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INDIAN INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT, BANGALORE
POST GRADUATE PROGRAM 2011-12
Corporate Strategy and Policy Elective:
Managing Innovation and Technology Strategy
Faculty: Rajeev S. (AF)
email: [email protected]
phone: 92413-52324
Dated: 23 Jul 2011
Course Objectives

To develop an awareness of the range, scope, and complexity of the issues and
problems related to the strategic management of technology and innovation.

To develop an understanding of the "state of the art" of the strategic management
of technology and innovation.

To develop a conceptual framework for assessing and auditing the innovative
capabilities of a business organization.
Course Introduction
Innovation is the lifeblood of winning organizations. As Indian technology firms move
towards positions of global market leadership, it becomes increasingly important for them
to create sustainable competitive advantage based on the creativity of their employees.
They need to ensure that there is structure in house that encourages a continuous process
of intellectual property rights generation.
It is often said that Indian technology firms need to migrate up the value chain. While the
software industry was maturing in the 1990’s and early 2000’s, a pure services model
sufficed to ensure growth and profitability. However, looking into the future, it is likely
that a business model involving products as well will be necessary for Indian firms to
maintain their leading edge status. This is because they are beginning to run into the
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limits of the outsourced services model as well as into entrenched blue-chip competition.
Even lower-cost destinations also beckon to the outsourcing customer. In terms of
diversifying their portfolios, Indian software firms will need to consider new product
development activity including intellectual property rights creation as part of their
operational strategies.
One of India’s core competencies is the development of intellectual property.
Historically, India has been the source of many revolutionary ideas and concepts. It is
also universally acknowledged that Indian technical and managerial brainpower is among
the best in the world. However, innovation and IPR generation have not been recognized
as important elements in company strategy in the recent past. This course considers a
framework to create strategic change through technological innovation and internal
entrepreneurship.
It is necessary to forecast technology trends, anticipate customer needs, predict
competitor moves and strategies as well as environmental conditions and respond in
flexible ways via mid-course corrections. Business plan generation and implementation is
a combined product management and engineering activity.
There are very good examples in technology areas where Indian firms have managed to
make the conceptual leap from follower to leader by investing in R&D. The most visible
are the pharmaceutical industry and the automotive components industry. In the face of
intense global competition, Indian firms in both these sectors have done remarkably well
by leveraging Indian skills in engineering, reverse engineering, and re engineering. In
particular, the pharmaceutical sector has remarkable for its rapid emergence as an IPR
generation machine.
Part of the learning experience is to consider the reinvention of the Indian software
industry as a technology driven, rather than purely services driven, entity. A major part of
this reinvention is the need to encourage and nurture the creative entrepreneurial energy
of individual participants at lower and middle levels in the organization. There is synergy
between greater professional success for individual and long term viability and
effectiveness of the firm in the marketplace.
In addition to creating a strategy, it is important to translate it into an implementation
framework and methodology on the ground that enables the firm to create an architecture
and a specific action plan.
The actual process of protecting intellectual property is quite complicated. The course
will touch upon how to decide whether an innovation is novel enough and not obvious
enough to be patentable. This is a complex legal matter, so the course can only offer a
birds-eye view of the legalities involved.
Finally, one of the most neglected areas in new product development is the act of selling
the idea to customers. The classic case is that of the product that excites the cognoscenti,
but fails to reach the mass market; the innovating company may face extinction, but an
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industry giant that follows may make a huge business out of it. The course considers the
business of selling innovation, which is at least as hard as coming up with the innovation
in the first place.
Most, but not all, of the instances considered will be from the information technology
industry, partly because it has seen rapid cycles of innovation and the concomitant
‘creative destruction’, and partly because of the immediate relevance to many Indian
firms. Since the Case Study Method is best suited for critical analysis and problemsolving, that is the method adopted in this course.
General Flow of the Course
There are four parts to the course.
Module 1: Technology strategy and innovative systems
In this part of the course we will focus on how senior managers integrate knowledge
about the key issues relating to the firm's technology with business and corporate
strategy. We will also examine what general managers need to know about technology
strategy to successfully run a high-technology firm. What are the various factors that
impact a company’s technology strategy? We first focus on distinctive technological
competencies and capabilities and how they drive technology strategy. We then examine
the contextual forces that affect the evolution of a company’s technology strategy. These
include the developmental trajectory of relevant technologies, the firm’s industry context,
the firm’s internal organizational context, and the firm's strategic actions.
