Even though innovation never goes out of style, there has been a renewed interest in governmental innovation as all agencies face shrinking budgets and an uncertain economy. The Federal Digital Strategy calls for more innovation in the government’s technical infrastructure and how information is delivered to citizens. There are plenty of consultants, conferences, and groups ready to help governments become more innovative. For the last few months, I have read much of the latest thinking on innovation. The topics range from the Lean Startup movement to the neuroscience of innovation. As with any hot management topic, there are many books, articles, and postings with some great ideas, not-so-great ideas, and downright damaging ideas. So, for this month, I will write a series of posts giving my opinion of the better ideas in current innovation thought.
The Ingenuity Gap was published in 2002 but has relevance for today. Homer-Dixon gives a compelling case for improving our ability to be ingenious. He argues that we not only need innovation (defined as the ability to create new ideas) but also the ability to reuse existing ideas for solving complex technical, social, and economic problems. In his book, he details a number of wicked problems such as climate change and economic inequality that are exhausting our current solutions. We need to increase our ability to rapidly innovate to ensure our survival. This is an important book to read as it builds a compelling case for investing in innovation.
To read the original article: Don't Be "Netflixed:" Why Innovation Labs Are Vital to Government Agencies - GovLoop - Social Network for Government
