Leapfrogging

Foreword
Introduction
1. Business Breakthroughs Deliver Surprise
2. The Power of Surprise
3. Leapfrogging Leads to Breakthroughs
4. Listen: Start with Yourself, Not the Market
5. Explore: Go Outside to Stretch the Inside
6. Act: Take Small Simple Steps, Again and Again and Again
7. Persist: Take the Surprise Out of Failure
8. Seize: Make the Journey Part of the (Surprising) Destination
9. Bring It Home
Notes
Acknowledgments
Index
About the Author

Soren Kaplan is managing principal at InnovationPoint, where he works with organizations including Disney, Visa, Colgate-Palmolive, Kimberly-Clark, Medtronic, Cisco, Philips, and numerous other global firms. He previously led the internal strategy and innovation group at Hewlett-Packard during the roaring 1990s in Silicon Valley and was a cofounder of iCohere, one of the first web collaboration platforms for online learning and communities of practice. He is an adjunct professor within the Imagineering Academy at NHTV Breda University of Applied Sciences in the Netherlands. He resides in the San Francisco Bay Area with his wife, two daughters, and hypoallergenic cat.

""Leapfrogging" challenges its readers to break out of conventional thinking by employing a few simple notions: know who you are, stay true to your purpose, and enjoy the journey along the way. By showcasing examples of challenging conventional thinking, embracing surprise, and welcoming failure as a learning exercise, Kaplan invites readers to learn from the stories of others. Leapfrogging shows that leaders who look inward to challenge the status quo will be on track to truly change the game."--Sarah Robb O'Hagan, President, Gatorade "Breakthroughs in business don't follow set formulas. We must continually explore options, test, and modify our assumptions based on results and feedback. Then, we can adapt to what we experience and learn. "Leapfrogging" delivers new principles and tools that readers can apply to their business, whether they're just starting out or leading an established organization. It is the new guide for entrepreneurs and leaders in today's environment."--Glenn Allen, cofounder, OpenTable "We as business leaders are always talking about, but rarely find, the key to lasting breakthroughs in the organizations we lead. We push and persist and still get incremental results. "Leapfrogging" is an extremely useful and insightful handbook for managers on how to finally break the cycle of incremental innovation."--Dr. Ric Roi, Senior Vice President, Global Center of Excellence; Head, Consulting Practice Leader, Asia Pacific Right Management/Manpower Group "Superbly crafted, powerful in its simplicity, offering smart, actionable learning... Finally, a simple, holistic model that allows for breakthrough thinking and living."--Mary Beth Robles, Vice President, Innovation Capabilities and Knowledge Systems, Colgate-Palmolive "Creating breakthroughs requires new approaches to how we engage in learning as leaders ourselves and as organizations. "Leapfrogging" reveals strategies for engaging people in the type of exper