Growing Ideas with Radical Innovation Potential

Abstract

Generating ideas with radical or incremental innovation potential can be considered as the tip of an iceberg. The tough part is supporting, refining and advancing ideas toward innovation. One major barrier which prevents ideas from turning into radical innovations could be the lack of proper selection criteria or settings. Another barrier is considered to be that different types of ideas are treated with the same implementation process. In order to contribute to the understanding of the implementation phase of the radical innovation process in academia and large firms, this research was carried out at Volvo Technology, a Business Unit considered as an Innovation Catalyst within the Volvo Group. The purpose of this thesis was to explore how large established firms (multiple case studies) define, evaluate and implement ideas with the potential to be radical innovation. The final contribution of this thesis was to assist Volvo Technology in identifying and choosing a safe landing ground for survival of ideas generated from Innovation Jams with radical innovation potential within the Volvo Group structure.