Module 2: An architecture for new product development
This part of the course deals with technology sourcing and corporate innovation. Here we
will examine the role of R&D in a company’s strategic evolution, how to link corporate
R&D to corporate strategy, and how to make sure that the output of corporate R&D is
transferred to other parts of the firm. This part of the course also examines the role of
corporate entrepreneurs and how to manage project champions/venture managers, and
what some of the organizational design and associated incentive issues are related to
corporate entrepreneurship. What are the key issues associated with new product
development? We also consider some of the key innovation challenges faced by
established firms. What are the conflicts inherent in having to mangage these various
challenges simultaneously?
Module 3: Intellectual property as key to creating unfair advantage
This part of the course provides an overview of the mechanisms for creating barriers to
entry via the development of intellectual property rights. There are a number of ways in
which intellectual property can be generated and safeguarded. The most common
mechanism is that of patents. India has acceded to the WTO’s patent conventions, and a
growing number of US and worldwide patents are being generated in India. What makes
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an idea patentable? What are the procedures to follow in case you have a patentable idea?
Is patenting less valuable to poorer nations? Are there alternative perspectives to
patenting and thereby extracting value from ideas?
Module 4: Value enhancement through consultative selling
This part of the course looks at the process of strategic selling. Although this is one of the
areas least focused on in most business school curricula, it is an important part of the
process of creating perceived value for the customer. Much of the value of
technologically advanced products and services are derived from their inherent
characteristics, yet it is possible to add value via the process of selling.
REQUIRED TEXTS
Burgelman, R. A., Christensen, C. M. and Wheelwright, S. C., Strategic Management of
Technology and Innovation, FIFTH Edition, McGraw-Hill/Irwin, 2009. (Called "BCW"
in this course description.)
NOTE: the Fourth Edition is also available, but this course outline refers directly to the
Fifth Edition.
REFERENCE BOOKS (OPTIONAL READING)
Davila, T., Epstein, M. J., and Shelton, R., Making Innovation Work: How to Manage It,
Measure It, and Profit from It., Wharton School Publishing/Pearson Education, 2005.
There are two copies in the Library.
Grove, Andrew S., Only the Paranoid Survive, Harper Collins Business, 1997
Moore, Geoffrey A., Crossing the Chasm, Harper Collins Business, 1991
Moore, Geoffrey A., Inside the Tornado, Harper Collins Business, 1995
Bronson, Po, The Nudist on the Late Shift, Random House, 1999
Collins, Jim, Built to Last, Harper Collins, 1994
Collins, Jim, Good to Great, Random House, 2001
Ghoshal, Sumantra, Managing Radical Change – What Indian Companies must do to
become world-class, Viking, 2000
Porter, Michael E., Competitive Advantage, The Free Press, 2004
Pressman, David, Patent It Yourself, Tenth Edition, Nolo Press, 2004
Rackham, Neil, Rethinking the Sales Force, Tata McGraw-Hill, 2001
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Target Audiences
This course is designed with the following audiences in mind:
-
-
People who are interested in becoming general managers in firms where
technology is an important part of business and corporate strategy;
People who want to understand the logic of innovation in large, complex
firms because they anticipate that they will have to deal with such firms as
competitors or potential acquirers of the small firms in which they intend to work;
People who expect to become involved in internal corporate ventures;
People who expect to become involved in high-tech venture capital.
Attaining the Course Objectives and Evaluation
To pursue the course objectives effectively, the following are required:
a. Preparation and discussion of cases in class;
b. Readings and lectures
c. Completion of a field project with your study group
d. Examinations
a. Preparation and discussion of cases
You are required to form study groups of three or four people. Please hand in
the list of the study group members at the beginning of session #4.
The assignments for a class should be prepared in advance of that class. The
prescribed textbook will not be covered through a lecture in class, and participants are
expected to have read the specified reading material before the session.
