The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanson

Question 1

The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanson

INTRODUCTION

Answer 1

many executives have problems in making wise decisions about which innovations to adopt and when

Question 2

The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanson

Hype cycle (by Gartner):

Answer 2

analytical tool for assessing progress and acceptance of new IT; describes how new IT innovations break upon business scene in wave-like, attention-grabbing fashion

Question 3

The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanson

HOW INNOVATIONS SPREAD

Answer 3

diffusions of many innovations follows an -shaped curve similar to that which describes spread of communication disease

Question 4

The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanson

HOW INNOVATIONS SPREAD: Diffusion

Answer 4

process by which innovation is communicated through certain channels over time by members in social system

= early adopters out innovation into play, others follow & at increasing rate people are exposed to technology due to word-of-mouth until adoption reaches limit and declines

 diffusion of innovation should be seen as complex social system that generate natural force – a sort of wave machine

Question 5

The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanson

IT innovation wave machine:

Answer 5

kind of institutional apparatus that serves to produce waves of innovations as just described; consists of five stages

Question 6

The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanson

IT innovation wave machine: STAGE 1: BREAKING THE SURFACE

Answer 6

• innovative business IT is frequently the software that exploits developments in both IT software and hardware + current business opportunities
• how to know if truly innovative: degree of innovation is demonstrated when software is used in practice
• oftentimes, the truly innovative solutions are innovative in minor ways that go unnoticed

Question 7

The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanson

Stage 1: how to know if truly innovative:

Answer 7

degree of innovation is demonstrated when software is used in practice
* oftentimes, the truly innovative solutions are innovative in minor ways that go unnoticed

Question 8

The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanson

IT innovation wave machine: STAGE 2: SENDING OUT RIPPLES

Answer 8

• exposure of product: having IT research and analysis companies write about product that then spread assessment to their subscribers who usually buy IT products and services
  Organising vision: focal community idea for the application of IT in organisations; explains what innovation is and why it should be undertaken (usually formed with help of IT analysts)
• sometimes a product is classified as a new class with its own market (eg ERP systems)  whether it really new class is arguable in ripple stage = more of an interpretation than real observation (risky but well rewarded if it is the case – analyst is then seen as guru in rising new industry)

Question 9

The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanson

IT innovation wave machine: STAGE 2: Organising vision:

Answer 9

focal community idea for the application of IT in organisations; explains what innovation is and why it should be undertaken (usually formed with help of IT analysts)

Question 10

The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanson

IT innovation wave machine: STAGE 2: Organising vision: product is classified as a new class with its own market when?

Answer 10

for example ERP systems:
 whether it really new class is arguable in ripple stage = more of an interpretation than real observation (risky but well rewarded if it is the case – analyst is then seen as guru in rising new industry)

Question 11

The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanson

IT innovation wave machine: STAGE 3: CAUSING A SQUAWK

Answer 11

• way to inform about product: through conferences, expositions etc that update participants on new developments (Gartner’s meetings amond best in industry)
• difficult to overcome managers’ scepticism: managers often only adopt when there has been mass of other adoptions before
   often difficult to reach if every manager thinks that = difficult to explain

Question 12

The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanson

IT innovation wave machine: STAGE 3: CAUSING A SQUAWK
How to inform about product?

Answer 12

through conferences, expositions etc that update participants on new developments (Gartner’s meetings amond best in industry)

Question 13

The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanson

IT innovation wave machine: STAGE 3: CAUSING A SQUAWK
How to overcome managers’ scepticism?

Answer 13

managers often only adopt when there has been mass of other adoptions before
 often difficult to reach if every manager thinks that

Question 14

The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanson

IT innovation wave machine: STAGE 4: BUILDING THE SWELL

Answer 14

• for innovation wave to form & gain size, firms need to adopt & implement it

Question 15

The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanson

IT innovation wave machine: STAGE 4: BUILDING THE SWELL
Why is adoption important?

Answer 15

REASONS FOR WHY ADOPTION IS IMPORTANT
1) mass adoption drives positively reinforcing bandwagon effects: people benefit as result of others doing the same thing = network externalities
2) growing swell of commitment serves to attract further attention in community: the building of attention can then feed on itself, it brings the non-initiated into the process
* swell of interest does not happen at particular rate, when innovation becomes fashion = more rapid

Question 16

The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanson

IT innovation wave machine: STAGE 4: BUILDING THE SWELL What is Management fashions?

Answer 16

transitory collective beliefs, disseminated by discourse of management knowledge entrepreneurs that a management technique is at forefront of rational management practice (by Eric Abrahamson)

Question 17

The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanson

IT innovation wave machine: STAGE 5: RIDING THE CREST

Answer 17

• once IT innovations achieve adoptive momentum, participants can exploit network advantages  participants can extend these benefits by working ‘for the innovation’ (advertising it etc)
• although adopted, implementation often fails: is costly, time consuming & highly problematic
   delays system success
  Implementation gap: result when adoptions, which are essentially commitments to implement, outstrip actual implementations

Question 18

The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanson

IT innovation wave machine: STAGE 5: RIDING THE CREST
What is a implementation gap?

Answer 18

result when adoptions, which are essentially commitments to implement, outstrip actual implementations

Question 19

The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanso
THE IT INNOVATION WAVE COMPLEX

Answer 19

• if it goes well, the swell will generate a genuine enthusiasm & thus movement by managers
  Time A: attention & adoption are both at peak rates while implementation is growing and value added has not shown  managers have to learn a lot about progress after point A even though attention wanes from there
  Time B: rate of implementation peaks
  Time C: rate of added value peaks
• adoptions do not equate to implementations (implementations peak later)
• cumulative value achieved from IT peaks long after attention to original vision has dissipated
• parties that can profit from innovation wave process itself: catching wave and achieving scale = serving to activate the wave
   research & analysis companies; vendors; consultants

Question 20

The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanso
THE IT INNOVATION WAVE COMPLEX
Time A what happens?

Answer 20

Time A: attention & adoption are both at peak rates while implementation is growing and value added has not shown
 managers have to learn a lot about progress after point A even though attention wanes from there
-> adoptions do not equate to implementations
-> cumulative value achieved from IT peaks long after attention to original vision has dissipated

Question 21

The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanso
THE IT INNOVATION WAVE COMPLEX
Time B what happens?

Answer 21

rate of implementation peaks

Question 22

The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanso
THE IT INNOVATION WAVE COMPLEX
Time C what happens?

Answer 22

rate of added value peaks
->parties that can profit from innovation wave process itself: catching wave and achieving scale = serving to activate the wave ( research & analysis companies; vendors; consultants )

Question 22

The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanso
THE IT INNOVATION WAVE COMPLEX
Time C what happens?

Answer 22

rate of added value peaks

Question 23

The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanso

INNOVATING MINDFULLY – RATHER THAN MINDLESSLY
What is primary lesson for manager?

Answer 23

recognising the differences among components of particular wave – whether actual adoptions measure up to the talk, how successful implementation is, whether value is added

Question 24

The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanso

INNOVATING MINDFULLY – RATHER THAN MINDLESSLY
What is Innovating mindlessly?

Answer 24

jumping on innovation’s bandwagon without giving much thought to unique circumstances of his/her company

Question 25

The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanso

INNOVATING MINDFULLY – RATHER THAN MINDLESSLY
What is Innovating mindfully?

Answer 25

taking company circumstances into account in deciding whether, when and how to join others in adopting an IT innovation
-> IT innovation wave machine is powerful institutional force hard to resist: innovating mindlessly often happens as managers would like to be known as innovators + do not want to risk competitive survival of firm