innovation syllabus 2013r5

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Leading Strategic Innovation in Organizations A Coursera Course From Vanderbilt University

Instructor: David A. Owens, PhD Professor of the Practice of Management & Innovation, Owen Graduate School of Management and Professor of the Practice of Engineering Management, School of Engineering at Vanderbilt University Course Email: [email protected] Course Website: https://www.coursera.org/course/innovation Overview This course is intended to help you improve your ability to manage creativity, innovation and change in business, education, healthcare, government, and in any other complex organization or institution by diagnosing potential innovation failures before they can occur. Using an “innovation constraints” framework that draws on modern social science research and on insights from business practice, participants will learn how to best manage people (be they co-workers, bosses, customers, clients, friends or any other stakeholders) when innovation is the goal. While we see several examples of technological innovation, we are not focused on the management of technology. Instead, we focus on something much more powerful: understanding and managing the people engaged in creation, innovation and positive change, regardless of the context.

The course is designed to help you answer the following types of questions:

• What are the conditions for successful innovation? • What causes innovation to fail? • What makes creative people creative? • How should I manage an innovative team? • How do I lead an effective brainstorm process? • What is an innovation portfolio and how can I manage one? • Why do so many great ideas get killed?

The approach in this class will be to treat innovation as the process of generating, assessing, and then implementing useful and valuable ideas. As we will discuss, generating ideas is relatively easy; what can be hard is getting those ideas listened to, accepted, and implemented in organizations. In addition to learning how to lead creative people and creative teams, participants will also learn techniques for improving their own creativity. During the course you will engage numerous activities and exercises intended to bring current habits of thought and behavior to the surface for examination and change.

Course Description: This Coursera course is based on an existing graduate professional school class (MGT 449) that been taught for over a decade at Vanderbilt’s Owen Graduate School of Management. The course has been successfully delivered to Masters of Business Administration (MBA) students, Executive MBA students, graduate and PhD students from other fields, as well as to thousands of working professionals. Within the MBA curriculum this course serves as a project-based synthesis course that can provide students the opportunity to build a deeper understanding of the cross-disciplinary relationships between and among the core courses and disciplines of their graduate business school education, while also developing their skills at managing creative people and innovation projects. This course will expose students to the latest theory and practice of innovation at each of six levels of analysis, using an original framework developed by the professor. After an introductory week, each subsequent week covers one of the six levels of analysis, exploring the research and the practice implications of that week's

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material with lectures, readings, exercises, and assignments. The theories and research taught in the class are based on both recent and classic academic scholarship, while the innovation practices described are taken from the professor's own research and consulting experiences. The online version of the course offers students the option of an innovation project track for those students who wish experiential engagement with hands-on creativity and management skills in addition to the conceptual frameworks and insights offered through the lectures and the individual exercises and assignments. The phases (and weekly deliverables) for the project are designed to perfectly track the topics of the course. This allows the concurrent experiences of students to serve as a context for testing the material and their understanding of it. Of course students electing not to participate in the project track still have equal access to all the instructions, process-insights, assessments and outcomes given to those participating in the advanced track. The framework used in the course was developed and tested over the past decade through research, seminars, workshops, and consulting engagements with managers and executives at all levels working in firms in diverse industries such as product design, music, space travel, public works, healthcare services, transportation, energy, government, biotechnology, and more. The approach (and the content of this class) is detailed in the professor's recently published book on the topic. Course Learning Objectives and Engagement Methods The primary learning objectives of this course are:

1) To provide you with a cross-disciplinary understanding of the general conditions under which successful innovation is possible;

2) To teach you a framework for diagnosing which specific conditions (or constraints) are satisfied (or not) in any given situation; and

