TOWARD A HOLISTIC SIX-PERIOD RADICAL INNOVATION LIFE CYCLE MODEL

Abstract

In-depth historical assessment of innovation over the past several hundred years shows that the incremental innovation and cost reduction emphasized in the late 20th century will prove inadequate and even counterproductive in the 21st century for achieving sustained, global competitive advantage requiring radical innovation. Accordingly, a comprehensive, holistic innovation life cycle model is needed.Ongoing research since the PICMET'07 Conference has confirmed this need for a viable model, and developed an Accelerated Radical Innovation (ARI) methodology as part of the life cycle framework for a viable model. A significant contribution of the ARI methodology has been to develop improved techniques for measuring and guiding innovation progress, based on focused assessment of 10 innovation attributes at each of the 10 ARI steps in the first two phases of a six-phase life cycle envisioned to describe any radical innovation life cycle.This paper first summarizes systematically the most prominent radical innovation approaches, including quantitative assessment of the dynamics of four major radical innovations over the past 100 years by retrospective application of the ARI theory and its associated four types of challenges and hurdles inherent in commercializing breakthrough innovations. It then proposes future research on a six-period innovation life cycle model as the basis for analysis of breakthrough innovations of all types.