Publications

September 2019
Teaching Note

Gun Safety in America: Three Leaders Propose Innovative Solutions

By: Rosabeth Moss Kanter and Joseph Paul

This is a teaching note to the original case: Gun violence was a significant problem in America. Three Harvard Advanced Leadership Initiative Fellows Christy Wood, Russell Sternlicht, and Gareth Glaser each decided to do something about gun safety. They each used... View Details

24 Jun 2008
News

Redefining Innovation

23 Nov 2010
Working Paper Summaries

Growth Through Heterogeneous Innovations

Keywords: by Ufuk Akcigit & William R. Kerr; Technology

Article

The Evolution of Science-Based Business: Innovating How We Innovate

By: Gary P. Pisano

Science has long been connected to innovation and to business. As early as the late 19th century, chemical companies, realizing the commercial potential of science, created the first industrial research laboratories. During much of the 20th century, large-scale... View Details

Keywords: Entrepreneurship; Governance; Innovation and Management; Risk Management; Research and Development; Science-Based Business; Commercialization

January 2014
Technical Note

A Note on Funding Digital Innovation Startups

By: Karim Lakhani, Michael Norris and Andrew Otazo

This note provides information on the state of startup financing in Silicon Valley in 2013. It details different avenues startups have to raise funding, including venture capital, corporate venture capital, angel investors, incubators, and crowdfunding. View Details

Keywords: Startup; Innovation ＆ Entrepreneurship; Angel Investors; Accelerator; Crowdfunding; Silicon Valley; Venture Capital; Entrepreneurship; California

Educators

Fall 2012
Article

Innovation Strategy and Entry Deterrence

By: Ozge Turut and Elie Ofek

We model an incumbent's decision to pursue radical or incremental innovation when facing a rival entrant. The radical innovation may yield lucrative financial returns but entails significant technological and market-related uncertainties. It is also particularly... View Details

Keywords: Competition; Innovation Strategy; Risk and Uncertainty; Markets; Mathematical Methods

2008
Book

The Venturesome Economy: How Innovation Sustains Prosperity in a More Connected World

By: Amar Bhide

Keywords: Innovation; Globalization

November–December 2018
Article

Slack Time and Innovation

By: Ajay Agrawal, Christian Catalini, Avi Goldfarb and Hong Luo

Traditional innovation models assume that new ideas are developed up to the point where the benefit of the marginal project is just equal to the cost. Because labor is a key input to innovation when the opportunity cost of time is lower, such as during school breaks or... View Details

Keywords: Crowdfunding; Slack Time; Innovation and Invention; Labor; Projects; Complexity; Value

Article

Dismantling Knowledge Boundaries at NASA: The Critical Role of Professional Identity in Open Innovation

By: Hila Lifshitz - Assaf

Using a longitudinal in-depth field study at NASA, I investigate how the open, or peer-production, innovation model affects R&D professionals, their work, and the locus of innovation. R&D professionals are known for keeping their knowledge work within clearly defined... View Details

Keywords: Innovation; Knowledge Boundaries; Boundary Work; Professional Identity; Open Innovation; Identity Work; Technological Change; Nasa; Innovation and Invention; Knowledge; Science; Technology; Engineering; Change; Aerospace Industry; North and Central America

18 Nov 2011
News

Harvard Innovation Lab Opens

December 2016 (Revised December 2018)
Case

From Start-Up to Grown-Up Nation: The Future of the Israeli Innovation Ecosystem

By: Elie Ofek and Margot Eiran

In June 2016, Benjamin (Bibi) Netanyahu, Prime Minister of Israel, wrestled with how to sustain Israel’s strong innovation track record and the country’s reputation as the “startup nation.” Despite the economic miracle the country had wrought since its founding, he... View Details

Educators

15 Nov 2006
Research & Ideas

Lessons Not Learned About Innovation

Every managerial generation rediscovers the need for innovation to drive growth but, decade after decade, "grand declarations about innovation are followed by mediocre execution that produces anemic... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne

Article

Advancing Computational Biology and Bioinformatics Research Through Open Innovation Competitions

By: Andrea Blasco, Michael G. Endres, Rinat A. Sergeev, Anup Jonchhe, Max Macaluso, Rajiv Narayan, Ted Natoli, Jin H. Paik, Bryan Briney, Chunlei Wu, Andrew I. Su, Aravind Subramanian and Karim R. Lakhani

Open data science and algorithm development competitions offer a unique avenue for rapid discovery of better computational strategies. We highlight three examples in computational biology and bioinformatics research where the use of competitions has yielded significant... View Details

Keywords: Computational Biology; Bioinformatics; Innovation Competitions; Research; Collaborative Innovation and Invention

January–February 2019
Article

The Hard Truth About Innovative Cultures

By: Gary P. Pisano

Innovative cultures are generally depicted as pretty fun. They’re characterized by a tolerance for failure and a willingness to experiment. They’re seen as being psychologically safe, highly collaborative, and nonhierarchical. And research suggests that these behaviors... View Details

Keywords: Organizational Culture; Innovation and Invention; Performance Expectations; Leadership

Register to Read

March 2023
Supplement

Innovation at Google Ads: The Sales Acceleration and Innovation Labs (SAIL) (B)

By: Linda A. Hill and Emily Tedards

In 2018, Ana Owczarzak was appointed to lead Google Ads' new innovation and accelerator team - the Sales Acceleration and Innovation Labs (SAIL). The purpose of SAIL was to offer testing and incubation services for individuals within Google Ads who were developing new... View Details

Keywords: Innovation Leadership; Organizational Culture; Technology Industry; Information Technology Industry; Advertising Industry; United States

2011
Chapter

Innovations in Governance

By: Raymond Fisman and Eric Werker

In this paper we explore the innovations in governance that have promoted investment and growth. Some policymakers have tinkered with their country's institutions, some have undertaken wholesale changes, while others have attempted to influence the rules in other... View Details

Keywords: Economic Growth; Investment; Governance; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Policy; Government and Politics; Innovation and Invention