In its report "Innovate America," the National Innovation Initiative (NII) calls for an "innovation infrastructure" as the foundation for the nation's future productivity and competitiveness. The report notes: "Innovation generates the productivity that economists estimate has accounted for half of U.S. GDP growth over the past 50 years... It's not only about offering new products and services, but also improving them and making them more affordable." The NII report is curiously silent on any need for innovation and its byproduct, productivity, in higher education. In contrast, the National Commission on Accountability in Higher Education (NCAHE) called attention to its final report by proclaiming: "Improved accountability for better results is imperative, but how to improve accountability in higher education is not so obvious." This author agrees that improved accountability in higher education is imperative, but takes issue with the second part of the NCAHE's conclusion. He contends that the way to improve accountability in nonprofit higher education "is" clear by now, and that it involves productivity-increasing innovation and the use of information technology to redesign production and service processes. Higher education can use IT innovatively to redesign academic and administrative services for improved effectiveness and efficiency. Two proven innovation strategies discussed are the common-course redesign strategy and the flex program and service redesign strategy. These strategies use IT innovatively to improve accountability--that is, to improve and account for institutional performance--whenever measurably improved academic results and reduced unit costs are simultaneous goals. (Contains 1 table, 3 figures and 14 notes.)