3) To teach you how to develop and execute a strategy for overcoming the critical innovation constraints. The content supporting learning objective (1) is delivered primarily through the video lectures. I will discuss a number of examples of innovation successes and failures and you are expected to think of some of your own as well. Your learning for this objective will be assessed primarily through a series of video-based machine-graded quizzes, end of section quizzes, and assigned exercises. You will also be assessed by your active participation in the online discussion forum based on each week’s content. The content supporting learning objective (2) will be delivered through assigned readings and case studies in addition to the video lectures. Your mastery of this material is assessed when you complete the weekly "innovation constraint diagnostic" and submit a brief reflection on your score. The diagnostic itself is machine-graded while your peers will assess your written reflection on those scores using an instructor-developed standardized grading rubric. Your learning will also be significantly enhanced as you submit assessments of the work of your peers. The content of learning objective (3) is supported in two ways. The conceptual framework is delivered through video lectures, exercises, and diagnostics as described above. On the other hand, your practice skills will be developed through a team-based innovation project (for those electing the Studio Mastery track). Project assignments are peer-assessed using an instructor-developed rubric for each deliverable, and the process used to pursue the projects will be explained in the professor's weekly video chats. Upon project completion teams will upload a 2-minute video presentation of their project for comment and feedback by other students in the course.

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Course Learning Methods and Pedagogy The pedagogical approach we will use is consistent with HPL (How People Learn) theory. Each of the six major content areas in the course will be reinforced through each of the following four mechanisms. Experience: We will start each week’s learning module with an experience to provide an intuitive grounding for the material and to generate first-hand experiences of the topics under discussion. This will be done through individual exercises, through online discussions of experiences, and for participants in the Studio Mastery track, through the process of completing the innovation project. Understand: Each week’s lectures are focused on focused helping you develop a formal understanding of the material. Readings and assessments will also be used to help you to understand, challenge, and to extend your understanding of innovation research and practice. This formal language will allow us to be clear in our communications and to generate new insights about the process of innovation. Apply: Each week you will be given assignments or exercises meant to test your application of the course material. While all students will be expected to do the exercises and to apply the material in their daily lives, those students electing the Studio Mastery track will have the benefit of the team innovation project as a context for experimentation and gaining mastery of the ideas. The project will let these students test the practical value of the frameworks and to develop the skill needed to apply it. Reflect: Based on the lectures, online forum discussions, self- and peer-assessments, and the project you will be expected to reflect on your new insights and changing views of innovation. My goal is to help you develop your own personal perspective on innovation and an approach that works for you. It is this new perspective that will be the ultimate take-away of value from the course.

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Expectations of Participants In recognition that participants will not have the same learning objectives, available time or access to collaborative colleagues, this course is offered at two levels of engagement. Participants successfully completing the standard level will receive a standard Statement of Accomplishment, whereas those successfully completing the project-based Studio Mastery track assignments will receive a Statement of Accomplishment With Distinction. Standard Track Students at this level achieving a score of 75% or higher on the deliverables outlined below will receive a PDF entitled “Statement of Accomplishment” that indicates proficiency with the course concepts and framework. This track is designed for those who wish to engage the material at a deep level, but who are not able to commit the time to a team-based project. Estimated Time Commitment: 4 – 6 Hours Per Week Requirements:

• Lecture Quizzes (25%) of Grade • Assigned Readings (5%) • Constraint Diagnostic Survey (10%) • Diagnostic Survey Reflection (20%) • Peer Assessment & Feedback Assignments (20%) • Participation in Online Discussions (20%)

Studio Mastery Track Students at this level achieving a score of 75% or higher on the deliverables outlined below will receive a signed PDF entitled “Statement of Accomplishment – With Distinction” that certifies mastery of the course conceptual content and in applying it to an innovation project. This track is designed for those students wishing to achieve mastery of the course material and to understand its application in a real-world project context. Estimated Time Commitment: 6 – 10 Hours Per Week Requirements