The case assignments require the identification of key issues, problems, and
opportunities; the articulation and evaluation of alternative approaches to deal with the
identified problems; the selection of a preferred strategy; and the formulation of a
concrete action plan to implement the strategy. Preparation questions for each case have
been provided or will be handed out in class. However, these are merely meant as
guidelines and are not exhaustive; fresh insights and perspectives are welcome.
In a typical class, one or more participants (from different study groups) will be
asked to start the class by answering a specific question. Anyone who has thoroughly
prepared the case with written conclusions should be able to handle such a lead-off
assignment. After a few minutes of initial analysis, we will open the discussion to the
rest of the class. As a group, we will then build a complete analysis of the situation and
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address the problems and issues presented in the case. We will also spend time
discussing the implementation of those recommendations.
Most general managers spend very little time reading, and even less time
writing reports. The vast majority of their interactions with others are verbal. For this
reason, the development of verbal skills is given a high priority in this class. The
classroom should be considered a laboratory in which you can test your ability to
convince your peers of the correctness of your approach to complex problems and of
your ability to achieve the desired results through the use of that approach. Some of the
things that have an impact on effective class participation are the following:
- - Is the participant a good listener?
- - Is the participant willing to interact with other class members?
- - Are the points that are made relevant to the discussion? Are they linked to
the comments of others?
- - Do the comments add to our understanding of the situation?
- - Does the participant distinguish among different kinds of data (i.e., facts,
opinions, beliefs, concepts, etc.)?
- - Is there a willingness to test new ideas, or are all comments "safe"? For
example, repetition of case facts without analysis and conclusions.
b. Readings and Lectures
Case discussion and project activities will take place against a background of
conceptual material that is acquired through selected readings and brief lectures. The
readings are listed in the course outline.
Some of the readings are taken from leading academic publications in strategic
management, economics and organization theory and are somewhat technical. They
refer to bodies of preceding research and discuss at some length the research
methodologies employed. Do not be discouraged by these technicalities. Ask yourself
what the key insights and findings of each reading are. Write these down. Try to relate
them to the case for the day. But, more importantly, try to relate them to the key ideas
of other readings in the course.
Note on the cases. The course has a mixture of mostly new and a few "classic"
cases. The latter ones offer the opportunity to discuss fundamental and timeless issues
and challenges faced by technology-based companies. Please study them in that spirit
and do not dismiss them out of hand simply because they seem "old." Ask yourself - as
we will in class - What can I learn from this situation that is generalizable to companies
that I am interested in today?
c. Field Project
The field project involves doing an innovative capabilities audit of a firm (or a
major part of a firm) chosen by your study group. The project involves three tasks:
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(1) Developing your own conceptual framework to do an audit of the innovative
capabilities of a firm. By innovative capabilities, I mean the set of characteristics of an
organization which will facilitate the emergence and management of technological
innovation projects, and the integration of such projects in the overall strategy of the
firm. It will be important to look at the capability to generate and manage incremental
as well as more radical, innovations. The last part of the chapter "Technology and
Strategy: A General Management Perspective" (BCW, pp. 8-12) provides the
elementary outline of a conceptual framework, but part of the assignment is for you to
determine for yourself what the key dimensions of a firm's innovative capabilities are.
(2) Using your own audit framework to write a report (maximum fifteen to
twenty double-spaced pages) on the innovative capabilities of a firm or major part of a
firm. Individuals/groups will be responsible for identifying a firm. Public data,
preferably combined with data obtained through personal interviews, and the study of
internal documents should form the basis for the descriptive part of the project. The
report involves analyzing the innovative capabilities of the organization, formulating
recommendations to maintain, develop, and/or improve the firm's innovative
capabilities, and considering the implementation aspects of the recommendations.
(3) A one-page executive summary (max 250 words) is required in which the
key lessons (maximum three) from the field project are succinctly discussed. These
should be cast in generalized terms. I will make sure that all the members of the class
get a copy of all the executive summaries.
A good project will be strong in the development of a conceptual framework
and the descriptive quality of the case used to document its application, and show sound
analysis and recommendations. A very good project will add depth of analysis and
have specific, workable recommendations. An excellent project will provide
unexpected insights that have implications for the management of innovation in
general. Specific details of the paper format are spelled out below.
