The story of innovation and customer choice by clayton christensen, taddy hall, karen dillon and david duncan harper business. The theory has been guiding discourse on public schools, higher education, health care, and more. Lepore has landed behind enemy lines and will hopefully force the enemy to pull back and defend ideological. Christensen has 70 books on goodreads with 295848 ratings. Jill lepore s recent piece on disruptive innovation in the new yorker is one of those.
Christensens most popular book is the innovators dilemma. Clayton christensen described in his seminal book how incumbents who. Christensen in his research on the diskdrive industry and later popularized by his book the innovators dilemma, published in 1997. Christensen published the innovators dilemma, in 1997, the business world became obsessed with disruption. David smith discusses the issue in his most recent blog and i think one of the key ideas he presents here is that the concept is useful as an. Clayton christensens definitive works on innovationoffered together for the first time will you fall victim to disruptive innovationor become a disruptor yourself. As jill lepore wrote in a piece critical of christensens theory for the. Among librarians, david lewis applied christensens ideas in 2004, expanded into a book in 2016 that has been on the whole wellreceived by those. He started the clayton christensen institute for disruptive innovation, and founded venture capital firm rose park advisors. Christensen brought forth in his book the innovators dilemma, is more than a winnertakesall game where one technology replaces another or where a business that does the job faster and cheaper replaces an existing, lucrative one. What jill lepore gets wrong about clayton christensen and. All three were talking about jill lepores muchdiscussed new yorker critique of prominent business consultant clayton christensens theory of disruptive innovation. Clayton christensen, an influential scholar of disruptive.
Lepore has landed behind enemy lines and will hopefully force the enemy to pull back and defend ideological territory. Clayton christensen s definitive works on innovation offered together for the first time will you fall victim to disruptive innovation or become a disruptor yourself. Our speaker believes she can pinpoint the moment america went off the rails. Clayton christensen responds to new yorker business insider. Theres been a lot of static around the concept of disruptive innovation this week, based on a well written critique of clayton christensens original work by jill lepore at the new yorker. But lepore saves her real venom for the dubious effects she says the cult of disruption has had on society, from financial services it led to a global financial crisis to higher education she partly blames a book christensen coauthored, the innovative university, for the rise of massive open online courses, or moocs, of which she takes a dim view to journalism one of several fields, she writes, with obligations that lie outside the realm of earnings. Clayton christensen, renowned harvard business school. Clayton christensen responds to new yorker takedown of. The theory of disruptive innovation, introduced in these pages in 1995, has proved to be a powerful way of thinking about innovationdriven growth. Harvards clayton christensen coined the term and the new yorkers jill lapore recently tore it down. One historian at harvard university, jill lepore, wrote a new yorker article in 2014 lamenting the christenseninspired blow things up style of disruption spreading through corporations. Chris newfield titled his piece christensens disruptive innovation after the.
Clay christensen, a professor at harvard universitys business school, has since his 1997 book the innovators dilemma been widely acclaimed in the business world for his theory of disruptive innovation to explain why upstarts derail established companies. The following is both a critique and a clarification of lepores analysis. Top 25 quotes by clayton christensen of 127 az quotes. Tip the odds in your favor with the bestselling books that have made christensen one of the worlds foremost authorities on innovation. When the new yorker this week published harvard historian jill lepore s sharply written dismissal of disruptive innovation, it was an attack on one of the most widely cited and celebrated ideas. Disruptive innovation wikipedia republished wiki 2.
Promoting a new book about innovation, harvard professor says he. Cem, clayton christensen, cxm, digital disruption, disruption, disruptive innovation, innovators dilemma, jill lepore, steve denning customer experience cem is an imperative because youre either competing with superior customer experiences or youre not even part of the game. A later book applying the ideas to higher education has led many administrators to feature christensen at meetings. Jill lepore, a harvard history professor, wrote a powerful takedown of disruption theory in the new yorker last year, calling christensens sources dubious and his logic questionable.
His first book, the innovators dilemma is one of the bestselling business books of all time. Christensen is cofounder of innosight, a management consultancy. At the time christensen had last published the book seeing whats next, claiming disruption theory. Clark professor of business administration at the harvard business school. Schumpeter clayton christensens insights will outlive. Meanwhile, few are questioning the theorys underlying evidence.
Tip the odds in your favor with the bestselling books that have made christensen one of. Clayton christensens impact on my own life and work, i offer here my 2014 analysis of the controversy ignited by jill lepores new yorker article attacking christensens theory of disruptive innovation. Christensens disruptive innovation after the lepore. Jill lepores recent piece on disruptive innovation in the new yorker is one of those. Menu icon a vertical stack of three evenly spaced horizontal lines.
Christensens theory of disruptive innovation is now more than 20 years old, but it still holds a prominent place in business strategy. Put together, disruptive innovation, a term clayton m. Uber, disruptive innovation, and regulated markets. The new yorker thinks disruptive innovation is a myth a cutrate summary of jill lepores long, expensive, highquality magazine story about clayton christensen. Clayton christensen, jill lepore and what disruption. Soon afterward, intel ceo andy grove stood up with a copy of the book at comdex in las vegas and declared it the most important book. Some journalists piled on, further deriding disruption zealots and their leader, while others jumped to christensens defense. The second approach lepore pursues is more daring, as she takes the fight from her turf history and culture to christensens. Recently jill lepore, a history professor at harvard, published a. Jill lepore explains how the popular theory was founded.
