Innovation & Protecting a Business Idea - Classroom Video

A huge hat tip to Angela Aldridge for suggesting this terrific short video clip on the process of invention and innovation at Dyson.  This has to be one of the most useful videos you’ll ever have as a lesson starter on product innovation....

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Corporate culture: how a huge firm like Google tries to foster innovation

Hitting a couple of tough A2 concepts here: the idea of companies having a ‘culture’ and how deliberate steps are often taken to shape that culture: in this case, to try to prevent the breakdown of innovation.  This is often a classic ‘diseconomy of scale’ that hampers large organisations.

Can you spot the next ‘disruptive technology’?

Another thought for those of you who like spotting trends and ways in which the changing technological environment can have a huge impact on firms. 

In 1995, two researchers at the Harvard Business School invented a new term: “disruptive technology”. This is an innovation that meets the needs of a small segment of consumers better than the existing technology.  Once a niche is established, the product can develop, become cheaper and eventually sweep away its rivals.  Their problem is whether they should ignore the threat or switch to the new system.

Innovation helps firm buck the recession

A fascinating insight into some new technologies that are enabling a Cambridge-based firm to grow, despite the impact of the global downturn…

Microsoft and Google compete head-to-head

A dramatic shake-up for the information-technology (IT) industry is coming.  Google is promising to release an operating system (like XP or Vista) for personal computers.  This represents a direct attack on Microsoft, the world’s biggest software firm. 

Rapstrap becomes Dragons Den’s Biggest Success to-date

Sheer persistence over half his lifetime has finally paid off for entrepreneur Andrew Harsley, with a £36m order for his innovative environmentally-friendly cable-tie named “Rapstrap"…

Cutting costs for a railway by switching the engines off

This short video piece on the BBC website is a great example to use when explaining how innovation can help a business cut operating costs…

Dragons Den - The Deal that Floated Away from the Dragons

You may be surprised to hear that only a third (or thereabouts) of deals “agreed” on Dragons Den actually become completed investments.  Sometimes the Dragons walk away after doing their due diligence into the potential investment.  Occasionally the entrepreneur discovers that the business is worth much more than the investment agreed on-screen.  Here is a great example of that…

Product innovation - is the jetpack ready for takeoff?

A great example of product innovation to use with students.  Will this jet pack that takes customers soaring up to 3 feet above the ground be a hit with consumers?

Fast food product innovation - will the feedbag take off?

The American fast food industry has long been associated with product innovation and giving customers what they want.  But will the latest product concept, which enables customers to eat without using their hands, prove detrimental to US consumer health?