• All “Standard Track” Requirements Outlined Above (40%) of Grade • Week 1: Innovation Project Brief – Group Assignment (5%) • Week 2: Design Brief Peer Assessment & Feedback – Individual Assignment • Week 2: 101 Ideas Generation – Individual Assignment (5%) • Week 3: Concept Definition Forms – Group Assignment (20%) • Week 4: Concepts Peer Assessment & Feedback – Individual Assignment • Week 5: Diagnostic Worksheet – Individual Assignment (15%) • Week 6: Diagnostic Peer Assessment & Feedback– Individual Assignment • Week 6: Project Prototyping Plan – Group Assignment (5%) • Week 8: Project Presentation Video – Group Assignment (10%) • Week 8: Project Peer Assessment & Feedback– Individual Assignment

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Course Schedule

Week 1: Introduction: Why Everyone Wants Innovation but No One Wants to Change

Standard Deliverables Studio Mastery Deliverables

Lecture: The Context of Innovation Blog Discussion: “World’s 50 Most (OVERRATED) Innovative Companies” Online Diagnostic & Reflection: “What kind of Innovator am I?” Recommended Reading: “Creative People Must Be Stopped!” (CPMBS) Textbook Chapter 1 – Pages 3-23

Project Goal This Week: Form Team & Develop Charter Project Assignment #1: (Group Assignment) § Team Roster Assignment § Innovation Opportunities Assignment § Innovation Project Design Brief Project Coaching Video: Scoping an Innovation Project

Week 2: Individual Constraints: Why Most of Us Are More Creative Than We Think


Lectures: Are Innovators Born or Made? A Psychological View of Innovation Blog Discussion: What usually stops you from having good ideas? What advice would you give to someone with that same problem? Online Diagnostic & Reflection: Individual Constraints Readings: Neuroscience and Creativity, FASTCO; Three Kinds of Imagination, LEGO SeriousPlay Optional Reading: Textbook: Chapter 2

Project Goal This Week: Generate Solution Ideas Project Assignment #2: (Individual Assignment) § 101 Ideas Assignment Peer Assessment & Feedback #1 § #1 Project Design Brief Project Coaching Video: 101 Hints for Idea Generation

Week 3: Group Constraints: Why a Brainstorm Meeting Can Be Worse Than No Meeting at All


Lecture: Two Brains Are Better Than One— Except When They Aren’t. A Group-Focused View of Innovation Blog Discussion: Describe a behavior that you have you observed in a group that ruined the group’s brainstorming efforts? Online Diagnostic & Reflection: Group Constraints Peer Assessment & Feedback: Individual Constraints Reading: Pursuit of Perfect Brainstorm, NYT Optional Reading: Textbook: Chapter 3

Project Goal This Week: Develop Solution Concepts Project Assignment #3: (Group Assignment) § Concept Definition Forms (4x per Group) Peer Assessment & Feedback: § None Project Coaching Video: Getting to Concepts from Ideas

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Week 4: Organizational Constraints: Why You’ll Never Be a Prophet in Your Own Hometown


Lecture: Do Innovation and Organization belong in the same sentence? A Business Person’s View of Innovation Blog Discussion: Describe an organization you are familiar with that is not innovative. What is the problem there? Online Diagnostic & Reflection: Organizational Constraints Peer Assessment & Feedback: Group Constraints Reading: Twelve Weird Ideas (That Work), Sutton Optional Reading: Textbook Chapter 4

Project Goal This Week: Process External Feedback Project Assignment: § None Peer Assessment & Feedback #2: § Concept Definition Forms Project Coaching Video: Giving Feedback to Creative People

Week 5: Industry Constraints: If It’s Such a Great Idea, Why Isn’t Our Competitor Doing It?


