There be monsters: what Odysseus can teach us about innovation when maps fail

The Various-Minded Leader. I have long thought that The Odyssey is the greatest work written on innovation leadership. Christopher Nolan’s recent film reminded me of another time when the world was awash in ambiguity and leaders needed to navigate the perilous voyage across unfamiliar territory. Over 30 years ago, before I had published any of my books on innovation, I was asked to make a presentation to the Aspen Institute as part of a summit on “Tomorrow’s Corporation.” The august speakers included an Oxford don, a Harvard strategy professor, a New York Times reporter, and … me, the lone representative for the young and technologically adept, unencumbered by conventional wisdom. The implied theme was the disruptive effect of the rapidly emerging internet and the imminent dislocation of the familiar commercial landscape. I called my talk “How Far to Ithaca?”…