Closing the Innovation Gap: Reigniting the Spark of Creativity in a Global Economy

Closing the Innovation Gap: Reigniting the Spark of Creativity in a Global Economy Features

Additional Closing the Innovation Gap: Reigniting the Spark of Creativity in a Global Economy Information

Named one of the "Best Books on Innovation, 2008" by BusinessWeek magazine

Does innovation come about by luck or hard work? Is it a flash of inspiration or the result of careful management? Are innovators born or taught? In Closing the Innovation Gap, Judith Estrin provides the answers to these and other questions critical to our future. A technology pioneer and business leader, Estrin describes what will be required to reignite the spark of innovation in business, education, and government--ensuring our long-term success in the global economy.

Innovation does not occur in a vacuum. It grows from the interplay of three drivers of creative change--research, development, and application. Estrin calls this dynamic the “Innovation Ecosystem,” explaining how these communities work together to create sustainable innovation.

Closing the Innovation Gap covers:

Leaders in business and public service “must think beyond short-term financial results and understand the impact of globalization and an accelerated pace of change on future economic growth,” says Estrin. With Closing the Innovation Gap as your guide, business leaders will gain key insights into identifying their needs, asking the right questions, testing new ideas, and successfully leading their organization to the frontiers of twenty-first-century innovation.

What Customers Say About Closing the Innovation Gap: Reigniting the Spark of Creativity in a Global Economy:

Judy Estrin's thoughts and ideas on how to close the innovation gap should be a must read for everyone in education, government and our corporate leaders. Her overview of the history of our rise and fall in the technology sector is spot on and her recommendations to close the innovation is refreshing and makes great sense.This book is written so well that once you pick it up you will not be able to put it down.

Excellent book with a variety of clear information well presented. Its an eye opener of our economic reality.

My husband and I both read the book and found it very informative, inspiring and well worth the read.

There's very little in the way of practical takeaway if you're hoping to pick up a "to do" list.Is it helpful. Her stories have an eye witness quality.The downside. Read as an overview of the topic, it's great. If there's an upside and a downside to everything.the upside of Closing the Innovation Gap is that author Judy Estrin's vast experience in the innovation scene comes through loud and clear. As a hands-on participant in an unprecedented season of innovation, she had not only a bird's eye view, but was right in the mix. Yes, but not as a manual of action.

Andrea GoldsmithProfessor of Electrical Engineering, Stanford UniversityCTO and Founder, Quantenna Communications, Inc. She weaves a story that is comprehensive, passionate, informed, and entertaining: mixing her own dialog with a tapestry of interviews and quotes from a spectrum of educators, researchers, business leaders, and entrepreneurs. Estrin leverages her broad experience in universities, startups, and large corporations to create a beautiful history coupled with a compelling argument that innovation is worth the risk of failure which inevitably accompanies the creative process. This book is a must-read for anyone who cares about the future of innovation or plays a role in its creation. Reading this book has been an enlightening and thought-provoking journey. Judy Estrin provides a unique perspective on innovation: the historical role of the United States as a leading engine of innovation, the forces and ecosystem that have driven that innovation, and how that ecosystem is currently threatened. Her clarion call for action is a sweeping treatise about what changes are needed in policy, funding, leadership, education, and culture to maintain our innovative edge worldwide.