IN THIS ISSUE:

• Letter From Sarah
• Feature Article - Innovation Excellence Sizzles at 2009 Edison Awards
• Out of the Box
• Events and Resources
• About Sarah Caldicott

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Dear Innovator:

On April 1, I had the great privilege of hosting the 14th annual Edison Awards in Mountain View, California. Over 200 people packed the Computer History Museum for this important day honoring innovation excellence. We celebrated two of America's top innovation leaders - David Kelley, Chairman and Founder of IDEO -- as well as Dr. Susan Desmond-Hellman, President of Product Development at Genentech. Also in the limelight were development teams for a host of innovative products in 10 categories. (See this month's Feature Article for photos and a recap.)

How do we really measure innovation excellence? Can it all be boiled down to numbers and metrics?

There is no question that measuring the gross revenue generated from your new products each year is one key innovation barometer. Also crucial is the revenue potential represented by your new product pipeline.

But Edison's own innovation successes suggest that this game is not won entirely on metrics. Edison's extraordinary insight and sheer persistence are tough to quantify. What metric would you put to these? His positive mental outlook...his belief that there is a solution to every challenge...how do you measure these factors?

I would argue that at least 50% of innovation success is non-quantifiable. At least half of every innovation victory is achieved through the quintessential combination of culture + mindset + people.

To your innovation success,

PS: Please share this newsletter with a co-worker or a friend!

Feature Article - Innovation Excellence Sizzles at 2009 Edison Awards

(click here to view past newsletter issues)

Ask five people in your organization to define innovation, and you'll likely get five entirely different answers. But ask five people who attended the 2009 Edison Awards, and you'll get a more focused reply.

Why? Because for 8 hours on April 1, the audience which gathered for the 2009 Edison Awards witnessed an innovation Double Header. They not only saw two of America's leading innovators receive a 2009 Edison Achievement Award -- David Kelley of IDEO, and Dr. Susan Desmond-Hellman of Genentech - they also witnessed the winners of the 2009 Edison Best New Product Awards in 10 categories. While watching the stream of proud Gold, Silver and Bronze award recipients, everyone had an opportunity to learn about the role that mindset, culture, teamwork, and market connection play in innovation victory.

Here is a photo gallery of highlights from this extraordinary day of innovation...a day which reveals Innovation Excellence and its connection to Edison's own Five Competencies of Innovation. (For more photos, visit the Edison Awards Flickr gallery.)

And...please pay special attention to how this year's sponsors - Google, Steelcase, and Nielsen BASES (also shown in this month's Out of the Box) contributed to the amazing spirit of innovation at the awards!

