I like this article...clear distinction between "Innovation" and "Creativity"

CHANGE COMES IN TWO WAYS:
THROUGH INNOVATION AND CREATIVITY

Innovation Changes Reality

Innovation requires action
It is a challenge for a team
The process is continuous
It takes a long time
It delivers something new to the system
Its impact is measurable
Project management is required
The fuel is practical ideas and useful suggestions
The role of a consultant is to cause action

Creativity Changes Perception

Creativity requires thinking
It is a challenge for an individual
The process is discontinuous
It takes an instant
It envisions a new system
Its impact cannot be measured
Brainstorming is required
The fuel is questions, surprises, and strange and incomplete ideas
The role of a consultant is to encourage reflection

Source: Luc de Brabandere, The forgotten half of change: Achieving Greater Creativity Through Changes in Perception(Dearborn Trade Publishing, 2005)

Heroes may start out as flawed.....

We expect our heroes to be flawed. Heroes without flaws would not be successful. Yet in the end, it’s not the flaws we need to remember but the achievements.”
- J. Young and W. Simon “iCon: Steve Jobs”

I like this quote..

It is not only new products and services that provide competitive advantage, but also new ideas in every area....and the source of new ideas is PEOPLE.

Dr Rosabeth Moss Kanter

Innovation is like sex: Sometimes something useful comes out of it, but that is not the reason we are doing it

Many people asked:

In a result-based organisation, how do you foster innovation?

In measuring the effectiveness of fostering innovation, there should be lead indicators and lag indicators. Merely measuring lag indicators like the successfulness of research and development projects and the cost savings generated from such projects would greatly undermine the risk-taking spirit necessary for innovation to take place.

Successful innovations are by-products of having a refined innovation management system in place for insights study, concepts development, evaluation, prototyping, and exploitation to be carried out effectively in an organisation.

What is the relationship between risk and returns?

Taking high risks will yield high returns, yet taking high risks do not guarantee that there would be any returns. However, taking low risks will definately generate only low returns.

If an organisation wishes to yield high returns from its projects, it must be willing to adopt a risk-taking spirit and encourage and reward those people who dare to take up that risk and put their careers in the spotlight. The innovation process is one of exploration and experimentation; the learnings from each failed experimentation increases the chances of having a major success in time to come.