New technology tends to come from new venturesstartups. From the Founding Fathers in politics tothe Royal Society in science to Fairchild Semiconductors traitorous eight in business, smallgroups of people bound together by a sense of mission have changed the world for the better. Theeasiest explanation for this is negative: its hard to develop new things in big organizations, and itseven harder to do it by yourself. Bureaucratic hierarchies move slowly, and entrenched interests shyaway from risk. In the most dysfunctional organizations, signaling that work is being done becomes abetter strategy for career advancement than actually doing work if this describes your company, youshould quit now. At the other extreme, a lone genius might create a classic work of art.