Keep in mind that three multiplicatively related factors will determine the
effectiveness of your project-related group work. First, there must be excellent
collaboration between the group members. This requires assignment of specific
responsibilities for each group member, and the choice of a project leader. Second,
there must be good access for all members to the same organization. Third, there must
be enough time for meeting regularly to allow the necessary iterations between
conceptualization, data collection, and analysis. Please take this into account while
forming groups. All team members must equally contribute to the project.
Key deliverables and dates:
a. The group members and the choice of the firm you intend to study is due at end
of Session 4. A first draft of your project outline will be due at the end of Session 6.
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b. A first progress report will be due at the beginning of Session 8. This progress
report will consist of a few paragraphs to indicate what has been accomplished to date,
and what remains to be done. It will not be graded and may be handwritten.
c. A second progress report will be due at the beginning of Session 14. At this
point, a rough but complete draft of your project paper should be ready.
d. The final draft of your paper is due at the beginning of Session 18. at the
beginning of class. Please note that late papers will be downgraded.
e. All groups will be asked to present their findings to the entire class during
Session 20.
Format Guidelines for the Field Project:
1.
Typing: Papers are to be printed on A4 paper, double-spaced, with
normal margins. Do not put papers in folders. Staple the paper in the
upper left-hand corner.
2.
Length: The paper should be no more than fifteen (15) to twenty (20)
pages of text, plus exhibits. In general, exhibits should contain any
information which is relevant, but would take up too much space if
included in the body of the paper. Exhibits should not be used as strictly
an extension of textual material. Executive summaries should be no
longer than 250 words.
3.
Proofreading: All papers should be proofread. Papers for this course
should be the same quality that you would provide to the management of
a business that you are dealing with directly.
4.
Copies: Please turn in either the original or a photocopy of your paper.
Make sure to keep a copy of your work for yourself.
d. Examinations
There will be one midterm examination during the course of one hour’s duration
and a final exam of two hours’ duration.
The mid-term exam will be objective-type, but not multiple-choice, and will
require short answers. The midterm will be based on material covered in sessions 1-10.
Questions will be drawn from both the cases and the readings, as well as class
discussions. The quizzes seek the assess the participants’ learning and mastery over the
course materials.
The final exam will be of 2 hours’ duration, and will be based on a case
analysis. There will be several short-answer questions based on the case. Questions
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may be asked relating the case to any of the readings covered in class, as well as points
raised during class discussions. A general familiarity with all of the cases covered
during the course will also be assumed, although case details will not be required. The
final exam will count towards 30% of the course grade.
Grading Policies
Your course grade will be based on class participation and the field project:
Cases and Class Participation
Field Project
Mid-term Exam
25%
25%
20%
Final Exam
30%
Please note that to do well in the course, both class participation and field
project requirements must be fulfilled along with performance in the mid-term. In
particular, inadequate class participation cannot be made up by outstanding field
project performance.
Behavioral Expectations
The following reflect general expectations as to class behavior:
1.
In case you need to miss one class, please provide advance notice by
means of email or, if you could not provide advance notice, an email
note afterwards to explain the absence. If you do miss a class, it will
be your responsibility to find out from your classmates what materials
were covered, what additional assignments were made, and what
handouts you may have missed.
2.
I will be prepared for every class and expect that you will be too. You
should let me know before the start of class if some emergency has
made it impossible for you to be adequately prepared for that class.
3.
Please use a name card. I will pass around a seating chart during the
second class session and expect that you will use the same seat from
then on.
4.
For purposes of general case preparation, you should not use others' notes
or papers from other courses where these materials might have been
taught. Such use is considered a violation of the IIM-B Honor Code. If
you personally have actually had one of these cases previously, you are
certainly free to use your own prior notes on that material, but you are
encouraged to rethink the case within the context of this course, since it
may be somewhat different from how you saw it previously.
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5.
Group work is encouraged for case preparation and for the field project.
However, for the field project, all team members whose name is on
the paper must have contributed equally. A statement to that effect,
signed by all team members should be attached to the paper.
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CLASS ASSIGNMENTS
All materials, except those to be handed out in class, are included in the Burgelman,
Christensen and Wheelwright (BCW) textbook, except as indicated. Some new materials
will be handed out in class.
