By considering the language of innovation,clarification is offered on the different dimensions associated
to innovationandwhythecompetingterminologyusedtodescribeinnovationoftencreatesmore
confusionthanclarity.Abetterunderstandingofassessingandexploitinginnovationisofferedthrough
a frameworkthatrecognizesitscriticalcharacteristicsandtheimportantroleofdifferencein
perspective.Morespecifically,theframeworkconsidersboththetechnicalandsocialimpactsof
innovation,thenatureoftheirinputsandoutputs,andtheunitandlevelofanalysis.Examplesaregiven
to illustratetotheoreticianstheimportantcontextualfactorsandtohelppractitionersindetermining
how tobetterexploitopportunitiesandminimizethreats.