04-801-N2 Innovation and IT
Location: Africa
Units: 6
Semester Offered: Intermittent
Location: Africa
Units: 6
Semester Offered: Intermittent
This course focuses on Disruptive IT Innovations Driving Business Models and IT-based innovations only. The coursework includes in-class discussions, and a course project (self-directed research). Students will group in teams of 2-3 students. Each team will choose one of the provided current IT innovations (e.g., Industrial Internet of Things, Hyper Automation, Data Fabric, Smart Contracts, NFT, etc.) and do research on the innovation itself and its effect on business models (conceptual focus). The team will write an annotated outline, prepare a slide deck, and present its results in class. The provided annotated outline and presentation will be the basis for in-class discussion with the rest of the class. It is essential to begin work on the course project at the beginning of the course.
The theory of disruptive innovation, introduced by Clayton M. Christensen in 1995, has proved to be a powerful way of thinking about innovation-driven growth. In this context, Christensen/Raynor and McDonald [2015] describe “Disruption” as a process whereby a smaller company with fewer resources can successfully challenge established incumbent businesses. Specifically, as incumbents focus on improving their products and services for their most demanding (and usually most profitable) customers, they exceed the needs of some segments and ignore the needs of others. Entrants that prove disruptive begin by successfully targeting those overlooked segments, gaining a foothold by delivering more-suitable functionality—frequently at a lower price. Entrants then move upmarket, delivering the performance that incumbents’ mainstream customers require while preserving the advantages that drove their early success (see Harvard Business Review article "What is Disruptive Innovation?").
After completing this course, students will be able to:
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