Session 1: TBD
Course Introduction
Class Expectations
Instructor Expectations
Readings:
"Technology, Innovation, and Strategy: A General Management
Perspective" (BCW, pp. 1-12)
“Profiting from Technological Innovation: Implications for Integration,
Collaboration, Licensing, and Public Policy" (BCW, p. 32-48)
Session 2: TBD
Case:
Advent Corporation (BCW, pp. 49-61)
Readings:
"The Core Competence of the Corporation" (BCW, pp. 66-67)
Preparation Questions:
1. What are the key elements in Advent's strategy? How successful has Advent been?
Why?
2. What are Advent's distinct technological competencies? Please construct a matrix
showing the technological competencies embodied in the different segments of the audio
business. How is this different for the video business?
3. What are the key issues and problems facing Advent? Please prepare a detailed action
plan.
4. Characterize Kloss's style as a general manager. Does he need to change? How?
Session 3: TBD
Case:
Elio Engineering, Inc. (A) (BCW, pp. 13-31)
Reading: (unrelated to the case) Global Innovation 1000: How Top
Innovators Keep Winning, strategy + business, 2010, please read it at
the following URL:
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http://www.booz.com/media/file/sb61_10408-R.pdf
Preparation Questions:
1. What is the structure of the automotive seat industry in 1998? How attractive is this
industry?
2. What are the potential sources of competitive advantage that Elio Engineering has?
How sustainable are they? Why/Why not?
3. What are Elio Engineering's strategic options in entering the automotive market?
Please evaluate these options and reach a conclusion on the most attractive one.
4. How well is Elio Engineering's technology strategy aligned with the requirements for a
successful entry into the automotive seat market? What, if anything, should they change?
Session 4: TBD
Case:
Electronic Arts in 1995 (BCW, pp. 164-279)
Electronic Arts in 2002 (BCW, pp. 180-199)
Reading:
“Defining the Minimum Winning Game in High-Technology Ventures”
(BCW, pp. 140-153)
Preparation Questions:
1. In 1995, what are the key characteristics of the video game industry? In which ways is
it similar/different from the movie industry?
2. Until 1995, how successful has EA been? Why? What is the basis of their competitive
advantage?
3. Until 1995, what has been EA's technology strategy? How is it linked to their business
strategy?
4. In 1995, how should EA top management think about the platform development
decisions it faces?
5. By 2002, how has the Internet affected the video game industry? How does it affect
EA’s corporate strategy? What should EA’s corporate strategy be for the next 5 years?
Why? How execute the strategy?
Note: List of group members, and choice of company are due at the end of
session 4. Your course expectations and background mail (100 words) also due.
These can be sent out by email to [email protected]
Session 5: TBD
Case: Pixim (A)
Reading:
"Management Criteria for Effective Innovation" (BCW, pp. 97-105)
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Please also revisit earlier reading “Defining the Minimum Winning Game in HighTechnology Ventures” (BCW, pp. 140-153)
Preparation Questions:
1) Examine the strategic situation at Pixim in 2001 before Siegel joined:
- Where are they in the “stages of development” of new ventures?
- What has been the main “driver” of their strategic actions so far?
- How well is their “strategy diamond” defined? (What is the company
saying? What is the company doing? What will it take for them to win
(given their product-market position)? What has the company got
(distinctive competence)?)
- How well are they doing?
2) Why did Weinschenk reach out to Siegel? Why did Siegel agree to join Pixim?
3) What are the key things that Siegel needs to find out quickly? Is Pixim’s
technology disruptive? Why or why not?
4) How did Siegel go about providing a structured analytical process for deciding
which market(s) to focus on first?
As a result of the more disciplined analytical process, what should Siegel conclude about
Pixim’s first minimum winning game (MWG)? Why? What are the implications of this?
Session 6: TBD
Case:
MySQL Open Source Database in 2004 (BCW, pp. 284-304)
MySQL Open Source Database in 2006 (BCW, pp. 304-309)
Readings:
"How Can We Beat Our Most Powerful Competitors?" (BCW, pp. 310330)
Preparation Questions:
1. How successful is MySQL? Why?
2. Identify different segments of the DBMS market. What differences exist between
these segments, eg., in customer needs and expectations?
