The promise of personalized learning excites many educators, and schools are wondering how best to introduce it and how they know when they have achieved it. Rather than thinking of personalized learning as an "it" (i.e., a program that is either present or not), we might think of it as an approach to teaching and learning that has many expressions. The authors believe the transformation to personalized learning comes about through innovation, or more specifically a cycle of innovation that is a companion to continuous improvement. In this paper, the authors posit that "innovation science" is the mechanism by which planned change occurs. The interplay between innovation and improvement in organizational culture, the effect of capacity within a culture, and the use of technology and tools to support innovation are discussed. Innovation science can help state education agencies (SEAs), districts, and schools catalyze innovation, identify or create tools for change, conduct transition "experiments," and enable educators to develop competences in innovation. The steps on how and whether to introduce an element of personalized learning into routine instructional planning are listed. Appendix A provides an example mini-study illustrating the innovation science approach. Appendix B provides a worksheet for independent application of the method.