Module Code and Title:                EDP303 Fostering Innovation in Business

Programme:                                      Bachelor of Business Administration

Credit Value:                                     12

Module Tutors:                                 Shreejana Pradhan, Enchu Lhamo,Dip Raj Pradhan,Kezang Wangchuk,Carl Wonder,Priyanka Sharma,Jeroen Uittenbogaard

Module Coordinator:                        Jeroen Uittenbogaard

General Objective: The aim of the module is to provide a moderate-level understanding of how innovation takes place, including the important explanatory factors, and the economic and social consequences. The focus of the module is on practices and processes that entrepreneurs and managers use to position organizations where innovation will occur, and to manage innovation effectively in new and existing organizations and in networks. The module design is grounded in the assumption that an integrated approach to strategy and implementation of innovation is necessary. Consequently, it incorporates examples and case studies of both successful and unsuccessful innovation projects. One common overlying theme will be that of expanding the students’ perception of business and career options with the objective of creating and fostering work environments that encourage and support innovation. At the individual level, students will develop their capacity to create and offer new products, services and organizational approaches, and realizing opportunities, or solving issues through innovation based activities.

Learning Outcomes – On completion of the module, students should be able to:

1. Analyse the factors, practices, and processes that drive innovation
2. Explain the techniques of innovation in marketing, technology, etc.
3. Evaluate practices and policies that foster innovation of a given business case
4. Develop and formulate managerial strategies to shape innovative performance in specific situations
5. Diagnose how to manage different innovation challenges in businesses and make recommendations for resolving them
6. Discuss current research and development in innovation management
7. Analyse the use of innovation-related theories in different markets and businesses to generate new approaches to innovation
8. Describe how technological and process innovation drive economic competitiveness
9. Explain the role of organizational culture and structures and strategies in innovation in business situations
10. Analyse the enablers and inhibitors of bringing out innovation and creativity of people
11. Suggest solutions to challenges in large and small organizations relating to innovative performance

Teaching and Learning Approach:

Assessment Approach:

1. Case Studies: Portion of Final Marks-40%

Students will complete a series of four different case studies of 1000 words on different types of innovation, and of ascending levels of complexity. Conducted at two/three week intervals throughout the semester beginning in the second week. Each, worth 10%, will be marked as follows:

2%       identification of key issues

1.5%    use of appropriate analysis tools

1.5%    Identification of potential

3%       analysis of potential solutions

2%       recommendations and justification of recommendations

• The tutor will first guide students through an ungraded introductory case study where the outcome and recommendations are included. Subsequent cases will require the students to seek out and develop innovation based solutions for a variety of issues faced by different types of organizations.
• Two cases will be provided by students as part of an assignment to seek out and identify examples of organizations that were able to overcome problems or realize opportunities through innovative activities.
• Two additional cases will be provided to students and will be based on organizations that face or faced problems, or have (or had) had unrealized potential. Students will be assigned to identify solutions that are innovation based.
• Each of the case studies will include:
  • Introduction to case, parameters and expectations – Lecture 1 hour. (No assessment)
  • Reading and review of case, minimum of two hours. (outside of class, no assessment)
  • Written assignment on findings and recommendations for case. 40% (10% each for 4 cases as described above.
  • Discussion of case in class – 2-3 hours – see below for assessment details.
  • Brief, (approximately 5 minutes plus Q&A), presentations on lessons learned, best practices and takeaways from case – see below for assessment details.

1. Class Discussion/Participation: Portion of Final Marks-15%

Each student will participate in the class discussions concerning each case, listen to the viewpoints of others and present their ideas with logic and clarity.

4%       feasibility of ideas generated

3%       able to convince to class members

3%       clarity and language

5%       listening and responding to the ideas of others and to complex ideas discussed among the class

1. Presentation/Multi-Media: Portion of Final Marks-20%

Each student will make one presentation to the class of 5-10 minutes discussing a business case.  Each presentation will be multi-media and include verbal, video and audio elements in a cohesive way.

3%       organization and comprehensiveness of presentation

2%       audibility

5%       language

6%       knowledge content

4%       multi-media integrated to enhance the effectiveness of presentation

1. Semester-end Examination: Portion of Final Marks-25%

The module will have a semester-end exam for 2 hours covering the entire syllabus. The question will be divided into two parts – Part A (carrying 40% of the exam weightage) will be mostly of short answer including objective questions. Part-B (carrying almost 60% of the exam weightage) will be mostly of essay type or an extended response to the given question. This part of the question requires students to apply, analyse, and evaluate or construct knowledge and skills. Cases will also be used to test the levels of knowledge.

