Lessons to jumpstart disruptive innovation

Abstract

Purpose

Disruptive innovation is particularly important during recovery periods, as companies need to win back customers with radically new value propositions. The purpose of this paper is to pull back all of the clutter and to present three critical lessons that companies must consider in their pursuit of disruptive innovation.

Design/methodology/approach

The lessons were extracted from systematic observations of successful and unsuccessful industry disruptors.

Findings

Three key lessons were uncovered: the ability to anticipate and act on market discontinuities and unmet customer needs, with a particular focus on the business model; The ability link incremental and breakthrough innovation efforts by focusing on a single, shared aspiration; and the recognition that disruptive innovation can inform strategy, just as strategy can (and should) inform disruptive innovation

Practical implications

These three lessons could help companies envision and commercialize disruptive innovation that dramatically reshape the competitive landscape of their industries.

Originality/value

This paper is targeted at companies seeking to offer dramatically new values to their customers and fundamentally alter the competitive balance of their industries. Envisioning and commercializing disruptive innovations is a means to this end. By applying the lessons learned from successful and not so successful innovators, companies have a better chance at winning.

Citation

Skarzynski, P. and Rufat‐Latre, J. (2011), "Lessons to jumpstart disruptive innovation", Strategy & Leadership, Vol. 39 No. 1, pp. 5-10. https://doi.org/10.1108/10878571111095367