The Art of Innovation

There isn't a business in America that doesn't want to be more innovative and creative in their 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, the general manager of the world-renowned design firm IDEO, Thomas Kelley, 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.

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IDEO doesn't believe in the myth of the lone genius working away in isolation, waiting for great ideas to strike. The fact is, as Kelley points out, everyone is creative, and the goal at IDEO is to tap into that wellspring of creativity among its employees. How does it do that? First, IDEO fosters an atmosphere conducive to freely expressing ideas, throwing out (most of) the standard rules, and freeing people to design their workspaces and environment to fit their personalities. It is IDEO's focus on teams that has resulted in its countless innovative breakthroughs — the constant give-and-take among people willing to share ideas and trust in the group process, dubbed "the deep dive" by IDEO. In entertaining anecdotes illustrating some of IDEO's own successes (and mistakes), as well as poineering efforts at other leading companies, Kelley shows how teams — usually in groups of twelve to twenty people — research and completely immerse themselves in every possible aspect of a concept or problem, examining it from the perspective of the companies they are designing for, from the perspective of safety, and from the perspective of consumers. In the course of the book, Kelley outlines the steps IDEO and other successful companies use to achieve successful problem solving:

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• Closely observing the behavior of the people who will be using a product or service — what Kelley calls the "anthropology of design," of which IDEO is a master
• Brainstorming ideas
• Prototyping designs and ideas at every stage
• Using "cross-pollination" to find solutions to tricky problems in other, unrelated products or fields
• Setting frequent deadlines along the way to keep the momentum going
• Fostering a climate of innovation, flexibility, and camaraderie
• Taking risks, being unafraid of goofing up, and ultimately aiming for "good enough" rather than perfection
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IDEO has won more awards in the last ten years than any other design firm, and a full half-hour Nightline presentation of its creative process received one of the highest ratings in the show's history. Total immersion in 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.

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Profile Books; New Ed edition (4 Mar 2002)

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Bantam Doubleday Dell Publishing Group (1 May 2001)