Remarks on Comprehensive Intellectual Capital Management

I've been looking for a book with a roadmap of how to implement an innovation program at companies. Comprehensive Intellectual Capital Management (CICM) by Nermien Al-Ali has delivers that and much more. Al-Ali places innovation within the broader context of Intellectual Capital (IC) management.

In the CICM model, IC is comprised of three stages: Knowledge Management, Innovation Management, and Intellectual Property Management. The book first describes the structure of each of these stages, then presents instructions on how to implement each stage.

A very important aspect of the book is the description of the organizational changes that must occur in order for the program to work. Chapter 10 is called "First get your act together," in which the author correctly acknowledges the importance of vision and corporate culture on the effectiveness of new corporate initiatives.

The chapters regarding culture and innovation really resonated with me. I worked at a company that had tried to implement some small-scale innovation efforts (and had been involved in one myself), but the culture and organizational structure were custom-made to prevent successful innovation: rigidly heirarchical, command-and-control, strong departmental boundaries, compensation and rewards for individual achievement instead of team performance, and, worst of all perhaps, no recognition by management on the importance of organizational culture on the outcome of innovation efforts.

I liked this book. Comprehensive Intellectual Capital Management, 2003, Nermien Al-Ali, Wiley and Sons.