Guest post by John Heaney, principal at Orange Envelopes.

The National Science Foundation released a disturbing study recently that revealed that only nine percent of American companies engaged in any product or process innovation during the three-year study period (2006-08).

Frankly, I’m not surprised with the near absence of corporate innovation because I see so few companies that encourage a culture of innovation.

Too many CEOs focus exclusively on improving financial metrics – increasing earnings and keeping a tight control over costs. Few understand their corporate value can be linked directly to their embrace of innovation and their capacity to constantly renew themselves. (more…)