Lecture: Driving Innovation with Competition: A Market-Based View of Innovation Blog Discussion: What are today’s least innovative industries today? What have they done (or failed to do) that lead them to this state of affairs? Online Diagnostic & Reflection: Industry Constraints Peer Assessment & Feedback: Organizational Constraints Reading: Education Innovation (see website) Optional Reading: Textbook Chapter 5

Project Goal This Week: Diagnose Concept Constraints Project Assignment #4: (Individual Assignment) § Constraint Diagnostic Worksheet Peer Assessment & Feedback: § None Project Coaching Video: Finding the Show-Stopper Constraint

Week 6: Societal Constraints: Why My Innovation Means You Have to Change


Lecture: Can We Choose to Change Society? A Values-Based View of Innovation Blog Discussion: Describe one social innovation that has impressed you in the past 10 years. What do you think was the most critical barrier? Online Diagnostic & Reflection: Societal Constraints Peer Assessment & Feedback: Industry Constraints Reading: (see website) Optional Reading: Textbook Chapter 6

Project Goal This Week: Build, Test & Execute Strategy Project Assignment #5: (Group Assignment) § Project Prototyping Plan Peer Assessment & Feedback #3: § Constraint Diagnostic Worksheet Project Coaching Video: Prototyping Innovations

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Week 7: Technological Constraints: How to Take a Really Hard Problem and Make It Completely Impossible


Lecture: What’s Hard About Manipulating Matter, Time, and Space: An Engineer’s View of Innovation Blog Discussion: Describe one area of your life that has benefitted from technological innovation. Has that innovation caused other “ripple” constraints to develop when considered more globally? Online Diagnostic & Reflection: Technological Constraints Peer Assessment & Feedback: Societal Constraints Reading: Segway LLC (6 Pages) Optional Reading: Textbook Chapter 7

Project Goal This Week: Execute & Document Project Project Assignment: § None Peer Assessment & Feedback: § None Project Coaching Video: Your Innovation Portfolio

Week 8: When Failure Is Not an Option: Leading an Innovation Strategy


Lecture: Show Me The Money: Constraints on the Adoption of Innovation Blog Discussion: Creative People Must Be Stopped! Why don’t we see a lot of innovation in education, healthcare or politics? Online Diagnostic & Reflection: “Using Your Results” Peer Assessment & Feedback: Technological Constraints Reading: (see website) Optional Reading: Textbook Chapter 8

Project Goal This Week: Share Your Insights Project Assignment #6: (Group Assignment) § Project Presentation Video 2 minutes in length Peer Assessment & Feedback #4: § Project Presentation Feedback Project Coaching Video: Creative People Must Be Stopped!

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Deliverables and Assessment Details Exact due dates and deadlines are presented in the online course schedule and in the course website. Please check there often for unanticipated changes to the schedule.)

Standard Track Details Video Lectures & Inline Quizzes - There are approximately 90-120 minutes of video (lectures and exercises) per week. These videos will stop approximately every 5 minutes with a brief quiz or exercise. Most of the quizzes are graded on a completed/not-completed basis, but those quizzes occurring at the end of major lecture sections will be graded. (1.5–2 Hours / Week) Readings – Each week you will be presented to links to (free) readings for the course. You are asked to choose one (or more) of them to read. After reading the article, click the “reading completed” quiz link to register to signify your completion of the assignment. (Approx. 1 Hour / Week) Constraint Diagnostic Assessments – Each week you will be directed to a survey to complete. The survey will help you diagnose whether you suffer from the innovation constraints being discussed that week. Simply complete the survey to receive full credit. (10 Minutes / Week) Reflection Exercise – After you complete your personal Constraint Diagnostic Assessments (see above), you will receive an email with your results. Each week during the course and based on these results you are asked to write a short 2-paragraph (100 – 200 words) reflection essay that identifies your biggest constraint and that indicates what you can do to overcome it. These reflections will be peer-assessed by other students in the course using a rubric developed by the instructor. (30–60 Minutes / Week) Peer Assessment & Feedback – After all students’ Reflection Exercises have been submitted, you will be randomly assigned the papers of several other students for assessment and feedback. The grade will be assessed using a rubric developed by the instructor. However, the feedback is open and so students are asked to provide meaningful feedback. Failure to complete the peer-assessment and feedback assignments you are assigned will disqualify you from getting credit for the assignment. (20 - 40 Minutes / Week) Discussion Participation - Each week the professor will post a topic on the class discussion board. You are asked to respond to the post and/or to comment on the posts of other students in the course. Your grade will be determined directly by the number of posts you make (up to 3 per week for a maximum total of 24). Besides giving your written opinion, you can also get one post worth of participation credit by “up-voting” other students’ posts. (10 – 30 Minutes / Week)

