Disruptive Innovation: What Causes the Creative Leap?

Necessity is the Mother of Invention
Rick Mueller, Professor, United States, SIG Leader

Srini, there's an "old saying" in the US that "necessity is the mother of invention". I believe there may be some truth in that.

Add to that the concept of the "Burning Platform" to create the desired necessity and you get some creative solutions to the problem.

Sometimes the solution is to put out the fire. These are your every-day solution - which Clay Christensen calls "sustaining innovations" (to differentiate them from disruptive innovations).

Sometimes the solution to the burning platform problem is to create a new platform sufficiently distant from the old platform (Editor: see Forget, Borrow, Learn) as to reduce/eliminate the possibility of being followed by the fire. To build a new platform and simultaneously learn how to maintain oneself on it is a pretty difficult trick for an established firm with its many mouths to feed, so for that reason it is best to have one or more alternative platforms under construction at all times.

Thoughts?

Necessity is the Mother of Invention
srinivas, Lecturer, India, Member

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The Hole in the Box
Rick Mueller, Professor, United States, SIG Leader

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Leading a Horse to Drink
srinivas, Lecturer, India, Member

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Founders ARE a Different Animal
Rick Mueller, Professor, United States, SIG Leader

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Animalism Defined
srinivas, Lecturer, India, Member

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Maybe You don't Have to Be Crazy to Be Disruptive, But it Appears to Help
Rick Mueller, Professor, United States, SIG Leader

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Culture and Fitness is the Key
srinivas, Lecturer, India, Member

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One More Element: Timing
Rick Mueller, Professor, United States, SIG Leader

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Expansion to Righteousness
srinivas, Lecturer, India, Member

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Where Having More Can Result in Getting Less
Rick Mueller, Professor, United States, SIG Leader

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Just Right Works
srinivas, Lecturer, India, Member

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Success is not So Much what You Get But Rather what You do with what You've Got
Rick Mueller, Professor, United States, SIG Leader

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Independent Innovation Unit
srinivas, Lecturer, India, Member

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I Thought we Were Looking for the Quantum Leap?
Rick Mueller, Professor, United States, SIG Leader

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Quantum Leap Process Remains Same?
srinivas, Lecturer, India, Member

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