Is it the individual…or the idea?

Is the innovation/idea or entrepreneur, the greater–no, the most critical value? What–or who–makes the difference between success and failure in a startup company? This provocative article from the chairman of Gallup Research, Jim Clifton, proposes that the great, motivating, relentlessly optimistic, determined to win and obsessed with the product businessperson matters far, far more than the inventor of the better mousetrap. With thousands in our field in Washington, D.C. for the mHealth Summit right now, and less than two months to CES, there are hundreds of ‘mousetraps’ on offer at which we marvel….yet none have broken through to the acceptance level of an iPad. Mr. Clifton suggests we need a great man (Ted Turner, Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, Wayne Huizenga)…or woman (Meg Whitman of eBay). Before you get mad, read the article. (Meg, come on over to our house….millions could use that eBay magic.) Why entrepreneurs matter more than innovators Gallup Management Journal.

UPDATE 8 Dec: Along the same lines, but regarding telemedicine: Do Experts Slow Innovation? (Thanks, Toni Bunting)