbies | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

Wide Open: Inspiration & Techniques for Art Journaling on the Edge (Book & Card Kit)
Artist Trading Card Workshop: Create, Collect, Swap
The Altered Object: Techniques, Projects, Inspiration
1,000 Artist Trading Cards: Innovative and Inspired Mixed Media ATCs (1000 Series)
Secrets of Rusty Things: Transforming Found Objects into Art

ASIN: 1581808798

Book Description

Indulge your creative cravings! Explore dozens of stories, exercises and instructive projects, all designed to feed, encourage and sometimes flex your creative muscle. You'll tap into the joy of drawing, be encouraged to create art in bed, create your own folded-paper shrine, discover the liberation of stream-writing, practice idea brainstorming, make your own duct-tape purse, learn to quiet the negative voice in your head, dream up your own creative studio space and much, much more. Inspiring art and eye-candy on every page--a Kaleidoscope of creative energy awaits you today!

Customer Reviews:

Nice, but............2007-08-14

This is a very beautifully illustrated book in the way that it is put together. Although, many of these images are available online for your viewing, it is nice to have them compiled into one book. My only complaint is that some of the pages are not easy on the eyes as far as being easy to read. I think that the print could have been larger. On some pages more of a contrast between the background page color and print color would have made it easier and more enjoyable to read. If you are looking for inspiration and ideas, there are a number of very nice ones here.

I Like It.......2007-08-13

While I am not an ephemera artist, I found this to be a very enjoyable book, if only on a philosophical level. There are a few practical ideas that I can use, but mostly I think that this is a book that feeds the creative spirit through the expressions of other artists. The 'zine format makes for easy little tidbit reading experiences and I always enjoy looking at other people's projects.

Explore a different side of mixed-media.......2007-08-01

I ordered this book before I could browse through based on a review that said Julianna Coles is a contributor. I love her style and teaching. I am a scrapbooker at heart but I love the challenges to do something different and it adds to my scrapbooking.

Many of the other contributors offer editorial essay about why the are artists but little else. Overall, it's a good book and I'd recommend it.

Great Book.......2007-07-22

I love this book. I keep looking at it over and over. I am not really that talented of an artist but I love The great ideas to spark my creativity.

Not a how-to...but a why-not?.......2007-07-22

After reading all the other reviews I knew that I had to get this book. It doesn't matter what sort of art or craft you practice...get this book! It is filled with superb writing from people who are passionate about their creativity. This book affirmed to me that I am an artist and that I shouldn't hesitate to let the world know that. There are some projects in this book, but that is not the reason to get it. It is not a how-to. It is a why-not book. The pages literally drip with the most eye-popping collage art and the writing is inspired. Even if collage art, or mixed media art, or altered art is not your thing, there is at least one article in this book that will speak to your particular brand of creativity, but I think it is the articles that I might not have been drawn to at first are the most challenging to me and force me to see the world through different colored lenses. Don't buy this book if you want a how-to, but if you are looking for validation that creativity lies within and all around you, this is the book for you.

Evolve Your Brain: The Science of Changing Your Mind

Average customer rating:

Easy way lo learn about our brain.
A life changing book
Evolve Your Brain: The Science of Changing Your Mind
Change you mind!!!
DISPENZA ROCKS!

Evolve Your Brain: The Science of Changing Your Mind
Joe Dispenza
Manufacturer: HCI
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Creativity | Self-Help | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

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Self-Help | New Age | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
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What the Bleep Do We Know!?: Discovering the Endless Possibilities for Altering Your Everyday Reality

ASIN: 075730480X

Book Description

Take Your First Step Toward True Evolution Ever wonder why you repeat the same negative thoughts in your head? Why you keep coming back for more from hurtful family members, friends, or significant others? Why you keep falling into the same detrimental habits or limiting attitudeseven when you know that they are going to make you feel bad? Dr. Joe Dispenza has spent decades studying the human mindhow it works, how it stores information, and why it perpetuates the same behavioral patterns over and over. In the acclaimed film What the Bleep Do We Know!? he began to explain how the brain evolvesby learning new skills, developing the ability to concentrate in the midst of chaos, and even healing the body and the psyche. Evolve Your Brain presents this information in depth, while helping you take control of your mind, explaining how thoughts can create chemical reactions that keep you addicted to patterns and feelingsincluding ones that make you unhappy. And when you know how these bad habits are created, it's possible to not only break these patterns, but also reprogram and evolve your brain, so that new, positive, and beneficial habits can take over. This is something you can start to do right now. You and only you have the power to change your mind and evolve your brain for a better lifefor good.

Customer Reviews:

Easy way lo learn about our brain........2007-10-10

Joe Dispenza made a positive impression on me with his comentaries in the film WHAT THE BLEEP DO WE KNOW. Now I can corroborate this good impression with his book that not only makes me remember all I once studied about the brain in school, but adds new scientific discoveries of it's function. That makes easy for me to understand other books related to this and quantum matters.

