Keys for Building and Leading Teams for Innovation in Organizations: Three Book Reviews and Author Commentaries

Abstract

This “From the Boardroom” introductory article and the subsequent book reviews builds on a recent book review by this Editor that focused on “Why Startups Fail: New Roadmap for Entrepreneurial Success” (by Harvard professor Tom Eisenmann, also published in this edition of JCB. Eisenman’s excellent book was based on a multi-company study of early-stage companies that succeeded vs. those that failed. He found that the extended team and its leadership are the most important predictors of success of an entrepreneurial venture. This finding, highlighted that leadership based on teams, partnerships, alliances and networks are important success factors in all industries. They are a means to create and sustain a competitive advantage to commercialize and bring innovations to market and fulfill unmet needs. Reading Eisenmann’s book prompted me to now take a “deeper dive” into the essential components needed for success to build, grow, lead and sustain innovative organizations of any size – from startups through their emergent growth stages, and to maturity. This encouraged me to find other materials to complement Eisenmann’s book