We covered the Innovator’s Dilemma with Matthew Christensen in the first part of this series, but we did not cover Chapter 7 of the Innovator’s Dilemma,that chapter Is entitled “Discovering New and Emerging Markets” It opens as follows: “Markets that do not exist cannot be analyzed: Suppliers and customers must discover them together. Not only are the market applications for disruptive technologies unknown at the time of their development, they are unknowable. The strategies and plans that managers formulate for confronting disruptive technological change, therefore, should be plans for learning and discovery rather than plans for execution. This is a crucial point to understand because managers who believe they know a market’s future will plan and invest very differently from those who recognize the uncertainties of a developing market.” You may know those to be the words of Clayton Christensen, but what you may not know is that this concept of discovery-driven growth stems from the work of a very special friend of the Innovation Show, it is an immense pleasure to welcome Rita McGrath.

Topics on this episode:

00:00:00 - Intro and Sponsor
00:02:28 Rita McGrath Welcome
00:04:15 Clayton Christensen Relationship
00:07:35 Discovery-Driven Planning
00:12:05 Client Example of Too Attached to Outcome
00:13:23 Redefining Failure: Failing Fast is Not Always Failing
00:14:04 Example of Varo Bank
00:18:51 KittyHawk Example
00:20:54 The Role of Luck
00:24:51 Honda SuperCub and NonConsumers
00:27:50 Jobs To Be Done and The McLean Hamburger
00:29:51 Origins of Discovery-Driven Planning
00:31:41 Most Mutations in Nature Fail, as do most ideas
00:32:47 Origins of Innovation Thinking From Schumpeter to Today
00:34:08 Discovery-Driven Planning Overview in a Nutshell
00:37:55 Disasters: EuroDisney
00:42:09 Disasters: PolaVision
00:43:15 Organisational Capabilities, Arenas and Kao
00:46:23 Selling an Idea to a CFO/Incumbent Gatekeeper
00:51:06 UPM Example: United Paper Mills Example
00:55:00 R.A.C.E.