The Innovator's Dilemma: When New Technologies Cause Great Firms to Fail (Management of Innovation and Change Series)

The Innovator's Dilemma demonstrates why outstanding companies that had their competitive antennae up, listened astutely to customers and invested aggressively in new technologies still lost their market dominance. Drawing on patterns of innovation in a variety of industries, the author argues that good business practices can, nevertheless, weaken a great firm. He shows how truly important, breakthrough innovations are often initially rejected by customers that cannot currently use them, leading firms to allow their most important innovations to languish. Many companies now face the innovator's dilemma. Keeping close to customers is critical for the current success. But long-term growth and profits depend upon a very different managerial formula. This book will help managers see the changes that may be coming their way and will show them how to respond for success. It is part of the "The Management of Innovation and Change" series. In his book, The Innovator's Dilemma [3], Professor Clayton Christensen of Harvard Business School describes a theory about how large, outstanding firms can fail "by doing everything right." The Innovator's Dilemma, according to Christensen, describes companies whose successes and capabilities can actually become obstacles in the face of changing markets and technologies. ([Source][1]) This book takes the radical position that great companies can fail precisely because they do everything right. It demonstrates why outstanding companies that had their competitive antennae up, listened astutely to customers, and invested aggressively in new technologies still lost their market leadership when confronted with disruptive changes in technology and market structure. And it tells how to avoid a similar fate. Using the lessons of successes and failures of leading companies, The Innovator's Dilemma presents a set of rules for capitalizing on the phenomenon of disruptive innovation. These principles will help managers determine when it is right not to listen to customers, when to invest in developing lower-performance products that promise lower margins, and when to pursue small markets at the expense of seemingly larger and more lucrative ones. - Jacket flap. [1]: http://web.mit.edu/6.933/www/Fall2000/teradyne/clay.html In Gratitude Introduction Part One: Why Great Companies Can Fail How Can Great Firms Fail? Insignts from the Hard Disk Drive Industry Value Networks and the Impetus to Innovate Disruptive Technological Change in the Mechanical Excavator Industry What Goes Up, Can't Go Down Part Two: Making Disruptive Technological Change Give Responsibility for Disruptive Technologies to Organizations Whose Customers Need Them Match the Size of the Organization to the Size of the Market Discovering new and Emerging Markets Performance Provided, Market Demand, and the Product Life Cycle Managing Disruptive Technological Change: A Case Study The Dilemmas of Innovation: A Summary Index About the Author WHEN I BEGAN my search for an answer to the puzzle of why the best firms can fail, a friend offered some sage advice.