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Studio Mastery Track Details

The “Studio Mastery” track is designed for students who wish to gain hands-on mastery by completing a team-based innovation project in the context of the course. Beyond helping to develop collaboration skills, the project is intended to drive deeper engagement with the course material. Teams will be taught a formal process for completing the projects with defined weekly activities and deliverables, with each week’s assignment mirroring the topics discussed in the lectures that week. This enables students to test the ideas and to apply them at the same time they are being learned. Student teams are free to address any problem of any size in any way that they find to be appropriate, but I have found that simpler projects will tend to have more learning value. It is also important to note that your group is expected to IMPLEMENT the solution by the end of the course using only the time, money, and other resources that members of the team have direct access to. If you are in search of a team or others to join your team, please refer to the class discussion board dedicated to that topic.

Please Read This Important Note: ALL COURSE DELIVERABLES MUST BE SUBMITTED BY YOU INDIVIDUALLY, regardless of whether they were created by a group of not. I repeat: you must MAKE YOUR OWN SUBMISSION FOR EVERY COURSE ASSIGNMENT even if it is exactly the same document that your team members will also be turning in on a group assignment. There will be absolutely no exceptions allowed. Week 1: Project Assignment 1a: Team Roster (Group Assignment) - The purpose of this assignment is to identify a group of people you will collaborate with to do the course project. Teams can be virtual or face-to-face and must have between three (3) and six (6) members. As we will discuss in the class during the discussion on group constraints, limiting the group size will facilitate frequent interaction and discourage inadvertent social loafing among members. Please note that project team members will require relatively frequent contact in order to meet the required deliverable schedules for the project. You may find it useful to use a collaboration tool like Google Docs if you are unable to meet face-to-face on a weekly basis. Each member of the team must submit the team’s roster (and all other assignments) individually. Week 1 Project Assignment 1b: Innovation Opportunities (Individual Assignment) - The purpose of this assignment is to allow each member of the team generate and then to share his or her ideas about what innovations they might like to pursue; this gives the team a large sample of opportunities from which to choose. You are to generate a list of at least 5 challenges that you face in your everyday life (work, school, community, social club, etc.) that you would like to solve during this 8-week course. After sharing your list your team will have to choose one (and only one) topic to pursue as your project.

Week 1 Project Assignment 1c: Project Design Brief (Group Assignment) - The purpose of this assignment is to get together as a team and to develop a design brief that articulates your innovation challenge. You are to hold a team meeting where you review all of the individual opportunities generated by group members, allowing each team member to briefly explain their ideas. Next, work to reach a group consensus on which single challenge the team will address. The team may need to modify the initial proposal into a form that all team members can support. The student whose idea is chosen will need to take on the responsibility of acting as an agent for carrying out the group’s implementation plan.

Once your team has chosen a project topic, complete the Project Design Brief. This document defines the project, states why it is important, identifies the stakeholders, and serves as a benchmark for completion. After your team has completed the brief, each and every team member must individually submit a copy of it to receive credit in this track.

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Week 2 Project Peer Assessment and Feedback 1: Project Design Brief (Individual Assignment) - The purpose of this assignment is to allow you to see how other teams have completed the design brief and to give them feedback about how effective it is. You will be assigned several other teams’ Project Design Briefs to assess. An instructor-developed rubric will be provided for you to use in your assessment. By following the instructions carefully, you will not only be able to provide your fellow students with concise and meaningful feedback for their project brief, but you will also learn ways of making your own future problem definition statements better.

