Issues in Technology Innovation

¶ … technology s-curve analysis is useful to assess the developmental lifecycle stage of technology. The term s-curve refers to the share that the progress of the lifecycle will be seen as on a graph where the x axis is time and the y axis is performance (White & Bruton, 201). The line resembles an s, as shown in figure 1 below

Figure 1; the Technology S-Curve

The curve is useful as it will help to assess where technology is in the life cycle, and whether there are likely to be major improvements, or if the product is moving towards maturity if it will be vulnerable to substitute technology (White & Bruton, 2010). New technology that will be come a substitute is likely to start its lifecycle during the accelerated growth period of the exiting technology, so it is ready to become the substitute when the current technology reaches maturity. Understanding the s-curve may help firms manage developments and ensure they have suitable substitution strategies in place.

(b) While the s-curve is useful, it is also limited; it will not help to predict disruptive innovation, as this can also result in creative disruption, this is where s-curve jump and they can destroy product categories. The s-curve may also be limited in terms of the timescale, as these may vary greatly.

(c & d) There are alternate lifecycle models, such as the product lifecycle and there are some strong arguments that rather than looking at single sc-curves, the s-curve itself may also be broken-down into a series of waves, as components of technology may be change and developed. However, it does not appear there is a model that can be argued as superior to the technology s-curve, and all other models appears to be variants of this approach.

Question 2

(a) Key issues to remember in managing technology substitution include the way in which the consumers that buy the technology use it, and how the new products may be perceived in terms of acceptability (White & Bruton, 2010). This means looking not only at current needs, but at potential future consumer needs in order to ensure that the technology meets with market needs. Firms need to ensure potential substitutions will include the ability to satisfy needs and offer sufficient additional, but desired or useful benefits that will justify the consumer switching for a product that is likely to have a higher cost, and may include some inconvenience in terms of adapting to the changes in the technology (Kotler & Keller, 2011).