"101 Creative Problem Solving Techniques: The Handbook of New Ideas for Business" by James M. Higgins is a comprehensive guide designed to equip readers with a multitude of techniques for generating creative solutions in the business environment. The book is structured to help both individuals and teams enhance their problem-solving skills and foster innovative thinking.
When giant PC chipmaker Intel was confronted with new and unusually tough competitors that used clones of its chips to compete on price, CEO Andrew Grove turned to innovation. Intel launched an accelerated schedule for new-product development that produced the 386, 486, and Pentium chips and left competitors in the dust.'
When Johnson & Johnson, the health care and consumer products conglomerate, found itself at a cost disadvantage
compared to competitors, it launched a program to develop innovative processes that would cut overhead costs. For
example, CEO Ralph Larsen created customer support centers, employee teams working on customer sites to facilitate distribution and ordering. The teams eliminated overlapping services in most of the firm's 166 businesses.
When Nordstrom, the Seattle-based department store chain, analyzed its markets, it realized that providing high levels
of customer service would be an innovative marketing approach in the discount-oriented retail industry. That strategy worked extremely well, giving Nordstrom an edge in a rapidly changing marketplace.'