Week 2 Project Assignment 2: 101 Ideas Generation (Individual Assignment) - The purpose of this exercise is to generate a large number of ideas that could potentially solve your problem while allowing you to improve your skill at idea generation. Working completely by your self, generate 101 ideas for solving your team’s innovation problem and cut-and-paste them into the assignment submission form. Descriptions of your ideas should be brief (i.e. a sentence or less). The goal is not to have great (or even good) ideas; the goal is to have a lot of ideas. This means that you may need to stretch yourself into the realm of the improbable or impossible to reach the 101-idea target. This means some concepts will be more practical while some will be more radical; that is not important at this stage. Simply challenge yourself to be creative and to overcome the individual innovation constraints. Once you have created 101 unique ideas, submit the form and then share them with your teammates. You must submit at least 101 ideas to get full credit for this assignment.

Week 3 Project Assignment 3: Concept Definition Forms (Group Assignment) - The purpose of this assignment is to teach you how to synthesize, distill, and assess a large quantity of ideas into a small number of manageable concepts. Proceed by sharing all the hundreds of ideas your team has generated with all members. Ideally, you will do this in a meeting where members can explain any ideas that need explanation. As a team, take your most interesting sets of ideas and through a process of synthesis, distillation, and assessment, identify the four most potentially successful and innovative solution-concepts. Next, for each of the four (4) solution concepts the team has chosen, fill out the Concept Definition Form provided. Your team will develop a description of the critical favorable and constraining factors in the spaces provided in the form. Do this for each of the 4 concepts and attach a copy of your design brief as well. After your team has completed all of the concept definition forms, each and every team member must individually submit it order to receive credit in this track.

Week 4 Project Peer Assessment and Feedback 2: Concept Definition Forms (Individual Assignment) - The purpose of this assignment is to let you see how other teams have described their solution concepts and to give them feedback about the constraints they are likely to face. You will be asked to review up to four concept definition forms created by other teams and to provide meaningful feedback for these concepts. An instructor-developed rubric will be provided for you to use in your assessment. By following the instructions carefully, you will be providing fellow students with concise and meaningful feedback and will learn how to make your own future concept descriptions better. The type of feedback you will be providing will fall along the following lines: What unidentified challenges may these groups may face regarding their concepts? How can an idea be improved? What features can they use to sell their concept?

Week 5 Project Assignment 4: Concept Diagnostic Worksheet (Individual Assignment) - The purpose of this assignment is to learn to integrate feedback from outside sources into your innovation strategy and to practice applying the formal Constraints Diagnostic model to one of your solution concepts. Start by making sure that all members of the team have been able to review ALL feedback from the Concept Definition peer assessments from last week. Next, choose the one (1) concept that you personally think will be the best

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solution. Now complete the Concept Assessment Worksheet for that one concept. The worksheet will allow you to evaluating this concept relative to each of the innovation constraints, identify the two most critical constraints, and to propose a strategy for addressing each critical constraint. Allow for approximately 100-200 words for each evaluation and 200-400 words for the proposed strategies.

Week 6 Project Assessment and Feedback 3: Concept Diagnostic Worksheet (Individual Assignment) - The purpose of this assignment is let you see how others have diagnosed their innovation constraints and let you see a wide range of possible strategies they have developed for overcoming them. An instructor-developed rubric will be provided for you to use in your assessment. By following the instructions carefully, you will not only be able to provide your fellow students with meaningful feedback on their strategies, but you will also gain mastery in the constraint diagnostic process.

Week 6 Project Assignment 5: Project Prototyping Plan (Group Assignment) - The purpose of this assignment is to pull the team back together around the innovation project and to show you how to generate information that will help you determine which of the concepts you are exploring is likely to be successful. As I will discuss in the lectures, prototyping is a useful tool that generates information quickly and cheaply. Our goal will be to determine out which of the concepts is likely NOT to work. That way we won’t spend any more effort on that concept and can use that effort for testing and implementing the more promising concepts. You will use the Project Prototyping Plan form to define the information-generating experiments you will use in order to answer the critical questions that remain as you move to the implementation/execution stage for your project.

