“The Best Innovation Tool is Continuous Learning”
Dennis Kennedy recently published a new book entitled Successful Innovation Outcomes in Law: A Practical Guide for Law Firms, Law Departments and Other Legal Organizations. In essence, it’s a primer and “how-to” on innovation in law and generally.
Kennedy is well known as an astute legal commentator and thinker. Perhaps that’s because he has worn so many hats during his career: in-house lawyer, technologist, author, and adjunct professor, to name a few. As he puts it, “innovation is a visible thread that runs through my career.” (By way of disclosure, I have known Dennis for several years and, like many others, turn to him often for advice and guidance. He never disappoints).
His new book is all about techniques and skills for innovating within organizations. Kennedy subtle and facilely moves from esoteric theory to practical advice. While the book sometimes dwells a bit on theory, particularly at the beginning (which may unfortunately drive away some lawyers who glaze over at anything that remotely resembles non legal theory), it is long on practical advice. Kennedy weaves the theory into the concrete and enables the practical-minded to skip over the theory without missing the actual lessons. (For those who want theory behind practical advice and to understand better where Kennedy is coming from, the theory is all there or well referenced). The book is mostly about what works.
He concludes this chapter with some blunt and very practical advice: “get to work on innovation however you define it, and let others talk.”
A good example: Kennedy starts his book by discussing the definition of innovation. Reading through the several theoretical concepts and definitions sometimes at odds with one another, Kennedy ignores the temptation to get lost in the theoretical and
