2 Strategy & Technology Dynamics

Question 1

Similarly, Schumpeter defines innovation (5)

Answer 1

Innovation as a ”new combination” of
resource

• ”… the introduction of new goods …,
• new methods of production …
• the opening of new markets …,
• the conquest of new sources of supply …
• and the carrying out of a new organization of any industry”

Question 2

Invention vs. innovation (Definition)

Answer 2

Invention

• The conversion of cash into ideas
• Inventors spent money to create his inventions, but unable to monetize them

Innovation

• The conversion of ideas into cash
• Innovators bring ideas to the market, and make money from these ideas

Question 3

Product
&
process innovation
(Digramm)

Answer 3

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Question 4

Innovation in Industry,
sources of product differentiation (3)

Answer 4

Product and Market Expansion
(R&D)

• New product features
• New product mix
• New location and increased presence

Strategic Partnerships and Complexity
(Stakeholder Management)

• New links with other firms
• Linkages between functions and complexity

Timing and Reputation
(Sales)

• Timing
• Enhanced reputation

Question 5

Issues, navigating the innovation process (2)

Answer 5

Innovation processes,
efficiently manage and select ideas. (V-Modell)

• These processes often conflict with entrepreneurial thinking.
• Coordination costs and required modifications usually compromise the original idea.

Question 6

The technology s-curve

Answer 6

Question 7

Discontinuity as one s-curve taking over another

Answer 7

Question 8

Rules of thumb for detecting
technological discontinuities (4)

Answer 8

1. Decline in R&D Productivity

• Management feels R&D productivity is declining.
• Apparent loss of productivity in R&D and industry-wide.
• R&D deadlines are increasingly missed.
• Dissatisfaction with a “new broom” R&D manager’s performance.

2. Shifts in R&D Focus

• Shift from product to process-oriented R&D.
• Sales growth sources shifting to narrower market segments.

3. Internal Challenges

• Dissension among R&D staff.

4. Industry Trends

• Significant variation in R&D spending among incumbent firms.
• Smaller, weaker firms in the industry investing in radically new technologies.

Question 9

The disruption has already happened
(~8 examples)

Answer 9

Question 10

Impact of disruptive technologies on barriers to entry (~6)

Answer 10