Singapore has a very strong strategy for hiring great talent into top research areas. Eg, much better conditions, easy access to funding, new research labs, 4x the salary of the US. This is leading to key people leaving the US.

The US is becoming much less attractive. Eg, Wall Street melt down, $1.3 trillion to upgrade roading and key infrastructure, geopolitical involvement that’s costing a lot of money. Other countries are becoming much stronger … Singapore has huge foreign currency holdings, Finland is very rich.

Final Points
– Countries are adopting very different strategies. China = brute force. Singapore = focus on three key platforms. Finland = ecosystem for innovation, many pathways.
– For the US, perhaps the best strategy is to become a systems integrator. We have good cultural connections, great experience … and can use this to pull the various pieces together. Eg, orchestrating the value chain for an innovation project, such as starting a new business.
– for individuals, there is a great opportunity to mix-and-match opportunities from a global array of opportunities. You are not limited to what you can do with local people, but can connect to many other people around the world.

Questions
(1) What’s John’s take on Canada for innovation?
– will have more to say in November, when he’s going to Canada.
– Canada actually has a national innovation strategy and process. So it’s ahead in this area.
– Much better thought leadership in some areas. Eg, digital media.
– The questions for Canada: how sustainable is the innovation strategy beyond an election cycle? John thinks that Canada gets good points.

(2) Who or what is the systems integrator for the US? Where is the desired future being worked on in the US?
– There is no stewardship of innovation at the moment. There’s no narrative that connects the dots around science and innovation.
– There’s a crying need for the government to re-connect to the science community. See the book … it lays out a whole blueprint.
– What’s needed is a National Innovation Advisor. It’s much more than science policy. Smart countries know how to do this.

See also the KMWorld web site, for an interview with John.

See also http://www.innovationnationbook.com for more about innovation, and a downloadable chapter of the book.