Maria Boulton Benedetti
Mexico City.

A life changing book.......2007-10-09

There are many self development books in the market, but few explains how self development takes place on biological level. In Evlove Your Brain Dr. Dizpenza shows the reader in very detail how it is done - how thoughts and emotions influence human body and how body influences mind. You will discover many things about yourself that you haven't been awared of.

Evolve Your Brain: The Science of Changing Your Mind.......2007-10-09

It was an honor and privilege to meet Dr. Joe and experience his presentation at Breakthroughs III with Jeffery Combs this past weekend. I
look forward to further interaction with and future lessons from Dr. Joe. Thank You.

Change you mind!!!.......2007-09-30

Comments: Love love love your website! Your book is excellent.
After reading your book I decided to confront a fear and change my mind and learn to scuba

DISPENZA ROCKS!.......2007-09-26

I love your book and the photos and details are spectacular. You and Bruce Lipton would make a great team for work on epigenetics. I don't see many references to the role of the cell membrane.

But really great work! I commend you. Looking forward to your next one!

Bless you for this one! Nahu
[ASIN:1432701622 UFOs: God from Inner Space]

Effortless Mastery: Liberating the Master Musician Within

Average customer rating:

Great Book for what Ails you
Effortless Redundancy
Everyone should read this book
Calling All Serious Muscians
Highly recommended for musicians of any instrument or style

Effortless Mastery: Liberating the Master Musician Within
Kenny Werner
Manufacturer: Jamey Aebersold
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Music | Entertainment | Subjects | Books

Creativity | Self-Help | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

All Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Entertainment | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
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ASIN: 156224003X

Book Description

Paperback book and CD set. Effortless Mastery: Liberating the Master Musician Within is a book for any musician who finds themselves having reached a plateau in their development. Werner, a masterful jazz pianist in his own right, uses his own life story and experiences to explore the barriers to creativity and mastery of music, and in the process reveals that "Mastery is available to everyone," providing practical, detailed ways to move towards greater confidence and proficiency in any endeavor. While Werner is a musician, the concepts presented are for every profession or life-style where there is a need for free-flowing, effortless thinking. Book also includes an audio CD of meditations narrated by Kenny to help the musician reach a place of relaxed focus.

Customer Reviews:

Great Book for what Ails you.......2007-09-23

The ideas in this book about self-awareness and practicing music are so profound -- and so true -- I've read this book three times this year.

Werner describes the thought process behind becoming a jazz musician. No one has previously described the mental pitfalls and hangups more clearly, sometimes it's like he has transcribed dialogue from ones own head. This book has made a difference in my playing and outlook, and for some of my friends.

For these reasons, I can't recommend this book enough (even if I disagree with him that meditation is the primary solution to the problems he describes).

Effortless Redundancy.......2007-08-29

In my estimation, this is not a book for anyone who is struggling with how to develop a clear method for practicing the piano or any instrument. In fact, book seems to be more focused upon Mr. Werner's ideological views about society than with the real issues of serious piano practice. For instance, he spends several paragraphs discussing the downfall of society as a result of women being able to use pain killers during child birth and humans being able to eat canned peaches. Then he makes some offhand comment about menopause. One begins to wonder whether this man has serious issues of his own and should be therapy. The bottom line is the book is extremely redundant and is of no help. I wouldn't recommend this book to any of my students as it would be a complete waste of their time. This book is really nothing more than a reflection of Kenny's stream of consciousness: a submerged mysogynistic and puritanical view of society that would have been better served if humans had not discovered the benefits of technology.

If a student really wants to become a master, then he or she should study the harmonic form of the piece and immerse oneself in the beauty of that experience. As Webern said, "your ears may tell you where you're going, but you have to know why."

Everyone should read this book.......2007-08-05

Even though, as a previous reviewer has noted, many of these truths should be self-evident, we forget them often. If nothing else as a reminder of what we already know, this book is a gem.

I would recommend this book for any musician.

Calling All Serious Muscians.......2007-07-18

This book is simply and profoundly inspirational. I've already noted a positive shift in my perspective towards my playing and improvising. If you are serious about your music and want deepen your musical and spiritual practice, I would highly suggest reading this book over and over!

Highly recommended for musicians of any instrument or style.......2007-07-12

I'm a drummer, and although Kenny is a pianist, the principles still applied.
He's a jazz man, and I prefer and play Rock, but his message still propels me to recommend this book. The only reason I rated 4 instead of 5 stars, is that I am Christian, and some of his "lessons" will definitely conflict with that faith. Disregard those passages, and you're still left with awesome material to internalize, and learn from.

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