Breakthroughs!

Tracing 13 commercial breakthroughs, from concept to realization, that have created new industries and markets affecting millions of lives, Ketteringham and Nayak, senior consultants with the Arthur D. Little management firm, find few common denominators or patterns characterizing the breakthrough process or specific conditions favoring it. Often a combination of ideas, persons, resources, circumstances, timing and serendipity are needed to produce such innovations as Walkman, CAT scan, the ulcer-healing drug Tagamet, microwave ovens and Federal Express. As these engrossing stories testify, some breakthroughs came about because of a need perceived and fulfilled by an individual such as the 50-year-old Arthur Jones whose fervent desire to develop his muscles led to the invention of the Nautilus exercise machines. Other breakthroughs resulted from the shared visions of a team of scientists or engineers and the efforts of several competitive companies like those in Japan that contributed to the development of the VCR. Every breakthrough, the authors conclude, is rooted in someone's obsessive urge to solve a problem. (November)