MANAGING DISCONTINUOUS INNOVATION

OVERVIEW: The process of managing breakthrough, or discontinuous, inno vation differs dramatically from managing incremental changes in produ cts and technologies. We have learned a lot about the latter; but know little about the former. It seems obvious, though, that what is sound management practice for incremental innovation-where speed, cycle tim e, and quick cash recovery are primary objectives-might actually hampe r the radical innovation's progress. The study reported here identifie d mechanisms and practices under management's control that can help to further the discontinuous innovation process. These include mechanism s for directing the technology-market arenas in which these projects o ccur, mechanisms for proactively stimulating discontinuous innovation, criteria for project evaluation and screening that differ from curren tly used criteria, mechanisms for protecting projects that operate in highly uncertain regimes, and the importance of recognizing the key ro le of multiple champions over time and at different organizational lev els.