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.