Disruptive versus Incremental Innovation

Disruptive vs Incremental innovation
Gian
After having read the book and the wikipedia entry I have to disagree with Jnanesh definition. The wikipedia entry (that I consider correct) reads: "Disruptive technology and disruptive innovation are terms used in business and technology literature to describe innovations that improves a product or service in ways that the market does not expect, typically by being lower priced or designed for a different set of consumers."
So disruptive innovation does not have to use a technology that is "new in this world", it may simply serve a market that is currently non-consumptive...

The Innovation Must Actually Reach the Market
Fernando
Innovation its not only about new products or services, it is about to putting things together to bring up something new or improved to the market. There is no innovation if the "new" thing is not reaching the market (emerging or mature).

Innovation is Disruptive; Improvement is Incremental
Prabhakar Karve
Isn't innovation by definition disruptive? I feel there is nothing like incremental innovation. If it is incremental it can at best be called improvement. Any thoughts?

Sustaining versus Disruptive Innovation
Jeswan SinghPS, Engineer, Malaysia, Member
Sustaining product development and/or keeping the innovation pot boiling is a fairly normal situation in most businesses.
The challenge is to aim towards a step change scenario to make a big difference in producing business results.
It's important to note that the sustained approach is not or less of an option, when very progressive firms are forging ahead under the current trying times.

Many Companies Do not Understand Their Customers Fully
Dr P L Narasimhan
I agree with the author on his views. Many companies do not satisfy their customers fully. Many a times the features and attributes of the product may not be required, or given in excess of the requirement. The customers accept this as a trade off.
However in this situation a competitor can invade with a product with (only) the required features and with a lower price cost and this can become a success. Company have to watch what their clients really need continuously and modify their products or services accordingly.

Innovation is the Opposite of Stagnancy
Maqsood Khalid
Innovation is the reverse of stagnancy. Innovation is direly needed at one stage of organizational life. Innovation may be destructive for someone and useful for somebody else.
Application of innovation depends upon the circumstances. However, disruptive innovation is more effective under emergent conditions than incremental innnovation.

Innovation is Disruptive; Improvement is Incremental
Jay Gamble, Teacher, United States, Member
I agree with Khalid that innovation is change which keeps one from being stagnant.
That it is disruptive, is relative.
The size of the disruption depends on how great the innovation is compared to one's current status: whether catastrophic or incremental, if it requires some level of change else, can we call it an innovation?

About Disruptive Innovation
Dr. Luis De La Cruz, Professor, United States, Member
The corporation's fundamental goal is growth, not profit maximization (Aharoni, 2009).
In the case of disruptive innovation we are dealing with new market offerings that separate organizations with sustained innovations from organizations with intuitive strategies. The latter delivers simplicity, convenience and low cost to market low-end application segments.
These creative organizations fill market gaps, disrupt established innovations, and can destroy leading firms' hold on captive segments.
Entrepreneurial firms typically disrupt established firms, that are focused on controlling costs with differentiation in competitive advantage, forcing them to fuel innovation internally. The established firms then need to face a 'change or be changed' dilemma.

An Example of Disruptive Innovation
Ansuman Gautam, Manager, India, Member
The comments in the forum explain the term disruptive innovation with many and abstract words, which is hard to understand.
A classic example might help to understanding the concept better. Until Apple's iOS and Google's Android entered the mobile operating software scene, most of the phones in the market worldwide were known as feature phones capable of performing certain minimal programmed tasks like calling and texting. Nokia and Motorola ruled the markets worldwide.
Then came iOS and Android, which supplied a platform for running third party application software (called apps), and the mobile market was changed forever. These phones are now called 'smart phones' and are capable of performing variety of tasks and functions from drawing an object using touch to keeping track of your weight loss programme.
In the process, Nokia has been dislodged from the market leader's position and Motorola is slated to be acquired by Google. Smartphone adoption figures amply demonstrate the disruptive capabilities of these technologies.

Disruptive versus Incremental Innovation
Fordi Dhliwayo, Entrepreneur, Zimbabwe, Member
Innovation suggests a new way of doing things, or a new product that serves the needs of the market in a much more efficient manner. So by its nature it disrupts the status quo and brings chaos into an otherwise orderly world. When innovation kicks in, the market can no longer continue as usual. For the other players in the market, incremental innovation is probably not possible anymore.

Disruptive Invation
Larry Lemke, Project Manager, United States, Member
Is "Innovation" not Always disruptive? INNOVATION is something seen in a new and different way. Just think about it!

Disruptive Innovation
adrian kavemba, Student (University), Member
I view disruptive innovation as an innovation that creates a new market by applying a different set of values, which ultimately overtakes an existing market.
Hence a disruptive innovation is an innovation that helps create a new market and value network, and eventually disrupts an existing market and value network, displacing an earlier technology.

Innovation is not Always Disruptive
Errol Francke, Management Consultant, South Africa, Member
@Larry Lemke: I don't think so Larry...I sense that one can distinguish between "disruptive innovation" and "evolutionary innovation". The latter is probably more predictable while disruptive innovation is unpredictable; more risk-loving than risk averse, more conventional than unconventional, etc... I guess that if one could locate the discussion to a particular motor vehicle brand, then BMW's launch of their i3 and i8-series (electric vehicles) could be regarded as disruptive in comparison to their traditional internal combustion/fossil fueled 1, 2, 3... Series vehicles.