Foundations of Value, S-Curves & the Innovation Window
Why do even great products eventually run out of road - and how do businesses know when to leap to the next big thing? The answer lies in three linked ideas: Foundations of Value (the basis on which an offering delivers value), the S-Curve (how that value matures over time), and the Innovation Window (the risky but vital moment of jumping from one foundation to the next). Together they are the strategic heartbeat of innovation.
A product's performance improvements are getting smaller and costlier every year. What does that usually signal?
Pick the answer that fits you best - there's no wrong choice.
The basis of value
How value matures
Curve after curve
The jump between
Learning objectives
After completing this module, you'll be able to:
- Define a Foundation of Value and why every offering rests on one
- Read the S-Curve and identify where an offering sits on it
- Explain Progressive Foundations of Value - the succession of S-curves
- Recognise the Innovation Window (period of discontinuity) and its risks
- Use these tools to time the leap from one foundation of value to the next
In this module
Sources & Further Reading
- •Global Innovation Institute (GInI), Foundations of Innovation body of knowledge.
- •Foster, R., Innovation: The Attacker's Advantage, 1986 (S-curves).
- •Christensen, C., The Innovator's Dilemma, 1997.
- •Moore, G., Crossing the Chasm, 1991 (adoption dynamics).