Good morning. Christmas is coming to town. And the perfect gift with it: a book that sets out to place the question of naval innovation - which in the literature inevitably links debates to technology - against the wider problem of ‘change'. A couple of thoughts about it: https://twitter.com/PeterDombrowsk6/status/1341174024580304899

a. an elusive concept. ‘Innovation’ is a challenging notion to nail down. It means different things to different people. Out attempt was to map what it means to navies in general, and the USN in particular.

b. a changing notion. Innovation takes a particular important role on how fleet are constructed and imagined in the face of peer on peer competition. The risk of the ultimate test of war invites the quest for silver bullets. More often than not, this is an endeavour with risks

c. a Bureaucratic brainchild. How innovation comes about very much relates to the nature of a navy. @PeterDombrowsk6 chapter is an exquisite excursion into the USN quasi religious reflection about naval power and the perils that creates.

d. a pervasive notion. Innovation goes to very different directions when it comes to navies. It relates to personnel management, alliances, coalitions. In my own contribution, I look at how - in the face of increasing working with others - innovation has a doctrinal dimension.

e. a battle tested notion. One of the more interesting aspects of naval innovation is that it is inevitably connected to the experience of war and how it affects our thinking in what’s needed and when. How do we manage organisations that have different paces in peace and war?

If you’re wondering how to get hold of it… here it is. One click away: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Maritime-Strategy-Naval-Innovation-Bureaucracy/dp/1682475255/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=maritime+strategy+and+naval+innovation&qid=1608627526&sr=8-1