MIT Sloan Management Review

 

About the Research

The findings described in this article come from three streams of research. First, we conducted in-depth interviews at more than 40 organizations representing a range of industries, including retailing, chemicals, financial services, telecommunications, consumer packaged goods and high-tech. The purpose of the interviews was to understand how the organizations structured for and supported innovation. Second, we conducted a detailed survey of managers involved in innovation activities in conjunction with International Business Machines Corp. and the American Productivity & Quality Center Inc. Managers from close to 100 organizations in 14 countries provided information about innovation metrics and practices in their organizations. (The survey findings are reported in “Innovating on Your Own Terms,” by George Pohle and Steve Wunker, available at www.innosight.com.) Finally, we synthesized our fieldwork from the past five years with more than 50 companies, including Aetna, Nokia, Procter & Gamble, Johnson & Johnson, Dow Corning, Wacker, Syngenta, Time Warner and E.W.... To read the complete article, login or sign-up using the form below.