Abstract
The success of systematic attempts to innovate in real-world enterprises remains marginal. It is apparently still largely unclear what systematic approaches to innovation are supposed to look like. Innovation therefore tends to be regarded more as a matter of alchemy than of science. Indeed, innovation has largely remained an enigma despite all the attention it has received.
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- 1.
For instance: McKinsey study “Entrepreneurship in Germany,” published in Meffert and Klein (2007).
- 2.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Innovation, reference date: December 28, 2011.
- 3.
“To have a great idea, have a lot of them” (Thomas Alva Edison).
- 4.
E.g. via brainstorming. A collection of different methods of generating ideas is available, for instance, in Vahs and Brem (2013), p. 280 ff.
- 5.
E.g. via cost-benefit analysis.
- 6.
There are also very successful copy cats. While copy cats represent a very specific strategy of exploiting the market potential associated with the innovations of others, they can be highly successful. All that is required is an established brand and a critical mass.
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Huber, D., Kaufmann, H., Steinmann, M. (2017). Innovation: An Abiding Enigma. In: Bridging the Innovation Gap. Management for Professionals. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-55498-3_2
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