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Cultivating a Culture of Innovation
Next Big Idea Club · Must Read
What can you learn
What can you learn
from 50 years of
innovation?
You're not just reading about innovation — you're learning how to do it from the people behind some of the biggest breakthroughs of the last half-century, at one of the most influential companies in the world.
All author proceeds support STEAM education charities
Praise
What the people who study innovation
What the people who study innovation
for a living are saying.
Given all the books written about innovation, you would think it was a solved problem. Far from it! …Don't deny yourself the joy of curling up with this one when contemplating your next big move.
For anyone who wants to establish a culture of innovation, the detailed principles and product stories showcase ways to address the key human challenges of inspiring people to co-create together. A bookshelf-worthy choice for current and future innovation leaders.
The gods must be crazy: I'm giving a blurb to a book about innovation at Microsoft. But… this guide equips readers with the tactics Microsoft has used to enhance its edge, influence, and market cap.
Microsoft has defied age and gravity, entering new businesses with the agility and ferocity of much younger competitors. How do they do it? The Insider's Guide takes you on a tour of what worked, what didn't, and most importantly what the company has learned along the way about innovation.
This isn't just a book—it's your golden ticket to Microsoft's factory of creativity and constant learning. Full of case studies on how to innovate well, you'll need not just one, but two highlighters.
This book delves into how Microsoft has transformed its entire value chain, from organizational structures to customer engagement strategies, to drive sustained innovation and create significant value. It is a compelling read for anyone looking to understand how to build a robust innovation strategy.
What makes The Insider's Guide rare and essential is that its authors have actually lived successful innovation for decades, seen it in its many forms and functions, and distilled in its pages the patterns and insights that move us from theory and myth into the reality of what it takes to thrive in this necessary human pursuit. The Insider's Guide is a must have, must read.
[It] offers a vital blueprint for educating the next generation of responsible business and technology leaders. It bridges the gap between academic theory and real-world practice, making it an indispensable resource for business schools committed to developing leaders who can drive both innovation and positive societal impact.
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The premise
Are there patterns that hold from one breakthrough to the next?
These are the questions Dean Carignan and JoAnn Garbin, two senior innovation leaders at Microsoft, set out to answer — by going back to the people who did the work.
- Are there innovation truisms that hold from one initiative to the next?
- Are there strategies that appear again and again in the success stories of businesses as varied as gaming and cloud infrastructure?
- Are there behaviors common to creative leadership in every role, from research to sales?
- And if these patterns exist, could they be distilled into teachable practices?
Part one · Learn from stories
Seven case studies. Seven very different roads to the same place.
Visual Studio Code
Embracing the Innovator's Dilemma
Microsoft Office
Unlocking Value with Strategic Design
Cognitive Services
Overcoming Defeat Through Extreme Collaboration
Microsoft Research
Building Bridges to the Future
Bing
Leveraging the Underdog Advantage
Responsible Innovation
Moving Fast Without Breaking Things
Part two · Learn from analysis
Four patterns that run through all of them.
01
Innovating Every Day
Making innovation standard, structured, and reliable.
02
Innovating Over the Years
Achieving continuous, adaptive innovation.
03
Innovating With Everyone
Igniting change by leading with emotion.
04
Innovating More Than Technology
Transforming the entire value chain.
In their own words
An insider's perspective from forty Microsoft leaders.
Researchers, general managers, designers, engineers, and the executives who backed them — interviewed about what actually happened.
Dave AuldRobbie BachSumit ChauhanKareem ChoudhryPenny CollisonChris DiasSusan DumaisJon FriedmanErich GammaEric HorvitzXuedong (“XD”) HuangLucas JoppaYu-Ting KuoJulia LiusonKate LuuKai MaetzelJen MartinSarah McGeeTrish MinerEric PetersonJordi RibasAnna RothDena SaundersMicheal SchechterAbigail SellenRohan ShahHarry ShumPhil SpencerTim StuartPatti ThibodeauJuliana TioandaSaurabh TiwaryDaniel Varonand more
Meet the authors
Two lifelong innovators.
The Intrapreneur
Dean Carignan
Dean has spent his career inside Microsoft, building and scaling new businesses from within — most recently in AI research and incubation.
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The Entrepreneur
JoAnn Garbin
JoAnn is a former Director of Innovation in Microsoft's cloud business and the founder of Regenerous Labs, a venture studio for the regenerative economy.
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Get the book
Available wherever books are sold.
Hardcover, ebook, and audiobook. All author proceeds go to STEAM education charities.
Prefer to learn by watching? The book is also a LinkedIn Learning course →