In July 2008, the Institute for Research in Marketing was honored to host the US Secretary of Commerce, Carlos Gutierrez, who, along with the Carlson School's Rajesh Chandy, James D. Watkins Chair in Marketing, moderated a Forum on Innovation: Drivers and Impediments. The expert panel featured 3M's George Buckley, Medtronic's Bill Hawkins, and the Carlson Companies' Marilyn Carlson Nelson. An audience of over 300 academics and practitioners listened to and engaged with the panel in a wide-ranging discussion on the role of corporations and government in fostering innovation. This exciting event built on the recent recommendations of the Secretary's Measuring Innovation in the 21st Century Economic Advisory Committee, on which Chandy and Buckley served.

Chandy, an internationally recognized expert on innovation whose research and publications have received numerous awards and whose work on innovation has been called "an unorthodox and bracing set of management principles" by Fortune magazine, described the panel's broad appeal. "Innovation," he observed, "is a topic of intense interest to all of us - consumers, managers, and police-makers." Gutierrez agreed, saying that "the US economy is known for its innovation and ideas. Our challenge is maintaining and measuring this competitive edge."

By "setting the stage for healthy corporate innovation by considering key factors such as taxes, regulations, energy, trade, immigration, and trust," Gutierrez told the distinguished audience, innovation will continue to transform and bolster the American economy on a world stage.

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