Idea Agent

FOREWORD

ASK ANY CEO or organizational leader for a list of those things that keep them up at night and innovation will be at or near the top of the list. The reasons for this are easily understandable. Large firms, often with a long and proud tradition, are failing at an alarming rate. Kodak, founded 125 years ago, is in bankruptcy. Sears, long America’s dominant retailer, is in a slow-motion liquidation, closing stores and selling off brands. General Motors, the largest company in America in 1959, was bankrupt fifty years later. The list of failed firms, including Borders Books, the Tribune, Blockbuster, Merrill Lynch, Circuit City, and a host of banks and airlines, goes on. Studies have shown that the average life expectancy of a Standard ...