Photo Highlights - 2009 Edison Achievement Awards™

	2009 Edison Achievement Award winner David Kelley describes how "design thinking" has played an important role in IDEO's success as a leader in innovation today. IDEO's philosophy overlaps extensively with Edison's Five Competencies of Innovation™.
Sarah recounts a humorous story about Thomas Edison to David and his younger brother Tom Kelley (left) - General Manager of IDEO and author of The Art of Innovation. Tom introduced David during the Edison Achievement Award portion of the day, offering the audience a humorous view of David's life as a teenager who always seemed to be doing something creative and fun.
	Sarah congratulates David upon the receipt of his 2009 Edison Achievement Award.
	David speaks with two participants in the 2009 Edison New Products Showcase.
	2009 Edison Achievement Award winner Dr. Susan Desmond-Hellmann - who goes by Sue - describes the intense work her teams undertook over the past 10 years to develop groundbreaking new drugs at Genentech. Genentech holds an industry reputation as a developer of breakthrough new drug concepts and delivery methods.
Sue offered the audience a sense of her wit and playfulness as she described the support of her husband - who is also a medical doctor -- over the course of her career, and the many extraordinary experiences they shared both in the U.S. and overseas.
Sue stands with the world's leading expert on Edison today, Dr. Paul Israel - who also served as co-emcee for the day - holding her 2009 Edison Achievement Award. A portion of the 20' long stage - designed by Steelcase - can be seen in the background.
	Sarah congratulates Sue on her extraordinary accomplishment. Sue is only the second woman to win an Edison Achievement Award...so far. Sarah promises this small club is soon going to be getting much larger...!
Photo Highlights - 2009 Edison Best New Product Awards™
All of the 2009 Edison Best New Product Award winners demonstrated important facets of Edison's own innovation best practices in their work. (Click here for a listing of all the winners.) Known as Edison's Five Competencies of Innovation, these best practices form a fundamental part of every product's baseline for consideration by the Edison Awards Steering Committee. No product can be placed on the Edison Best New Product Awards ballot unless that product and its development team fulfill a majority of the following five criteria. Here are a few shining examples:
EDISON INNOVATION COMPETENCY #1: Solution-centered Mindset: Persistence in the face of all odds, optimism, passion, and the willingness to take risks.   The Omnipod from Insulet was this year's Gold winner in the "Science & Medical" category. The team at Omnipod created an innovative solution for a critical Type 1 diabetes challenge which has remained unsolved for decades. Individuals suffering from Type 1 diabetes cannot produce insulin themselves, so they must either inject it or use a pump to get the insulin into their bloodstream. Pumps are more efficient than injections (and less painful) but very cumbersome and expensive. The Omnipod is a reasonably priced, compact device worn on the body of the patient, activated wirelessly from a handheld device which regulates insulin intake. The Omnipod team demonstrated a Solution-centered Mindset in creating this unique approach to a longstanding problem.
EDISON INNOVATION COMPETENCY #2: Kaleidoscopic Thinking: Development of robust concepts through ideation techniques that include pattern seeking, prototyping, and fantastical thinking.   Silver Edison winner in the "Transportation" category Curtis Wong applied extraordinary ingenuity in developing a software platform for the WorldWide Telescope from Microsoft. This breakthrough product allows viewers to take guided tours of the universe right from their compute r screen, experiencing star clusters and distant planets in multiple light spectra as well as diverse "chemical signatures" signaled by the presence of methane gas and other cosmic phenomena. The WorldWide Telescope is unique in its ability to serve as a tool for skilled astronomers as budding young star travelers.
EDISON INNOVATION COMPETENCY #3: Full-spectrum Engagement: Mastering the opposites that are required to achieve innovation success, such as protecting intellectual property as well as sharing it; being serious as well as playful.   Jonathan Matus accepted a Silver Edison in the "Electronics & Computers" category for the team that developed the Google Android phone. The team sourced applications for the Android both from within Google as well as from outside the company. Google was a sponsor of the Edison Awards, and had a fabulous interactive booth in the Edison New Products Showcase that allowed viewers to learn how to "surf" using a controller activated with their feet.
EDISON INNOVATION COMPETENCY #4: Master-mind Collaboration: Unleashing the power of innovation teams in a nourishing cultural environment which encourages debate and diversity.   The Gold Edison winner in "Media & Visual Communications" was won by the Instructional Genome, an educational software product from Noggin Labs that uses artificial intelligence to uniquely guide participants through a learning process most suited to their learning style. Noggin Labs founders Traci and Brian Knudson drew upon a diverse team of educators and technical experts to develop the unique software platform. It is currently being reviewed by the U.S. Department of Education as a possible means to advance more rapid learning in America's schools.
EDISON INNOVATION COMPETENCY #5: Super-value Creation: Creating and delivering new customer value in a way that can "move markets."   Procter & Gamble scored a Gold and a Silver Edison in the "Consumer Packaged Goods" category. Gold winner Tide to Go represents a revolutionary form change to the venerable Tide detergent formula. Its unique pen-like delivery system creates easy portability, and ease of use outside the home. Sarah Pasquinucci accepts the Gold Edison on behalf of the Tide to Go brand team.
Three Special "Thank You's!"
	Thank you to Dr. Paul Israel, Director and General Editor of the Edison Papers Project at Rutgers University. Paul also served as co-emcee for the day. The Edison Papers are the guarantor for the Edison Achievement Award.
	Thank you to Gigi Wang, President of the MIT/Stanford VLab for their gracious assistance in promoting the Edison Awards. Gigi also served as a presenter in the "Technology" category.
	Thank you to my comrades in arms Frank Bonafilia and Rachel Weissenburger, without whom the 2009 Edison Awards could never have taken place! You guys are awesome!

Out of the Box

This month's Out of the Box segment is dedicated to two individuals who made unique contributions to the 2009 Edison Awards. Rob Mooth and Dr. Curt Carlson epitomized the Edisonian quality, "Do everything with the least amount of friction." They put in yeoman's work on short notice!

Rob Mooth, a Vice President at Nielsen BASES - one of the sponsors of the 2009 Edison Awards - introduced the "Science & Medical" category. An odd pairing, you say? Well, BASES has branched out from its traditional Consumer Packaged Goods base, and now conducts market research and forecasting work in the pharmaceutical category, among others. BASES brings its deep ability to track consumer insights to this complex category where consumer perceptions of efficacy are significantly important to product success.

Dr. Curtis Carlson, President of SRI International, delivered inspirational comments toward the close of the afternoon, startling but delighting the audience with his statement that virtually every industry today is "wide open" for innovation. Among his many accolades, Dr. Carlson is one of six individuals who serves on the Innovation Panel at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

SRI International is one of the premier R&D "think tanks" in the U.S. today, and is responsible for several leading-edge innovations including the development of HDTV.

Events and Resources

About Sarah Caldicott

Sarah Miller Caldicott is a great grandniece of Thomas Edison, a 25-year marketing veteran, and co-author of "Innovate Like Edison: The Five-Step System for Breakthrough Business Success." She has assembled teams of highly experienced consultants and trainers to assist her in bringing Edison's Five Competencies of Innovation™ to organizations of all sizes. Sarah and her teams are capable of addressing business challenges from a diverse array of industries, in either a business-to-consumer or business-to-business environment.

Sarah is a dynamic and award-winning speaker, whose engaging style combines substantive business content with humor. Her invaluable experience offers an ideal resource for organizations seeking innovation success in today's rapidly integrating global marketplace.

Born and raised in the Midwest, Sarah received a BA from Wellesley College, where she was named a Wellesley College Scholar. She also holds an MBA from the Amos Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth. Sarah resides in Oak Park, Illinois, and has two teenage boys, Nicholas and Connor. For additional information on Sarah, click here.

©2009 by Sarah Miller Caldicott. All Rights Reserved.