Innovation and Technology Transfer
This paper first addresses the need for innovation as a key factor in business success and longevity. It then challenges the received wisdom that all innovation comes from smaller companies and that large companies are incapable of innovating. Presenting evidence to the contrary, and stressing the importance to large businesses of developing an innovative culture, the author describes some of the more successful ways that larger companies have found to foster innovation – these include the ‘10%’ rule, the ‘lead user’ concept, and paying for innovative ideas. In addition, he reports on the effective development and use of the ‘Minority Report’ at Motorola and notes some of the obstacles that other companies have experienced in attempting to adopt this practice. The author concludes with thoughts on ways to facilitate technology transfer to large companies, stressing that obstacles can be created by the attitudes of inventors as well as by company cultures, and that transfer can be facilitated by a better understanding on both sides of the problems and issues involved.