Values of Leadership and Followership

In order to contrast the values of leadership and followership for innovation, we need to first define and understand the two.

According to Managing Innovation, the two market strategies are defined as the following:

1. Innovation ‘leadership’ – where firms aim at being first to market, based on technological leadership. This requires a strong corporate commitment to creativity and risk taking, with close linkages both to major sources of relevant new knowledge, and to the needs and responses of customers.

2. Innovation ‘followership’ – where firms aim at being late to market, based on imitating to competitor analysis and intelligence, to reverse engineering (i.e. testing, evaluating, and taking to pieces competitors’ products, in order to understand how they work, how they are made and why the appeal to customers), and to cost cutting and learning in manufacturing (Bessant, 2016, p. 179).

   
   

In the case of innovative leadership, it can be thought of as being the true entrepreneur of a product/service by being the first to do it. Whether it be a sole proprietorship or partnership it takes a committed leader/leadership to have the confidence to take risks; whether they are opportunities (positive) or threats (negatives). Having a good risk management plan would help this type of market strategy.

In the other case of innovative follower ship, it can be pictured as coming into a market late and then finding a way to capitalize on what is already out there. Capitalize by refining the product/service with a more robust competitive advantage than the originator or the last refined competitor.

In each of the two strategies, one common denominator is and should always be is differentiation and low-cost product or service. If an organization can sustain those two, they will for the most part stay in the game of competition so that they can invest and reinvest to make what they are trying to be innovative with better, cheaper, and more efficient. Being able to invest or reinvest in the either of the four kinds of breakthrough areas would be of an organization’s best interest. Briefly mentioned, the four kinds of breakthrough areas are:

1. Technological breakthrough: A new technology that ends up dominating the incumbent technology.

2. Business model breakthrough: A new way to create value through exploitation of business opportunities.

3. Design breakthrough: A new way to design a product without changing it profoundly. This is related to the interface between the product and the customer, which is an important factor of adoption.

4. Process breakthrough: A new way to do things (manufacturing, logistics, value chain, etc.) (p. 181).

   
   

The business model breakthrough would be the most promising as you can always tailor your business or organization to support that kind of breakthrough more frequently by positively promoting business opportunities internally and externally.

References

Bessant, J. (2016). Managing Innovation: Integrating Technological, Market, and Organizational Change. John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

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Meet Nikia Smith, the Project Management Consultant driving success at Business and Wealth Generations. With over a decade of advisory expertise, Nikia orchestrates strategy and operations, spearheading growth and innovation. Beyond his professional endeavors, Nikia actively participates in his community, having served on the Board of Directors at the Project Management Institute Florida Suncoast Chapter in different roles for several years. Recognized for his contributions, he received the PMI Florida Suncoast Chapter Award in 2018 for significantly boosting membership and retention and was also selected to attend the 2019 PMI North America Leadership Institute Meeting in Philadelphia. Nikia holds a bachelor’s degree in management and organizational leadership with a focus on Project Management, alongside several business certificates from St. Petersburg College. He is also certified in CAPM and PMP by the prestigious Project Management Institute. For collaboration opportunities, reach out to Nikia at info@thebusinesswg.com.