The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanson Flashcards
The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanson
INTRODUCTION
many executives have problems in making wise decisions about which innovations to adopt and when
The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanson
Hype cycle (by Gartner):
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
The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanson
HOW INNOVATIONS SPREAD
diffusions of many innovations follows an -shaped curve similar to that which describes spread of communication disease
The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanson
HOW INNOVATIONS SPREAD: Diffusion
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
The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanson
IT innovation wave machine:
kind of institutional apparatus that serves to produce waves of innovations as just described; consists of five stages
The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanson
IT innovation wave machine: STAGE 1: BREAKING THE SURFACE
- 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
The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanson
Stage 1: 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
The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanson
IT innovation wave machine: STAGE 2: SENDING OUT RIPPLES
- 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)
The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanson
IT innovation wave machine: STAGE 2: 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)
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?
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)
The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanson
IT innovation wave machine: STAGE 3: CAUSING A SQUAWK
- 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
The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanson
IT innovation wave machine: STAGE 3: CAUSING A SQUAWK
How to inform about product?
through conferences, expositions etc that update participants on new developments (Gartner’s meetings amond best in industry)
The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanson
IT innovation wave machine: STAGE 3: CAUSING A SQUAWK
How 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
The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanson
IT innovation wave machine: STAGE 4: BUILDING THE SWELL
- for innovation wave to form & gain size, firms need to adopt & implement it
The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanson
IT innovation wave machine: STAGE 4: BUILDING THE SWELL
Why is adoption important?
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
The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanson
IT innovation wave machine: STAGE 4: BUILDING THE SWELL What is Management fashions?
transitory collective beliefs, disseminated by discourse of management knowledge entrepreneurs that a management technique is at forefront of rational management practice (by Eric Abrahamson)
The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanson
IT innovation wave machine: STAGE 5: RIDING THE CREST
- 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
The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanson
IT innovation wave machine: STAGE 5: RIDING THE CREST
What is a implementation gap?
result when adoptions, which are essentially commitments to implement, outstrip actual implementations
The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanso
THE IT INNOVATION WAVE COMPLEX
- 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
The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanso
THE IT INNOVATION WAVE COMPLEX
Time A what happens?
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
The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanso
THE IT INNOVATION WAVE COMPLEX
Time B what happens?
rate of implementation peaks
The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanso
THE IT INNOVATION WAVE COMPLEX
Time C what happens?
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 )
The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanso
THE IT INNOVATION WAVE COMPLEX
Time C what happens?
rate of added value peaks
The Manager’s Guide to IT Innovation Waves – Burton Swanso
INNOVATING MINDFULLY – RATHER THAN MINDLESSLY
What is primary lesson for manager?
recognising the differences among components of particular wave – whether actual adoptions measure up to the talk, how successful implementation is, whether value is added
