books

Impressively researched and written in a conversational style, Petra Söderling makes the case in Government and Innovation that government policies can act as a catalyst for technological and economic innovation that can yield substantial long term benefits to a country’s growth, prosperity and social wellbeing. With examples and case studies from the United States and countries around the world, Soderling demonstrates that the government and private sectors can partner together to create new strategies for the 21st century through a combination of government investments and business supportive policies in areas such as research and development, interest rates, taxation, trade agreements, immigration, education, and infrastructure projects. This must-read book offers a compelling perspective on the role of government in fostering innovation and offers insights for policymakers, business leaders, and entrepreneurs alike.

In Government and Innovation, Petra Söderling delivers a powerful economic development framework and case studies for innovation and development initiatives. She speaks directly to a government audience and provides examples of how governments can leverage industry and capital markets for national and regional innovation goals. She also challenges the argument that “the government shouldn’t pick winners and losers.” As we saw with the MRNA COVID-19 vaccine in the United States, certain national and economic security challenges demand rapid innovation and for the government to pick a basket of winners. Söderling shows how this can be done while also supporting and maintaining overall market competition. This is recommended reading for any government official looking for a framework on how to think about innovation and industry collaboration.

Petra Söderling details the history and background on governments role in innovation and more importantly lays out the “how” it’s done in Government and Innovation.  The tools and the examples written about in Government and Innovation are a roadmap for navigating these often political and bureaucratic environments with a primary goal of getting things done.  I had the pleasure to see this work first hand with Petra at Tesla and with a stealth startup. Petra worked seamlessly across multiple engineering and supply chain teams and distilled highly technical specifications into actionable needs and sourced appropriate partners to develop and innovate. Petra’s call to action to do more is welcomed and will be a catalyst for more collaboration in the future.

… a thought provoking and brilliantly organized piece for anyone working at, or just interested in, the intersection of government and commercial innovation. 

A must read for anyone building or working with innovation ecosystems. Petra does a fantastic job outlining and guiding how to leverage and navigate the many public and private institutions. 

Highly recommend this book for anyone in academia who is interested in understanding the implications and applications of technological and economic innovation.