Crosswinds - At the junction of passion and need one finds innovation. In this hinterland its potential is as obvious as its certainty isn't. Time, effort, and money are easily wasted, even when they are at a premium. Of course money is to be made as well, which is why it is done at all. Wonderful stories of monumental success have their counterpart tales of woe. Regarding the development of technologies, products, and processes, a record of success is a good thing for an engineer to have. It nurtures both employability and self-image. However, the constitution of a success should not be taken for granted-many perspectives and agenda are to be served.

Personally Touching - Innovators are, by design, often engineers. They have worked hard to complement their creative interests with a discipline for design and analysis-it is a personal stake in the ground for many, if you will. I've heard it said that a sense of contribution rationalizes one's labor and, more importantly, justifies one's existence. The engineer has much invested in their trade, and it should not be overlooked that an opportunity to contribute significantly is strong personal motivation indeed. One task, then, is to find the creatively competent. Another of equal importance is to invest in the resources, incentives, and guidance for the creative to be productive. An individual able and willing to produce, if you will. Most of us like to work like that.

Business Matters Too - The cold hard truth is that innovation and development are driven neither by idealism nor by elegance, but by bottom line. Other motives are second-order at best, so innovation is very much mission-oriented these days. The numbers and costs of failed initiatives to create must not only be limited, they must be outweighed in the long run by corresponding successes.

Fortunately, the management paradigm cannot default to a "take it or leave it" mode for long. Products of technology have increasingly short half-lives, so innovation and development are prerequisite to maintaining or growing market share. Ultimately, successful innovation equates to business survival in most industries.

Managing to Lead - There is a coincident need to manage near-term trade-offs while pursuing longer-range objectives. The immediate task is to keep the books balanced and innovators properly tasked. But innovation itself implies a belief in the future for person and product. Good leadership sees to the long-term relevance of development programs and its people. Talent is a precious thing, and it is highly individual. Key players in innovation want enough strategic awareness so that their confidence in the future is justified.