5141 - THE MANAGEMENT OF COMPETITION AND INNOVATION IN HIGH-TECH SECTORS

Knowledge creation, Intellectual Capital, and Innovation are at the core of value creation for many firms in the new competitive landscape, especially in knowledge-intensive businesses in high-technology sectors. Despite the importance of innovation to value creation, relatively few companies have mastered the ability to identify, create, and exploit opportunities for innovation on a systematic basis. Some organizations are routinely more innovative than others. Different strategies can be pursued to capture value from innovation. Capabilities must be developed in order to ensure that a firm responds effectively to sudden and dramatic technological and/or market changes. These issues are among the greatest challenges facing general managers across a variety of industries and will be explored in this course.
Knowledge Management provides a framework and strategic tools to better understand issues surrounding competition on knowledge creation and innovation. The main focus is on the acquisition of a set of powerful analytical tools that are critical for the development of a strategy in high-technology sectors. These tools can provide the framework for insightful planning when deciding which technologies to invest in, how to structure those investments and how to anticipate and respond to the behavior of competitors, suppliers, and customers. Guest lectures and a variety of company examples will provide evidence on how firms have succeeded in out-innovating their competition and successfully establishing themselves as the dominant firm.

Part 1: Design and Evolution of Innovation

• Knowledge creation and innovation: An introduction
• Understanding knowledge creation, technological evolution, and industry context
• Organizational context, new product innovation, and market creation

Part 2: Enactment of the competitive context

• Competing technologies and the diffusion of innovation
• Bandwagon effects and other externalities
• Technological substitution and growth

Part 3: Developing the firm's innovative capabilities

• Technology sourcing and corporate innovation
• Building capabilities through new product development and market introduction
• Innovation challenges in successful businesses

• BURGELMAN, R.A; MAIDIQUE, M.A.; WHEELWRIGHT, S.C. (2000), Strategic Management of Technology and Innovation, McGrawHill, Irwin.
• VON KROGH, G.; ICHIJO, I.; NONAKA, I. (2000), Enabling Knowledge Creation: How to Unlock the Mystery of Tacit Knowledge, Oxford University Press, New York.

Attending students

For those students attending classes on a regular basis the final evaluation will consist of attendance, participation, and a written assignment.

Attending students

Otherwise the exam will consist of both a written and/or an oral examination.