Summary Innovation Management
Table of Contents
1. Introduction .................................................................................................................................. 1
1.1. What is innovation? ............................................................................................................. 1
1.2. How to manage innovation? ................................................................................................ 2
1.3. Why care about managing innovation? ................................................................................ 3
2. Innovation management at the system level................................................................................. 6
2.1. Systemic view on innovation ................................................................................................ 6
2.2. System transformation ......................................................................................................... 8
3. Innovation management at the industry level ............................................................................. 11
3.1. Types and patterns of innovation ....................................................................................... 11
3.2. Standards battles and design dominance ........................................................................... 13
3.3. Modularity and platform competition ................................................................................ 15
3.4. Timing of entry ................................................................................................................... 16
4. Innovation management at the company level ........................................................................... 17
4.1. Defining the organization’s strategic direction.................................................................... 17
4.2. Managing innovation in the ecosystem .............................................................................. 20
4.3. Collaboration strategies ..................................................................................................... 22
4.4. Choosing innovation projects ............................................................................................. 24
4.5. Protecting innovations ....................................................................................................... 25
5. Innovation management at the project level............................................................................... 26
5.1. Organizing for innovation ................................................................................................... 26
5.2. Managing New Product & Service Development (NP&SD) teams ........................................ 27
5.3. Managing the NP&SD process ............................................................................................ 30
5.4. Crafting a deployment strategy .......................................................................................... 32
6. Intellectual property rights (online module) ................................................................................ 37
6.1. Introduction ....................................................................................................................... 37
6.2. Copyright ........................................................................................................................... 39
6.3. Software ............................................................................................................................ 41
6.4. Trade name right ................................................................................................................ 42
6.5. Trademark right ................................................................................................................. 43
6.6. Drawing or design right ...................................................................................................... 45
6.7. Patent right ........................................................................................................................ 46
6.8. Database right .................................................................................................................... 48
6.9. Plant variety right............................................................................................................... 49
6.10. Semiconductor topography right .................................................................................... 51
6.11. Confidentiality ............................................................................................................... 52
6.12. Fixed date ...................................................................................................................... 53
6.13. Domain names ............................................................................................................... 54
7. Obligatory reading...................................................................................................................... 56
7.1. Design thinking for innovation (Rosch et al., 2023) ............................................................. 56
7.2. Augmenting innovation teams with AI (Bouschery et al., 2023) .......................................... 58
7.3. Multi-actor circular economy engagement (Verleyen et al., 2024) ...................................... 60
7.4. Tool for identifying innovation promotors (Petzolt et al., 2025).......................................... 62
0
, 1. Introduction
1.1. What is innovation?
1) Definition of innovation
• Innovation = the action or process of innovating
à It is both a process & an outcome
à Schumpeter (1934) =
- Introduction of new product
- New methods of production
- Opening new markets
- Use of new sources of supply
- New forms of competition
à Porter (1990) = improvements in technology & better methods
à Rogers (1995) = an idea, practice, or object that is perceived as new
by the individual or other unit of adoption
2) Different levels of newness
New-to-the-world product = inventions that create a whole new market
New-to-the-company product = products that take a firm into a category new
to it
Platform product = appliance whose basic design and some
components are used in several products of a
product family
Addition to product line = line extensions and flankers that flesh out the
product line in current markets
Derivative product = improvements and revisions to existing products
Newness Repositioned product = products that are retargeted for a new use or
application
3) Incremental vs. radical innovation
• Radical innovations = highly new or impactful innovations
• Incremental innovation = low in newness and impact
4) Different types of innovations
• Material/product innovation
• Process innovation
• Supply chain innovation
• Organizational innovation
• Business model innovation
• Marketing innovation
1
,1.2. How to manage innovation?
INSPIRATION vs. HARD WORK
1) Inspiration perspective
• Key assumption: innovation is about good ideas
• Key characteristics of creativity:
o Novel: unique, different, non-typical, new, unusual
o Useful: responds to a need, has some utility
o Understandable: not mystical, not the result of chance
Alternative uses test – J.P. Guilford (1967)
Goal: try to come up with as many alternative uses as possible for a certain
object/project/…
Then: evaluate creativity based on following criteria:
- Fluency = number of ideas
- Flexibility = diversity of ideas
- Originality = solutions other people do not reach
- Elaboration = level of detail
• Origins of creativity:
- Personal: motivation, personality traits, style of thinking, intellectual
capabilities, knowledge
- Environmental: no pressure, challenging work, freedom, sufficient
resources, encouragement of creativity
- New knowledge
- …
• Improving creativity can be done by:
- Challenging goals - Use of facilitators
- Diverse knowledge - Increase of accountability
- Structured group interaction - Writing & brainstorming
2) Hard-work perspective
• Key assumption: innovation = ideas/invention + implementation
• It’s a staged process:
1. Idea generation: diverge + converge
2. Development
à Proof-of-concept: is idea feasible?
3. Testing & validation
à Prototype = idea is made tangible through
visualization/materialization
à Minimum viable product = basic version,
sufficient for early adopters in real-life
4. Launch
à Iterative!
