innovators 20dilema 20synopsis 20yp
A one-page synopsis (Yellow Page) by Chris Hunsicker summarizing Clayton M. Christensen's The Innovator's Dilemma (HBS Press, 1997). The synopsis contrasts sustaining technologies (incremental improvements for mainstream customers) with disruptive technologies (lower-cost, initially lower-performance innovations that create new markets). It lists examples (small off-road motorcycles, discount retailing, transistors vs vacuum tubes), explains reasons incumbents fail (resource dependence, small markets, unknown ultimate uses, supply-demand mismatch/performance oversupply), and outlines managerial tactics to commercialize disruptive innovations (embed projects with appropriate customers, house them in small organizations, plan to fail cheaply and iterate, and create or target markets that value disruptive attributes). Concludes with practical questions managers should ask to identify and respond to disruptive technologies.
Questions this document answers
Clayton M. Christensen
1997
Chris Hunsicker
May 2001