Cross-Boundary Disruption - Andy Grove Style

Forbes magazine asks the question: How do you innovate in a field that already exists? Longtime innovator extraordinaire Andy Grove is teaching a group of kids at Stanford how to do that through "cross-boundary disruption." Grove is a disciple of BIF research advisor Clay Christensen so it makes sense that this smells a whole lot like disruptive innovation.

Grove is teaching the class with Stanford professor Robert A. Burgelman. Along with 30 students, the duo are analyzing a number of different industries including energy, media, healthcare and telecommunications, looking for symptoms of poor health. Among the questions they are asking: is it a slow industry, is there any business model innovation going on, have incumbents established rules for the industry?

From the Forbes article:

"Disrupters" to that status quo typically show up from other industries. They need to have enough scale and resources to make a real difference. This isn't a game for low-budget startups; you've got to have enough muscle to make a dent in a field where there are giants. Disrupters are hungry. They're risk takers. And most important, they are not prisoners of their own prejudices and past decisions--a newcomer to a field can see the problems of a static old industry differently.

Sounds a lot like disruptive innovation wrapped in design-thinking. The article continues talking about Apple's iPhone and Google's impending mobile phone. Both companies are trying to cross boundaries with their respective products. According to the trade press, we should be able to get a peak at Google's phone next week.

BIF also recommends:
Clay told me a great story about the use of experimentation in the innovation process which I blogged about a few weeks ago. He also spoke at our recent summit. Admittedly, I have an intellectual crush on the man - and you will too - just check out the video.

Posted November 7, 2007 09:24 AM by Chris Flanagan | Permalink