2
, Innovation funnel – Stevens and Burley (1997)
Double diamond – Bouschery et al. (2023)
(Also see Section 7.2)
• Design thinking = iterative problem-solving and innovation process in
organization which uses specific methods (creative thinking, visualization,
experimentation…) and is based on specific principles:
- Invent: focus on user needs
- Test: visualize and prototype
- Bring it to life: embrace feedback from various stakeholders and tolerate
failure
1.3. Why care about managing innovation?
• Key assumption: managing innovation is critical for any organization
• Need for innovation management:
- Failure is a risk when striving for innovation
- Successful innovations can have negative externalities
- Innovations have sustainability potential
3
Table of Contents
1. Introduction .................................................................................................................................. 1
1.1. What is innovation? ............................................................................................................. 1
1.2. How to manage innovation? ................................................................................................ 2
1.3. Why care about managing innovation? ................................................................................ 3
2. Innovation management at the system level................................................................................. 6
2.1. Systemic view on innovation ................................................................................................ 6
2.2. System transformation ......................................................................................................... 8
3. Innovation management at the industry level ............................................................................. 11
3.1. Types and patterns of innovation ....................................................................................... 11
3.2. Standards battles and design dominance ........................................................................... 13
3.3. Modularity and platform competition ................................................................................ 15
3.4. Timing of entry ................................................................................................................... 16
4. Innovation management at the company level ........................................................................... 17
4.1. Defining the organization’s strategic direction.................................................................... 17
4.2. Managing innovation in the ecosystem .............................................................................. 20
4.3. Collaboration strategies ..................................................................................................... 22
4.4. Choosing innovation projects ............................................................................................. 24
4.5. Protecting innovations ....................................................................................................... 25
5. Innovation management at the project level............................................................................... 26
5.1. Organizing for innovation ................................................................................................... 26
5.2. Managing New Product & Service Development (NP&SD) teams ........................................ 27
5.3. Managing the NP&SD process ............................................................................................ 30
5.4. Crafting a deployment strategy .......................................................................................... 32
6. Intellectual property rights (online module) ................................................................................ 37
6.1. Introduction ....................................................................................................................... 37
6.2. Copyright ........................................................................................................................... 39
6.3. Software ............................................................................................................................ 41
6.4. Trade name right ................................................................................................................ 42
6.5. Trademark right ................................................................................................................. 43
6.6. Drawing or design right ...................................................................................................... 45
6.7. Patent right ........................................................................................................................ 46
6.8. Database right .................................................................................................................... 48
6.9. Plant variety right............................................................................................................... 49
6.10. Semiconductor topography right .................................................................................... 51
6.11. Confidentiality ............................................................................................................... 52
6.12. Fixed date ...................................................................................................................... 53
6.13. Domain names ............................................................................................................... 54
7. Obligatory reading...................................................................................................................... 56
7.1. Design thinking for innovation (Rosch et al., 2023) ............................................................. 56
7.2. Augmenting innovation teams with AI (Bouschery et al., 2023) .......................................... 58
7.3. Multi-actor circular economy engagement (Verleyen et al., 2024) ...................................... 60
7.4. Tool for identifying innovation promotors (Petzolt et al., 2025).......................................... 62
0
, 1. Introduction
1.1. What is innovation?
1) Definition of innovation
• Innovation = the action or process of innovating
à It is both a process & an outcome
à Schumpeter (1934) =
- Introduction of new product
- New methods of production
- Opening new markets
- Use of new sources of supply
- New forms of competition
à Porter (1990) = improvements in technology & better methods
à Rogers (1995) = an idea, practice, or object that is perceived as new
by the individual or other unit of adoption
2) Different levels of newness
New-to-the-world product = inventions that create a whole new market
New-to-the-company product = products that take a firm into a category new
to it
Platform product = appliance whose basic design and some
components are used in several products of a
product family
Addition to product line = line extensions and flankers that flesh out the
product line in current markets
Derivative product = improvements and revisions to existing products
Newness Repositioned product = products that are retargeted for a new use or
application
3) Incremental vs. radical innovation
• Radical innovations = highly new or impactful innovations
• Incremental innovation = low in newness and impact
4) Different types of innovations
• Material/product innovation
• Process innovation
• Supply chain innovation
• Organizational innovation
• Business model innovation
• Marketing innovation
1
,1.2. How to manage innovation?
INSPIRATION vs. HARD WORK
1) Inspiration perspective
• Key assumption: innovation is about good ideas
• Key characteristics of creativity:
o Novel: unique, different, non-typical, new, unusual
o Useful: responds to a need, has some utility
o Understandable: not mystical, not the result of chance
Alternative uses test – J.P. Guilford (1967)
Goal: try to come up with as many alternative uses as possible for a certain
object/project/…
Then: evaluate creativity based on following criteria:
- Fluency = number of ideas
- Flexibility = diversity of ideas
- Originality = solutions other people do not reach
- Elaboration = level of detail
• Origins of creativity:
- Personal: motivation, personality traits, style of thinking, intellectual
capabilities, knowledge
- Environmental: no pressure, challenging work, freedom, sufficient
resources, encouragement of creativity
- New knowledge
- …
• Improving creativity can be done by:
- Challenging goals - Use of facilitators
- Diverse knowledge - Increase of accountability
- Structured group interaction - Writing & brainstorming
2) Hard-work perspective
• Key assumption: innovation = ideas/invention + implementation
• It’s a staged process:
1. Idea generation: diverge + converge
2. Development
à Proof-of-concept: is idea feasible?
3. Testing & validation
à Prototype = idea is made tangible through
visualization/materialization
à Minimum viable product = basic version,
sufficient for early adopters in real-life
4. Launch
à Iterative!
2
, Innovation funnel – Stevens and Burley (1997)
Double diamond – Bouschery et al. (2023)
(Also see Section 7.2)
• Design thinking = iterative problem-solving and innovation process in
organization which uses specific methods (creative thinking, visualization,
experimentation…) and is based on specific principles:
- Invent: focus on user needs
- Test: visualize and prototype
- Bring it to life: embrace feedback from various stakeholders and tolerate
failure
1.3. Why care about managing innovation?
• Key assumption: managing innovation is critical for any organization
• Need for innovation management:
- Failure is a risk when striving for innovation
- Successful innovations can have negative externalities
- Innovations have sustainability potential
3
