ABSTRACT
The lessons of business history have taught us that there is no such thing as a static market. There are no guarantees of continued business success for a company in a particular market segment. In 1942, Joseph Schumpeter introduced the principle of creative destruction as a way to describe the disruptive process that accompanies the work of the entrepreneur and the consequences of innovation. In time, companies that once revolutionized and dominated select markets give way to rivals who are able to introduce improved product designs, offer substitute products and services and/or lower manufacturing costs. The resulting outcome of creative destruction can be significant including the failure to preserve market leadership, the discontinuation of a once highly successful product line as well as the potential loss of jobs. This is especially true in the fields of media and telecommunications where one company’s high-flying technical lead can quickly become yesterday’s news; think Blockbuster Video, Eastman Kodak and Radio Shack to name only a few. The innovator’s dilemma teaches us that even the best managed companies are susceptible to innovation failure.
Today, the international business landscape has become ever more challenging. Global competition has engendered a new competitive spirit that cuts across countries and companies alike. No business enterprise, large or small, remains unaffected by the desire to increase profits and decrease costs. Such companies are faced with the same basic question; namely, what are the best methods for staying competitive over time? In a word, innovation. This chapter will look at three types of media and business innovation. They include:
Business Model Innovation
Business Process Innovation
Product Design and Innovation
One of the goals of this chapter is to better understand what it means to create a culture of innovation where risk and experimentation are supported.