Personal Reviews:

Gretchen Sand:

Having read many books on innovation, I appreciate that Mr. Kalafus addresses innovation from both a systemic and historical perspective. It’s not just the organization, but many elements and conditions surrounding the instant of innovation that foster the activity. I’ll be rereading The Innovative Society again soon and recommend it for entrepreneurs and leaders of technology, community leaders and innovators, educators and students of engineering, science, and technology, and anyone seeking a deeper understanding of the process of innovation.

Donald Barnett:

This book, while thoroughly researched and in a scholarly manner, is easy to read. The sentences flow logically from one to the next. The information is both a reminder of things generally known and new information, many times about events or people not in the general knowledge base. The conclusions about what makes for an innovative society are refreshingly new and eminently sensible. And, it’s a good read!

Robert A. Hersch:

First, I enjoy history and the author discusses the “Innovative Society” historically in a very complete manner. He shows how the ancients dealt with the subject and how gradually over the centuries true innovation was developed. One does not have to be a scientist or engineer to appreciate what the author is showing us. He shows us how some parts of civilization were successful and how some where not, even to the present.

Second, his writing is very clear, with some humor thrown in.

My opinion is that this book can be appreciated by anyone, although having some interest and perhaps background in history helps.

Donald Yansen:

The author presents a fresh look at how innovation in organizations, countries, small groups, even individuals, comes about and why.

An impressive amount of historical evidence is presented supporting the author’s well-reasoned conclusions, tracing innovation from early Greek, Roman, and Middle Eastern societies to the present. He shows convincingly why his five specific conditions need to be present for innovation to thrive. Along the way the author gives many new and fascinating stories, some that demonstrate why dramatic progress was made and others why stagnations occurred.

The book is extremely informative, easy to read and a fun journey through the history of innovation. The author includes some intriguing questions in his final chapter.

This is a thought-provoking and important addition to the understanding of innovation throughout history and what works today. A wide range of readers will find this a thoroughly enjoyable and worthwhile read.

Myra L. Rice:

I enjoyed that the author wrote about the histories of several countries outside the U.S, and Europe.

He also gave precise reasons for his 5 essential conditions for an innovative society.

Interesting reading for the inventor, employer, countries who would like to create an environment for innovation and the casual reader who is interested in these ideas.

Kathryn Morgan:

The Innovative Society is a rare book: it is easy to read and follow, even to chuckle over, but at the same time it discusses a weighty and significant topic in depth. One of its secrets is that it is clearly organized, written, and edited so you don’t get lost; it is easy to follow. Also, unlike so much writing in this Internet age, it doesn’t just blare its author’s unfounded opinions; it is well-reasoned and researched, with hundreds of citations of respectable, knowledgeable sources. Finally, the writing is not pompous or dull. It is clear, full of common sense, and will reward the reader not only with lively anecdotes but little gleaming gems of humor. In our times when innovation, and keeping up with innovation, are so important to success, this is refreshing and important book.

Ralph J. Pledger:

First a disclosure: I know the author — he is my cousin. With that behind me, I want to say that I really like this book (hereafter TIS). It happens to be a topic that I explored superficially in the past and like Rudy I did not find very good available materials.

TIS is divided into two major sections. The first section “Innovation in History” is a brief and readable overview of the history of innovation starting with pre-dynastic Egypt. A useful distinction is made between “blue and white collar” innovation. The topics are necessarily covered quickly but there are many interesting insights.

The second section “How, Where, and Why Innovation Occurs” treats the issue within an analytical framework. Five conditions that the author proposes promote innovation are considered in apposition to a much larger list of conditions that have been proposed by others. Clear criteria are proposed for determining if a condition is a general requirement for an innovative society or a nonessential enabler. This approach has the value of being focusing and simplifying. The analysis is generally convincing.

A couple of nits:

• A significant amount of the historical material is drawn from non-specialist sources. I expect that experts in the various fields would challenge the generality and/or accuracy of some assertions.
• TIS is oriented to the physical sciences and engineering obviously because that is where the author’s experience and expertise lie. I would like to see a somewhat broader treatment including more from biology, medicine and other fields — maybe in the 2nd edition.

To conclude, I think that The Innovative Society is the single best high-level contribution to this topic. I hope and expect that it will be widely read and probably be the nexus for debate around this important and understudied issue.