Something Really New: Three Simple Steps to Creating Truly Innovative Products by Denis J. Hauptly

 I just finished reading "Something Really New: Three Simple Steps to Creating Truly Innovative Products" by Denis J. Hauptly and it's this week's Must Read Business Book pick. Unlike other books in this arena, Hauptly expertly defines a powerful framework for creating new products and service concepts focused around simply asking three essential questions.

The book deftly reduces the innovation process in that it presents a series of essential questions and the answers they inspire around product innovation. Hauptly is a dedicated product innovator and says, "I also believe that all good innovation is pragmatic. It improves our products and our lives by making them simpler and more efficient. It liberates us from drudgery and, when it's done right, astonishes us with creativity."

Something Really New reveals how to get closer to customer needs, how to take a commodity product and add new life to it and how to leapfrog customer expectations by linking your product or service with others.

What is most inspiring about the book is how easily Hauptly lays out clear and inspiring examples of how a company, entrepreneur,  or business can create products or services that not only make things easier for the user (customer) but also enable and sustain bottom-line growth for the company.

In particular I enjoyed the chapter "Taking it to the Next Level" which details several examples of innovations including Post-it Notes, breadmakers and Mail Boxes Etc. with Hauptly's take on why these innovations succeeded.

Hauptly's Appendix in the book titled "More Innovation Workouts" offers several how-to workouts to ensure the reader is able to practice what the book reveals and those can certainly serve as great kickstarts for product development meetings in turn.

If you're really committed to creating a successful new product this is the book for you.