Mass Innovation

Great article in the October 11th issue of The Economist entitled "The age of mass innovation". The article talks about the real threat America faces in terms of loosing its innovative edge to countries like India and China. This is not unlike the threat American manufacturers faced in the early 1980's when Japanese companies were winning the war on cost and quality. Edward Deming warned us, but it was the Japanese who listened. Will history repeat itself when it comes to innovation? My experience has been that the creative potential and talent exists within most countries and organizations, but few are successful at harnessing this potential. I think this has allot to do with complacency that comes with prolonged success. History has taught us that there is no finish line and countries and companies must always be adapting if they don't want to become extinct. The article quotes Elon Musk whose equation for success is "talent times drive times opportunity". How we as a nation can more effectively link the people with talent and drive with the opportunities will determine our future success.