Welcome back explorers! What an amazing journey! We hope we inspired you to become an innovation leader. In closing, I’d like to reflect on a few more interesting innovations. In my classes, I often ask a reflective question. What’s the oldest company in the world? Often, I get answers such as IBM, Ford, or GE. Although they are considered successful established companies in modern times, some of the oldest companies still in existence are actually over 1,000 years old. In fact, we probably don’t really know what the oldest company in the world really is because trade is historically such an important human innovation.

I also like to ask another reflective question. What do you think are the society’s most important innovations? There’s no right answer of course, but I like to point out a few, like Gutenberg’s printing press that revolutionized human learning. Another is electronic communication. From the advent of wired telegraphs, communicating over a distance has had a strong impact on society. With the development of Guglielmo Marconi’s radio telegraphy, it became possible to wirelessly communicate. Today, this innovation is foundational in society and, in itself, is a critical part of how we create and diffuse other innovations.

When we think back on how many different innovations our lives are built upon, it highlights how many different innovation leaders it took to help create and diffuse those innovations. As an innovation leader, you may work on innovations that have a profound impact or those that just may help make daily life a happier place. But, innovations contribute to progress in society. I encourage you to read beyond this book about the innovation leaders that most interest you and the innovations that they created.