ORGANISATIONAL RESPONSES TO DISCONTINUOUS INNOVATION: A CASE STUDY APPROACH

Jeffrey T. Macher () and Barak D. Richman ()
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Jeffrey T. Macher: McDonough School of Business, Georgetown University, Washington, DC 20057, USA
Barak D. Richman: Duke University School of Law, Box 90360, Durham, NC 27708-0360, USA

International Journal of Innovation Management (ijim), 2004, vol. 08, issue 01, 87-114

Abstract: Research that examines entrant-incumbent dynamics often points to the organisational limitations that constrain incumbents from successfully pursuing new technologies or fending off new entrants. Some incumbents are nevertheless able to successfully implement organisational structures and develop routines that overcome these institutional constraints. We provide a case-study analysis of how three firms — Motorola, IBM and Kodak — responded to "discontinuous" innovations and the associated structural and organisational limitations that are typical to incumbent organisations. Each firm was able to capture gains from new technologies and develop profitable products in emerging markets, although their abilities to sustain these gains varied due to subsequent organisational changes. Drawing from these case studies, we synthesise how firms can institute organisational strategies to continue to capture gains from disruptive innovations. A schema suggests that particular organisational strategies are comparatively optimal for corresponding points along an innovation lifecycle.

Keywords: Architectural/radical innovation; entrant-incumbent competition; management of technology (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2004
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (13)

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DOI: 10.1142/S1363919604000939

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