The innovators dilemma, clayton christensens influential 1997 book about. The term was defined and first analyzed by the american scholar clayton m. The founder of the theory of disruptive innovation thinks jill lepores takedown of his ideas is lazy and inaccurate. Last week, the new yorker published harvard historian jill lepores sharply worded critique of both clayton christensen and his theory of disruptive innovation. Disruptive innovation has become big business, popularized not only by christensen who has come to regret losing control of the term, but by a host of management consultants, pundits, and experts. Innovation strategy and management books by clayton. Disruptive innovation, a term of art coined by clayton christensen, describes a process by which a product or service takes root initially in simple applications at the bottom of a market and then relentlessly moves up market, eventually displacing established competitors.
Clayton christensen, a harvard business school professor, at the tribeca disruptive innovation awards in 2011. Growing criticism of theory of disruptive innovation. Books starting with the classic the innovators dilemma, clayton christensen has written some of the most insightful, influential, and talkedabout business books of the past 20 years. The concept of disruptive innovation has informed boardroom decisions ever since clayton m. Yet in a well argued piece in the new yorker, his colleague at harvard, the distinguished historian jill lepore, cries foul. When the new yorker this week published harvard historian jill lepores sharply written dismissal of disruptive innovation, it was an. Harvard professor was on the receiving end of a scathing attack. Jill lepore points out that some companies identified by the theory as victims of disruption a decade or more ago, rather. It has taken on added meaning since 2014, when a fellow harvard academic, historian jill lepore, wrote a scorching critique of his bestknown theory disruptive innovation in the new yorker. It expands on the concept of disruptive technologies, a term he coined in a 1995 article disruptive technologies. Clayton christensen, the father of theory of disruptive innovation. In contrast, disruptive innovation tends to create transformational.
Christensen in his research on the diskdrive industry and later popularized by his book the innovators dilemma, published in 1997 the theory explains the phenomenon by which an innovation transforms an existing market or sector by introducing simplicity, convenience, accessibility. Slaven vlasicgetty images clayton christensen, a harvard business school professor. He wrote numerous books and hundreds of articles, and while hes best. When new technologies cause great firms to fail, defines a disruptive productprocess not as a totally radical, cutting edge invention, but as the creation of a new value network and a process by which a product or service takes root initially in simple applications at the bottom of a market and then. Is jill lepores critique of disruption theory really a criminal act of. He was wounded, however, when jill lepore launched an attack on the. Clayton calls lepore jill so often and insistently that the reporter finally asks if they are. When new technologies cause great firms to fail, generally referred to as the innovators dilemma, first published in 1997, is the bestknown work of the harvard professor and businessman clayton christensen. As jill lepore wrote in a piece critical of christensens theory for the new yorker in 2014, ever since the innovators dilemma, everyone is either disrupting or being disrupted. Clayton christensen, influential scholar of disruptive. Christensen and harvard history professor jill lepore, who wrote in the new yorker that his disruptive innovation theory was full of holes and that.
Clayton christensen, author of the innovators dilemma, 1952. Clayton christensen, who coined the term disruptive innovation. Its the only business book on the late steve jobs mustread list. Jill lepore, david woods kemper 41 professor of american history at harvard university. Christensen introduced it in his now classic 1997 book, the innovators dilemma. Christensen and his collaborators beginning in 1995, and has been called. Our work at the christensen institute has shown that the principles of disruption can be beneficial to areas across society, including healthcare, education, and economic growth. Is jill lepores critique of disruption theory really a. Theres a world of difference between progress and innovation. In business theory, a disruptive innovation is an innovation that creates a new market. And that poses a problem for jill lepore, a harvard historian who. They define exactly what disruptive innovation isand what it isnt and. Disruptive innovations have the potential to be an incredibly positive force in the world.
Christensen is one of the worlds top experts on innovation and growth. The book that coined the term disruptive innovation relies on some shaky anecdotal evidence. Business guru clayton m christensens big idea of disruptive innovation has been distorted out of all recognition john naughton sat 12 jul 2014 19. Clayton christensen, guru of disruptive innovation and. Clayton christensen demolishes jill lepores critique of. Jill lepore, a harvard history professor, wrote a powerful takedown of disruption theory in the new yorker last year, calling christensens sources. She calls disruptive innovation a competitive strategy for an age. Christensen introduced it in his now classic 1997 book, the. Clayton christensen, who coined the term disruptive. Clayton christensen, founder of the disruptive innovation theory, attends the.
Well, that about wraps it up for clayton christensen. The theory of disruptive innovation was first coined by harvard professor clayton m. Meanwhile, drake bennet at business week decided to give clay a call and ask him to. In business, a disruptive innovation is an innovation that creates a new market and value network and eventually disrupts an existing market and value network, displacing established marketleading firms, products, and alliances. His books are required reading for anyone seeking to harness the power of innovation for progress, transformation, and growth. Disruptive innovation has become business biggest paradigm. Christensen has cowritten books urging disruptive innovation in higher education the innovative university, public schools disrupting class, and health care the innovator s.
The disruption machine free summary by jill lepore getabstract. What the gospel of innovation gets wrong the new yorker. According to lepore, christensen made some key mistakes. Clayton christensen moves on from the dissing of disruption. While many companies scramble to create disruptive innovation strategies, the problem is that it isnt a linear process or methodology. The new yorkers jill lepore caused a stir in the entrepreneurial community earlier this. Christensen published the innovators dilemma, in 1997, the. Clayton christensen, a harvard university business school professor who brought disruption into the corporate lexicon and became one. Disruptive innovation goes further, holding out the hope of salvation against the very damnation it describes. Christensen has cowritten books urging disruptive innovation in. When clayton christensen and jill lepore tangled over. The most substantive and compelling part of lepore s article is her critical rereading of clayton.
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