Pre-requisites: None

Subject Matter:

1. Introduction to Innovation; Overview and Relevance
   • Introduction to innovation and various types of innovation-changed
   • History of innovation and entrepreneurship in economic development
   • Role of innovation and entrepreneurship in economic development in the past and present
   • Role of I&E in the future economic development of Bhutan
   • Variables that encourage I&E
   • Steps of I&E

2. Organizational Culture - What does it take for innovation to occur?
   • Case study one – Creating an innovation friendly organization
   • Organizing for innovation
   • Innovative organizations structure and systems
   • Creating an environment for creativity
     • The creative problem
       • Solving structure
       • Planning
       • Task analysis
       • Springboards
     • Speculative thinking exercise: Selection of springboards
     • Idea development: Development thinking exercise
     • Next steps – Learning from actual experience
   • Strategy and creating competitive advantage
   • The Porter Model: a framework to analyse an organization for competitiveness and profitability
   • Communications for Innovation
     • Listening for ideas
     • Speaking for easy listening
     • Questioning
     • The destructive nature of questions
     • Hiding ideas behind questions

3. Types of Innovation
   • Case study two – Technological innovation
     • Strategic technology road-mapping and platform management
     • Communicating multiple parameters
     • Determining customers, technical and business needs
     • Choices in technology strategy development for the firm as well as for the industry the firm competes in over time
     • Types
       • Process innovation
       • Technical innovation
       • Product innovation
       • Disruptive innovation: 19^th century disruptive innovations, 20^th century disruptive innovations, the digital revolution, the biotechnology revolution, a compounding of innovations, 21^st century disruptive innovations
       • Service innovation
     • Integrating with the technological expertise of the firm aimed at competitive advantage.
   • New product development and characteristics of new product and services.
   • Radical, platform and incremental projects

4. Invention and Innovation
   • Case study three – Process innovation
   • Process innovation drivers
   • The breakthrough
   • Innovation dilemmas
   • Seeing differently:
     • core competencies
     • strategic outsourcing
     • competitor assessment
   • Defining core competencies and core technologies: How they lead to competitive advantage
   • The linkage between:
     • customer needs
     • business strategy
     • core technologies/competencies
     • internal and external value
   • Mentoring and apprenticeship
   • Innovative research groups – Obstacles to radical innovation

5. Innovation and the Market
   • Case study four – Product innovation
   • Intellectual property – Acquisition and protection
     • Technology transfer and intellectual property
     • Strategic value of patents, trade secrets and licensing
     • Developing strategic alliances (The Alliance Development Pyramid)
       • Assessing the risk
       • The diagnosis
       • The consultation group
       • Selecting a strategy
       • Preparing the organization
       • Setting up the investment
     • Evaluating the costs, impact and feasibility of implementation
     • Technology watch – Acquiring technological innovation

6. Managing a Culture of Innovation
   • Case study five – Service innovation
   • Change management: Capturing value from innovation
   • Adding value, gaining competitive advantage, timing and capability sourcing
   • The development funnel, portfolio development and management
   • The “Front End of Innovation”
   • Integrating the theory and practice of the module into a real-life example exercise
   • Motivating innovation
   • Acceptance of failure
   • Team vs. individual approaches to innovation

Reading Lists:

1. Essential Readings
   • Drucker, P. (2015). Innovation and entrepreneurship. Routledge.
   • Meyer, M.M. (2013). The innovator’s path: How individuals, teams, and organizations can make innovation business-as-usual (1st ed.). Wiley.
   • Govindarajan, V., & Trimble, C. (2010). The other side of innovation: Solving the execution challenge. Harvard Business Review Press.
   • Merle, M.C., & Davis, A. (2017). Corporate innovation in the fifth era: Lessons from alphabet/Google, Amazon, Apple, Facebook, and Microsoft. Cartwright Publishing.
   • Made in Bhutan / A Documentary by Hirondelle Chatelard., Loden Foundation.
2. Additional Readings
   • Acs, Z., & Audretsch, D.B. (1990). Innovation and small firms.Cambridge, Mass: MIT Press.
   • DE Graff, J.T., & Quinn, S. E. (2007). Leading innovation: How to jump start your organization's growth engine. McGraw-Hill.
   • Lowe, R., & Marriott, S. (2006). Enterprise: Entrepreneurship and innovation: Concepts, contexts and commercialization. Routledge.
   • Price, A., & Price, D. (2013). Introducing entrepreneurship: A practical guide. Icon Books Ltd.
   • Spinelli, S., & Adams, R. (2012). New venture creation: Entrepreneurship for the 21st century (9th ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill/Irwin.
   • Mumford, M. D. (2000). Managing Creative People: Strategies and Tactics for Innovation. Human Resource Management Review, 10(3), 313-351.

Date: July, 2017