Subtitled: Lessons in Creativity from IDEO, America's Leading Design Firm

IDEO, the widely admired, award-winning design and development firm that brought the world the Apple mouse, Polaroid's I-Zone instant camera, the Palm V, and hundreds of other cutting edge products, reveals its secret for fostering innovative, out-of-the-box thinking across the world of business.

There isn't a business in America that doesn't want to be more innovative and creative in their thinking, products, and processes. At many companies, being first with a concept and first to market are critical just to survive. In The Art of Innovation, the general manager of the world-renowned design firm IDEO, Thomas Kelley, takes readers behind the scenes of this wildly imaginative and energized company to reveal strategies and secrets it uses to turn out hit after hit.

IDEO doesn't believe in the myth of the lone genius working away in isolation, waiting for great ideas to strike. The fact is, as Kelley points out, everyone is creative, and the goal at IDEO is to tap into the wellspring of creativity among its employees. How does it do that? First, IDEO fosters an atmosphere conducive to freely expressing ideas, throwing out (most of ) the standard rules, and freeing people to design their workspaces and environment to fit their personalities. It is IDEO's focus on teams that has resulted in its countless innovative breakthroughs - the constant give-and-take among people willing to share ideas and trust in the group process, dubbed "the deep dive" by IDEO. In entertaining anecdotes illustrating some of IDEO's own successes (and mistakes), as well as pioneering efforts at other leading companies, Kelley shows how teams research and completely immerse themselves in every possible aspect of a concept or problem, examining it from the perspective of the companies they are designing for, from the perspective of safety, and from the perspective of consumers.

IDEO has won more awards in the last ten years than any other design firm, and full half-hour Nightline presentation of its creative process received one of the highest ratings in the program's history. Total immersion in The Art of Innovation will provide business leaders with the insights and tools they need to make their companies the leading-edge, top-rated stars of their industries.

Customer Rating:
Summary: Excellent way to brush up on the book
Comment: The book is outstanding and i picked up this audio version used, for my car as it doesnt have a CD player. Old car. The audio book is great and the core essentials are all there. Very well done and great for those who end up collecting unread books due to time pressures. Not sure worth it new but got mine for a few dollars on cassette.

---

Customer Rating:
Summary: EVERYBODY should read this book.
Comment: I had some trepidation about reading what seemed like another dry book for business analysts (my job,) but found this book to be much, much more.
The author recounts stories from IDEO, to give examples for the ideas presented. I found myself wanting a job at IDEO after reading only a quarter of the book.
The lessons that can be learned from this book extend beyond business analysis. A CEO, manager, teacher, priest, parent or any type of leader will be able to gain insight and make positive changes in their organizations using the ideas presented. If you're in any type of leadership role, READ THIS BOOK! If you're not, buy it for your boss - You'll benefit from it too!

---

Customer Rating:
Summary: Read this Book
Comment: I read this book awile back during a vacation and couldn't put it down. I only read no-fiction books and this one was the best I'd ever read. I've never felt compelled to review a book before, but his one was worth it. It was very well written, informative as well as inspirational. It made me want to go work at Ideo. Well worth your time.

---

Customer Rating:
Summary: The Art of Innovation
Comment: Thanks Tom! We're just starting a new technology business and we're wanting and needing to create the sort of culture that you have at Ideo. Our industry is dynamic, so if we're not dynamic then we will not succeed. For us that means innovate - deliver true value to our customers - learn - innovate - deliver more value to our customers, in a continuous cycle. You have given us some practical ideas about how we can ingrain innovation into our culture as we grow. Thanks.

---