Relentless Innovation: What Works, What Doesn’t--And What That Means For Your Business

Chapter 6The Usual Suspects

In a corporate setting, a crisis unfolds when an executive demands new products and services from unprepared, untrained, overworked middle managers. When executives demand radical or disruptive innovation from such individuals, managers are confronted with a stark reality: they must define and enact an activity that leads to innovative outcomes. Desperate times often call for desperate measures, and this confrontation is no exception. Managers who don’t possess the skills, knowledge, bandwidth, or scope to innovate effectively must do so very quickly, without disrupting business as usual. Most organizations don’t have the infrastructure or capability to innovate on demand; there are few people with innovation experience, ...