Week7: No Deliverables

Week 8 Project Assignment 6: Documenting Your Innovation Success or Failure (Group Assignment) - The purpose of this assignment is to allow you to show your work on the project to others in the course while sharing your insights about your process, and more importantly, about the most critical constraints you faced and how you succeeded (or failed) to overcome them. To this end you are asked to create a 2 or 3-minute presentation that documents the success or failure of your implementation. You should BRIEFLY describe the problem, outline the constraints you faced, and then share the steps you used to overcome them. Reference the submission form for specific instructions on creating and uploading your team’s presentation.

Week 8 Project Assessment and Feedback 4: Project Presentation - The purpose of this assignment is to learn from the projects of others in the class, and to give feedback to them about their projects and about how they communicated their process to us. You will be asked to view at least two of the video presentations and then to upvote and/or comment on those you think were best. Please check the assignment link in the website for further instructions.

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Course FAQ

• What are the readings for the course and where are they available? Freely available readings will be assigned for each course session. I also recommend that students purchase the book "Creative People Must Be Stopped!" which was written specifically for this course.

• What background is required of participants? Ideally, participants will have had work experience in some type of organization. Management experience is a plus, but is not required.

• Can you teach people how to be creative and innovative? This course does not try to teach people how to be creative. Rather, it teaches us how to stop stopping creativity. If we can do that, a person's natural creativity will easily bloom.

• What is the format of the class? The class will consist of lecture videos, assigned readings, exercises and individual and team assignments.

• Will I receive a certificate or statement of completion for completing the class? Yes. Participants who complete the requirements at a 75% level will receive a statement of accomplishment; those who also successfully complete the Studio Mastery project track will receive a statement of accomplishment with a special designation of “with distinction.” See the course syllabus for more details.

• Is the project required to successfully complete the class? No. Only the Studio Mastery track requires completion of a project in a team.

• How do the project teams work (given that this is an online class)? To meet the learning objectives of the Studio Mastery track in the course, participants will work in small student-initiated and managed teams to complete the course project assignments. You are strongly encouraged to recruit other local participants to take the course with you if you’d like to do the project track.

• What if I don't have a team? How can I find a team to join? You will be able to post to the class discussion board to recruit team members in the first week of class. However, you will not be able to start on the assigned group exercises and project deliverables until you have formed a team.

• Do I need to watch the lectures live? No. You can download and watch the lectures at your own convenience.

• How much does it cost to take the course? The course is free. When assigned, readings will be available through links on the Internet. See above for information on the recommended (but not required) textbook.

• How can I learn more about the course? This course is based on the popular Innovation Strategy class at the Owen Graduate School of Management at Vanderbilt University. This animated video describes the basic intellectual framework of the course.

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About the Instructor David A. Owens is Professor of the Practice of Management and Innovation at Vanderbilt’s Graduate School of Management, where he directs the Executive Development Institute. He also holds a secondary appointment at the School of Engineering’s department of engineering management. Specializing in innovation and new product development, he is known as a dynamic speaker and is the recipient of numerous teaching awards. He provides education and consulting services for a wide range of clients around the world, and his work has been featured in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, London Guardian and San Jose Mercury News, as well as on NPR’s Marketplace. Owens has consulted for NASA, The Smithsonian, Nissan, Gibson Music, Alcatel, Tetra Pak, Cisco, LEGO, The Henry Ford Museum and many other organizations. He has done product design work for well-known firms including Daimler Benz, Apple, Dell, Corning, Steelcase while working at IDEO Product Development. He also served as CEO of Griffin Technology, a large consumer electronics firm in the iPhone/iPad/iPod accessory market. Owens earned his PhD in management science and engineering through a joint fellowship program between Stanford’s Graduate School of Business and its School of Engineering. He holds an MS in engineering product design from the d.school at Stanford and is a registered professional electrical engineer (PE). In his current work, Owens focuses on concrete strategies for creating positive change in all types of organizations. His book “Creative People Must Be Stopped! Six Ways We Stop Innovation (Without Even Trying)” was published by Jossey-Bass Wiley in 2012.

innovation syllabus 2013r5

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