Anywhere, by Emily Green

Review by M. Miche Suboski / Your Business Advisor -- About 5 years ago I read a paper about Innovation by Peter Denning called "The Social Life of Innovation". In this paper, Peter Denning describes the important difference between invention and innovation. He stipulates that the invention of something without the adoption of new practices for use in a community has no impact on the inventor or the society within which he or she lives. This concept has been profoundly important in my work with small business owners. Business owners are constantly inventing something new to sell to their client base and often run their business into the red by chasing after a revenue stream without any thought to the practices the community would have to be in to actually find their invention valuable.

While reading "Anywhere: How Global Connectivity is Revolutionizing the Way we do Business" my thinking was continually triggered to the difference between invention and innovation. There have been few books, articles, or white papers that step more clearly through the process of innovation in a given area. This book could have significant wide reaching impact on owners of small businesses should they take the time to read it.

Emily Nagle Green has provided a fabulous mix of case studies, constitutive writing and visioning for the future that can get business owners innovating for themselves … with a little help. Technology and its future progression are somewhat of an unknown. However, given the trajectory or the uses of new technology, we can only speculate that it will continue to advance at an amazing pace. Technology, in particular connectivity, is not likely to be a core competency of the vast majority of business owners, and those who make it part of their arsenal will have a clear advantage. The bit of help to give business owners this advantage begins in "Anywhere".

"Anywhere" helps business owners be innovative by making it clear that the benefits of virtually any product or service (invention) can be increased through the use of connectivity. Ergo the practices for their use will be intuitive and made easier through innovation. Green says in adding connectivity to their products, the focus of business owners should be on the question, "Does it enhance a core benefit or lessen a current pain point?"

I found "Anywhere" to be an easy read with much to think about that will benefit both my clients and me (I am a small business advisor). Not surprisingly, there is also a significant amount of material the author makes available on the web which will help business owners inculcate innovation processes. Thanks to Emily Green, president of The Yankee Group for the compilation and the poke to give us a competitive advantage for the future.

Anywhere: How Global Connectivity is Revolutionizing the Way we do Business, by Emily Green is available at Amazon.