New book 'Inventology' shows how today's inventors can tap big data, 3D printing, crowdfunding, and more

With the internet age and its endless possibilities in the realms of publishing, communication, and collaboration, opportunities have never been so widely accessible for creators. But how has our new digital world affected the pathways to invention? In Inventology: How We Dream Up Things That Change the World, out today, journalist Pagan Kennedy offers a fresh take on how the digital era has upended the traditional pathways for creation.

When Kennedy began writing about inventors for The New York Times, she soon "would marvel at how few of the people were professional inventors, designers, in corporate innovation labs." It led her to explore what it really takes to invent. Drawing from that experience, Kennedy debunks common misconceptions about how great inventions are born, explores situations that have led to invention, and highlights gender disparity in the world of invention. TechRepublic talked to Kennedy about the big takeaways she learned during the writing process, and the relationship between tech and invention.

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10 Social Networks Aimed at Improving Enterprise Collaboration

Historically, social networks were designed for consumers to keep in touch with friends or find out what family members are doing. Friendster and MySpace were once dominant in social networking, but are now distant memories. Today, the king of social networking is Facebook, followed by Twitter, Google+ and many others, and social networking is alive and well. Perhaps that's why social networking is increasingly making its presence felt in the enterprise. On Jan. 14, Facebook launched a limited release of its enterprise social networking service, Facebook At Work. The offering is designed to allow companies to create their own social networks to improve productivity and efficiency. More importantly, the announcement puts Facebook in direct competition with a range of major competitors. Whether it's Microsoft's Yammer or Slack or one of the many other services out there that cater to companies' social needs, the corporate world is embracing the idea of collaboration more and more. Now, Facebook is playing a major role in that space. eWEEK examines Facebook at Work and several other social networks that take aim at the enterprise and try to help companies collaborate far more effectively.

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Science as a service

What happens when you apply software-as-a-service principles to science?

Software as a service (SaaS) is one of the great innovations of Web 2.0. SaaS enables flexibility and customized solutions. It reduces costs — the cost of entry, the cost of overhead, and as a result, the cost of experimentation. In doing so, it’s been instrumental in spurring innovation.

So, what if you were to apply the principles of SaaS to science? Perhaps we can facilitate scientific progress by streamlining the process. Science as a service (SciAAS?) will enable researchers to save time and money without compromising quality. Making specialized resources and institutional expertise available for hire gives researchers more flexibility. Core facilities that own equipment can rent it out during down time, helping to reduce their own costs. The promise of science as a service is a future in which research is more efficient, creative, and collaborative.

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Survey: Trends in Mobile Collaboration Survey 2012: Info-graphics

Copiun Inc announced the results of its survey, conducted with International Marketing and Technology Solutions, Inc. (IMTS), the survey was designed to help IT decision makers determine the security and data risks of mobile collaboration. Key findings indicate more than fifty percent of the companies surveyed are now planning Mobile Productivity projects to allow employees to access, sync and share documents using mobile devices. The survey also reveals that the biggest challenges facing C-level executives and IT decision-makers in mobility are data security and compliance management. See info graphics

The 11 Essential Elements Needed to Achieve True Collaboration

Collaboration is not a new concept, but globalization and new technologies have turned it into one of the best methods of competitive advantage available. Rather than engaging in an endless tug-of-war over the dwindling crumbs in a finite market, collaborative companies find ways to make the pie bigger, or create whole new pies, expanding everyone’s market and revenue. “It’s not about how many people you can defeat, but rather about how many people you can help win.”

For a collaboration to be successful, the author Dan Sanker of the book "Collaborate: The Art of We" says that eleven elements must come together:

Ongoing Communication.
Willing Participation.
Brainstorming.
Teamwork.
A Common Purpose.
Trust.
A Plan for Achieving the Goal.
A Diverse Group.
Mutual Respect.
A Written Agreement.
Effective Leadership.


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Seven Ways to Connect With Your Designer

Today, designers and business leaders are working together more closely than ever. This is driven by the successes of product-design leaders like Apple, and a macroeconomic environment that demands better risk management. At the same time, design consultancies are increasingly looked at to spearhead the development process — from consumer research to design to prototyping, manufacturing and packaging. These profound shifts in the collaboration model hold great potential to benefit both consumers and business profitability; however, they also bring new challenges on both sides of the relationship.

What follows are seven ways business leaders can better connect and collaborate with their design partners as these groups work together more closely and strategically:

• Get Empathetic
• Speak With a Unified Voice
• Find Common Language
• Know What You Know (and What You Don't)
• Ask Questions
• Be an Attentive and Respectful Dance Partner
• Dress The Part

Read this HBR blog post