A Book You Should Read ASAP!
Posted on | October 23, 2009 | 1 Comment
I don’t usually offer my 2 cents unless asked… (If you know me then you are laughing right now…) but I felt compelled to write this recommendation.
Rob Wolcott and Mike Lippitz are former professors from Grad School at Northwestern University. I credit them both with having great impact on my professional and personal life through the time that I spent with them in the classroom and outside of that as friends, advisors and business luminaries. Their teachings on innovation have shaped me for the future and the next chapter in my business life.
If you are thinking about how to stay competitive in the “new normal” and are focused on driving innovation, opportunity, new business model creation and REAL VALUE for your organization this book is a must read…
“Grow from Within: Mastering Corporate Entrepreneurship and Innovation” is the book I am recommending. You can buy it from Amazon who has the best deal I have seen by using this URL – http://bit.ly/GFW_Amazon
The book is great from my perspective as it pulls together a lot of the things I learned during my time in the classroom and it also puts it in a context that is great for anyone in business.
Special Idea… If you buy the book and want to see if Rob and/or Mike will sign your copy I would be happy to try and make that happen for you. I think I could get them to do it.
Leave a comment on this post if you get a copy and would like to have it signed. I am happy to help you make this happen.
Happy Reading!
Coley
P.S. – In closing here is a note that Rob Wolcott sent to me after a recent meeting when I asked him some questions about the book. It may help you get a better feel for it… Search “Rob Wolcott Northwestern University” to learn more about Rob and his work.
ROB’S NOTE:
Coley,
Great seeing you last week and discussing your current endeavors. You asked for more about the book, Grow From Within: Mastering Corporate Entrepreneurship and Innovation, so ‘voila!’
Grow From Within (GFW) examines how established companies can build new businesses… not just new products or services, but truly new businesses. By researching these ‘extreme users’… someone we refer to as the corporate entrepreneur… we uncover critical insights regarding how to make more traditional innovation (e.g.—new product development, R&D-led innovation) more effective, how to enhance the success rate of everything from corporate lab research and new market entry to changing the way established business units operate or how companies pursue open innovation.
Your question about the audience… GFW will be great for senior executives and CEOs at established companies, as well as mid-level managers tackling the innovation challenges, or aspiring to be a successful corporate entrepreneur. Really, anyone concerned with driving growth, especially organic growth.
You’ll remember the fundamental frameworks from class: The Innovation Radar and the Four Models of Corporate Entrepreneurship, both subjects of our MIT Sloan Management Review articles from 2006 and 2007. Additionally, as you will recall, my co-author, Professor Lippitz, has extensive experience with the Department of Defense, so we have some unique perspectives from government, especially a detailed case regarding bringing Stealth to market and changing the paradigm of defense and offense. Bill Perry, former US Secretary of Defense, is in fact one of the endorsers on the cover of the book.
Let me know if you have any more questions. I’d be happy to discuss this further. It is, after all, my life’s work and passion. Please feel free to send this on to others or mention any aspect of it in your blog. Thanks again for your ongoing interest. Let me know how I can help with your endeavors.
To the Future, W
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About Coley
Coley Perry is a 15 year veteran of the sales and marketing grind. Most of his experience is in and around the intersection of sales, marketing, change management, technology and business process helping clients solve business problems through innovative solutions and consulting. He has built sales teams, go-to-market strategies, demand generation engines and sustainable revenue streams. Currently his passion is focused on the convergence of sales, marketing and technology. He wrote a lot of checks to Columbia College and Northwestern University but learned the most from The “Second City” Training Center in Chicago where he studied the Art of Improv.
October 28th, 2009 @ 9:00 am
As a book publisher and a publishing consultant this book does definitely deserve attention. I am also an author on entrepreneurship and the concept of “intrapreneurship” in my book (no pun intended) has not been given enough attention.
Here is a great article by Ron Burt on collaborative networks in organizations – http://blog.spigit.com/permalink/2009/10/19/study_collaborative_networks_produce_better_ideas. Put these two together and you have the 20 percent that yields an 80% return.
Best,
Melissa Giovagnoli
Founder and CEO, Networlding
Author of Networlding, #10 on Amazon (in Chicago) for a year
http://www.networldingblog.com