Lessons in Creativity from IDEO - America's Leading Design Firm

There is just one or two (not new) interesting concepts in this book and on top of it, the author could have captured them all in a few pages only. There was not really a good reason to write a this book except for letting us know how incredible IDEO is.

In comparison, "Ten faces of Innovation" is much more informative. Both books are easy to read and entertaining, but lack pragmatic advice. If you have to choose one of them, read "ten faces" only.

This is a great tale of innovation. What a pleasure it would be to work for a company who rewards creativity and strives to think outside the box. Rather than try to explain HOW a company innovates, Kelly takes specific design challenges and uses them to illistrate possibilities.

I bought this book because the synopsis led me to believe it would be a good read and might help me with my design work. I wasn't disappointed. I read it in one week on my spare time - and I don't like to read that much! The information was clear, well written and made me take a new look at design of everything around me. Of course, that could make me a cynic really quickly as I began to see the flaws in various designs and processes. That's a good thing! I would recommend this to anyone interested in or working in design. It has some interesting stories along the way that help frame (or unframe) your thinking about design. GOOD STUFF!!!

I just finished the book. Let me preface this with the fact that I've been an admirer of Tom Kelley and IDEO for quite some time now. I truely believe that they have a formula for success. Unfortunatly, Mr. Kelley keeps his secrets close to his chest. The book is a wonderful read, if your looking for "warm and fuzzy" techniques for managing innovation, but the thruth is many of us need measurable and quantifiable facts/processes to move our businesses forward. Obviously, this is the IP of IDEO and the're not about to give it away to sell books. If your career is about innovation, you need to know everything about IDEO, but I don't think you can rely on this book to do that.

A good business read - nicely organized with numerous examples of innovation that surround our daily life. Some of these stories begged for more depth and as a result, would likely have been more interesting than the somewhat chatty style of text that filled the rest of the pages.

Ideo is a fascinating company, and just reading about its adventures and ways is enjoyable. Beyond that, this is a great book to give you some creative nudges. Frankly, I think the title and subtitle oversell it. This isn't really some kind of guide that you can apply and become more creative. Not to say that it's not helpful in that way, but only in the most general sense of the word. Still, it is absolutely worth reading and enjoyable because an inside look at Ideo is not to be missed.

Currently working at a creative agency that was built on the foundation of engineering. This book has helped me to suggest ways to set up our environment and mindset to innovate for our client, as well as celebrate the magic that happens when hot teams produce innovative products. Great read, I have been singing it's praise around the office and encouraging people and leaders to read this.

Thanks Tom! We're just starting a new technology business and we're wanting and needing to create the sort of culture that you have at Ideo. Our industry is dynamic, so if we're not dynamic then we will not succeed. For us that means innovate - deliver true value to our customers - learn - innovate - deliver more value to our customers, in a continuous cycle. You have given us some practical ideas about how we can ingrain innovation into our culture as we grow. Thanks.

Looking to sharpen my thinking on the sacred topic of innovation in the marketplace I picked up this book, expecting some really well thought out insights backed up with cohesive logical arguments - I was disappointed in some ways.

Now IDEO is probably a great company, however the author is far from doing justice to the bold title that he has chosen for this book. It does talk a bit about the 3 stages in a potential process for innovation but then the book evolves (or devolves) into a discussion on office space arrangement and atmosphere. I do not want to underestimate the importance of office environment in shaping the culture of a company but find it too far fetched to believe that offering free food a couple of times a month and having a well thought out office environment (+ other similar tactics) are prerequisites to an innovation culture - there are examples where this has helped, but I can surely recall instances where the most informal office environment has not really led to any breakthrough innovation.

The author also gives a ton of examples, many times project work that IDEO has delivered and tries to drive conclusions based on those examples. The challenge I see is the lack of a cohesive theory connecting the examples to the conclusions drawn - i.e. how do we know that the specific attribute being discussed drove the final "desired outcome". To be fair to the author though, this is not the only book where I have seen such unsubstantiated causal attribution.

This book was inspirational to me because of the many examples of executing an idea. Since the examples were varied in application and product fields, it motivated me to review ideas that I have and encouraged me to risk launching some of them into the public waters.

I bought this book for a few friends of mine because it contains ignitable information. One young friend just graduated college and the other is a seasoned architect whom has stories of his own.

I read this book awile back during a vacation and couldn't put it down. I only read no-fiction books and this one was the best I'd ever read. I've never felt compelled to review a book before, but his one was worth it. It was very well written, informative as well as inspirational. It made me want to go work at Ideo. Well worth your time.

Dr. Ali Alwattari review - the "Art of Innovation" book describes parts of the human experience of innovation and is appropriately called the "art" of innovation. However, it does not outline how to actually innovate routinely.

Book seems to present a wholly "management" perspective to the Art of Design Innovation. Unfortunately, the author seems so caught up in his rose tinted view of events that most of the process and effort (read "real work") so necessary for successful Product Innovation hardly gets an honest mention. Is it any wonder that lots of people out there relate so well with Scott Adams' long-suffering Dilbert The Engineer cartoon character?

Wonderfully written and very informal.
A must read for people in any area of work - inspires and opens
your mind. Lots of case studies and insights into the minds of
some very creative folks at IDEO.

The amount of practical information that you can reduce to two pieces of paper. The rest of the book is spent telling us how wonderful IDEO is. Great marketing piece, but not very useful for the rest of us.

...for innovation, Tom Kelley writes a book full of energy and enthusiasm, but unfortunately NOT a lot of substance. THE ART OF INNOVATION describes the working atmosphere at IDEO, America's premiere design house. From his words, IDEO sounds like an incredible place to work, full of vigor and fun. However, the more you read, the more you realize that the author isn't really telling you too much about implementation. The essential premise "loosen up, have fun," is just about as useful as "just say no" when trying to successfully modify an office environment. I had hoped for more substance, with less hype and enthusiasm.
Still, author Kelley is right on the nose with what he DOES say, and his excitement for his work is palpable. IDEO is a winning company, and the author praises it in the context of a business-book. If you can take the concepts Kelley outlines, couple them with good technical skill, and merge it all with good business sense and a healthy dose of luck, you'll have a winner yourself. Just don't buy this book thinking that you'll get a recipe for your own IDEO.
Overall, a good, interesting read, if not exactly an academic treatise on the concept of innovation. :)

Thiis book is very interesting and insightful on the innovation process. Ideo is one of the best companies on fostering innovation. Must read for everyone. Lots of great case studies and examples. I recommend this book without qualifications. Great book!