Managing New Product Development Teams Why does Disney keep its development teams small? What are the pros and cons of the teams being so autonomous? Is Disney’s team approach mostly suited to creative projects, or would it work equally well in other kinds of industries?
Category Archives: Management
What are some of the likely changes agile development requires in managing development personnel?
Managing the New Product Development Process What are some of the advantages and disadvantages of the agile development process? How is agile development similar to or different from (a) the stage-gate process and (b) the parallel development process described in the chapter? What are some of the likely changes agile development requires in managing development […]
What do you believe the challenges are in having very different structure and controls for Google’s creative side versus the other parts of the company?
Implementing Technological Innovation Strategy What are the advantages and disadvantages of the creative side of Google being run as a flexible and flat “technocracy”? How does Google’s culture influence the kind of employees it can attract and retain? What do you believe the challenges are in having very different structure and controls for Google’s creative […]
What factors do you believe influenced the choice of protection strategy used for the innovation identified above?
What are the differences between patents, copyrights, and trademarks? What factors should a firm considering marketing its innovation in multiple countries use in formulating its protection strategy? When are trade secrets more useful than patents, copyrights, or trademarks? Identify a situation in which none of the legal protection mechanisms discussed (patents, copyrights, trademarks, trade secrets) […]
Does the HIV program offer any special opportunities or challenges?
What were the pros and cons of Sangamo pursuing its gene editing programs alone versus working with a partner? Does the HIV program offer any special opportunities or challenges? What do you think Sangamo should do regarding the HIV program? Should it license the technology to a large pharmaceutical? Should it form a joint venture […]
Why might a firm use both qualitative and quantitative assessments of a project?
Choosing Innovation Projects What are the advantages and disadvantages of discounted cash flow methods such as NPV and IRR? For what kind of development projects might a real options approach be appropriate? For what kind of projects would it be inappropriate? Why might a firm use both qualitative and quantitative assessments of a project? Identify […]
Why is it necessary to perform an external and internal analysis before the firm can identify its true core competencies?
What is the difference between a strength, a competitive advantage, and a sustainable competitive advantage? What makes an ability (or set of abilities) a core competency? Why is it necessary to perform an external and internal analysis before the firm can identify its true core competencies? Pick a company you are familiar with. Can you […]
How would you characterize competition in the auto industry?
Formulating Technological Innovation Strategy Discussion Questions What were Musk’s and Eberhard’s goals in founding Tesla? How would you characterize competition in the auto industry? What do you think are Tesla’s core competencies? Does it have any sources of sustainable competitive advantage? What is your assessment of Tesla’s moves into (a) mass-market cars, (b) batteries (car […]
What factors might make some industries harder to pioneer than others?
STRATEGIES TO IMPROVE TIMING OPTIONS What are some advantages of entering a market early? Are there any advantages to entering a market late? Name a successful (a) first mover, (b) early follower, and (c) late entrant. Identify unsuccessful examples of each. What factors might make some industries harder to pioneer than others? Are there industries […]
What are some of the ways a firm can try to increase the overall value of its technology and its likelihood of becoming the dominant design?
Platform Ecosystems What are some of the sources of increasing returns to adoption? What are some examples of industries not mentioned in the chapter that demonstrate increasing returns to adoption? What are some of the ways a firm can try to increase the overall value of its technology and its likelihood of becoming the dominant […]