3. Analyze the DBMS industry in which MySQL operates. How attractive is it?
Consider the different market segments you have identified in your analysis.
4. What are the competitive advantages of MySQL and how sustainable are they?
Quantify these advantages to the extent possible in the identified market
segments.
5. At the time of the 2004 case, what is the stated strategy of MySQL? What strategy
is implied by the company’s actions? How consistent are the strategic actions with
the stated strategy?
6. What are MySQL’s strategic options beyond 2004? What option should MySQL
choose?
7. How is MySQL’s open source model different from Linux’ OSS model, and what
are the implications of this?
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8. In 2006, how has the market changed? Does this favor MySQL or its competitors?
Note: Field project outlines (half a page, specifiying the firm/unit you intend
to audit, who you expect to interview, and any particular environmental factors that
may make innovation particularly crucial to the firm/unit) due at the end of Session
6. This can be submitted electronically to [email protected]
Session 7: TBD
Readings:
"Intraorganizational Ecology of Strategy Making and Organizational
Adaptation" (BCW, pp. 544-563)
"Strategic Intent" (BCW, pp. 577-589)
“Gunfire at Sea: A Case Study of Innovation” (BCW pp. 486-496)
Case: None
Note: First progress report on the field project is due at the end of Session 8
Session 8: TBD
Guest Lecture: On Design
Session 9: TBD
Case:
Hewlett Packard’s Merced Division (BCW, pp. 233-244)
Reading:
"Customer Power, Strategic Investment, and the Failure of Leading
Firms" (BCW, pp. 245-264)
Preparation Questions:
1. In summer 1998, what is the position of the Enterprise Server Group (ESG) in its
industry? How has it evolved? Why?
2. Why did HP get involved in developing the IA-64 architecture?
3. Who will benefit the most from the introduction of the Merced chip in the markets
served by ESG? Who will benefit the least? Why?
4. In summer 1998, what should Jim Davis recommend?
Session 10: TBD
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Case:
Reading:
SAP America (BCW, pp. 415-428)
“Crossing the Chasm and Beyond” (BCW, pp. 429-435)
Preparation Questions:
1. What are the external and internal forces that explain why SAP America has grown so
rapidly? What are the challenges associated with this explosive growth?
2. What are the key features of SAP's approach to partnering, sales, and consulting? What
are the advantages and potential disadvantages of this approach?
3. What is your evaluation of the new organization? What problems was it designed to
solve?
4. As Eileen Basho, what is your action plan for dealing with the strategic and
organizational challenges that you face?
Session 11: TBD
Case:
Hewlett-Packard: The Flight of the Kittyhawk (BCW, pp. 509-521)
Readings:
"Architectural Innovation: The Reconfiguration of Existing Product
Technologies and the Failure of Established Firms"
(BCW, pp. 496-509)
Preparation Questions:
1. Who were the key players in the emergence of the Kittyhawk project? What did each
of them contribute?
2. What are the strengths and weaknesses of the way Hewlett-Packard structured and
supported the Kittyhawk development team?
3. Why did Hewlett-Packard pursue the Kittyhawk project this way? What should they do
differently if they could do it over?
Session 12: TBD
Case:
Eli Lilly and Company: Drug Development Strategy (BCW, pp. 415-430)
Readings:
“Note on New Drug Development in the United States” (BCW, pp. 410414)
Preparation Questions:
1. What are the environmental factors facing the pharmaceutical industry especially
in the US? What is Eli Lilly’s strategic response to these?
2. Compare the various competitors’ balance sheet summaries in Exhibit 4 (page
418). Compare R&D expenses and net earnings as a % of sales. How do you
account for the discrepancies in return on equity?
3. Diagram the new product development process in place at Eli Lilly as applied to
the migraine project. What are the advantages and disadvantages you can see in
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this process? Compare this to the process in a smaller firm, example Advent (and
Kloss) in an earlier case.
4. What are the human factors issues creating resistance to the new techniques of
combinatorial chemistry and high throughput screening? Compare this to the
issues in the reading “Gunfire at Sea”
5. What are the possible financial implications of gaining first mover advantage?
See Exhibit 9. On the other hand, what is the downside of bringing an immature
product to market?
6. What would you recommend to the PTAC if you were Bianca Sharma? Why?
Session 13: TBD
The Fortune at the Bottom of the Pyramid – Innovation for the poor, or an exaggeration?
C K Prahalad “Fortune at the Bottom of the Pyramid”
http://www.cs.berkeley.edu/~brewer/ict4b/Fortune-BoP.pdf
CK Prahalad “The Innovation Sandbox”
http://www.strategy-business.com/press/freearticle/06306
Fortune at the Bottom of the Pyramid: A Mirage
http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=914518
Fortune at the Bottom of the Pyramid: An Alternate Perspective
http://www.iimahd.ernet.in/publications/data/2007-07-13Jaiswal.pdf
Session 14: TBD
Case:
3M Optical Systems Division: Managing Corporate Entrepreneurship
(BCW, pp. 936-949)
Reading:
The New Product Development Map, BCW pp. 1119-1128
At 3M, a Struggle Between Efficiency and Creativity, BCW pp. 949-955
Preparation Questions:
1. Put yourself in the position of Andy Wong. In January 1992, what are your options for
securing continued funding for the venture? Make a decision regarding those options and
prepare an action plan.
2. Put yourself in the position of Paul Guehler. What will you do if Wong decides to ask
for further funding for the Multiprotection Filter? Why?
3. How does Wong's effort fit within the 3M culture in 1992?
4. In the end, what are the key factors of 3M’s corporate entrepreneurial capability? What
are the transferable features? Which features are difficult to transfer?
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Session 15: TBD
Case:
Reading:
Cisco Systems, Inc.: Acquisition Integration for Manufacturing (A)
(BCW, pp. 745-761)
“Enactment of Technology Strategy—Developing a Firm’s Innovative
Capabilities” (BCW, pp. 657-670)
Preparation Questions:
1.What are the most important elements (criteria, processes, specific actions, etc.) of
Cisco’s approach to selecting and integrating acquisitions? Why?
2. How can Cisco improve its acquisition selection and integration process? What should
they add or modify? Why?
3. What are the specific challenges of the Summa Four acquisition? How well does the
Cisco process address these challenges? Why?
Note: Second progress report on the field project is due at the beginning of
session 16
Session 16: TBD
Case:
PlaceWare: Issues in Structuring a Xerox Technology Spinout
(BCW, pp. 762-772)
Reading:
“The Lab That Ran Away From Xerox” (BCW, pp. 671-674)
Guest Lecture:
Entrepreneur
Topic: TBD
Preparation Questions:
1. Why has Xerox chosen to commercialize PlaceWare outside of Xerox? Do you agree
with their rationale? Why or why not?
2. Which option should Bruce recommend for structuring the spinout of PlaceWare?
3. Why should the PlaceWare development team support your recommended choice of
structure? How important is it that they support you?
4. What valuation would you give to PlaceWare in June of 1996? What percentage of that
value should Xerox expect for its intellectual property? Why?
Session 17: TBD
Case:
Product Development at Dell Computer Corporation (BCW, pp. 957-970)
Reading:
“Organizing and Leading ‘Heavyweight’ Development Teams” (BCW,
pp. 1012-1023)
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Preparation Questions:
1. How does Dell Computer differentiate itself from its competition in the desktop
market? What is its business strategy and its core competence? How is it able to
appropriate value from its innovations?
2. What are the advantages or disadvantages of Dell’s new product development
process as compared to others you have seen such as Cisco or 3M? What
improvements would you recommend?
3. What are the possible choices before Mark Holliday at the time of the case? What
would you recommend and why? What are the risks (including financial)
associated with your choice?
Session 18: TBD
Lecture:
The Patenting Process
Reading:
“Finding the Balance: Intellectual Property in the Digital Age” (BCW, pp.
398-410)
Note: Final project report is due at the beginning of session 19
Session 19: TBD
Lecture:
Generating Value through the Selling Process
Reading:
“The Three Emerging Selling Models” and “The New Consultative
Selling” (Rackham, Rethinking the Sales Force) (To be handed out in
class)
Note: Quiz III will be in the last 30 minutes of Session 19
Session 20: TBD
Group presentations: All projects
Course Evaluation
Course Summary
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