The Role of Innovation in Zipcar: A Case Study

INNOVATION

INTRODUCTION
Innovation is a procedure helps create a new product, process, service, technology and
additional economic value to actual goods and processes in order for serving the demands or
needs of customers. This is considered as a significant for an organisation for indulging itself in
innovative recitation on daily basis for the purpose of receiving recognition and assistance from
government, consumers and other professional bodies (Arnold, F. H., 2019). When a business
entity brings innovation in its processes in form of services and products at constant intervals,
organisations strive for building loyalty and trust among the consumers and retaining them for a
prolonged time period. This report will focus upon an organisation named, Zipcar, which is an
American based car sharing business entity that deals with auto mobile reservation to its
customers, which is billable by a minute, day or hour, and its members just have to pay a annual
or monthly membership fee in addition to its car reservations charges. It was founded in the year
2000 by Robin Chase and Antje Danielson. This report covers the historical development of
innovation in this industry and its implication in the same area are covered in this report. For this
purpose a theory is applied upon this organisation named Diffusion of Innovation Theory. This
theory is developed in the year 1962 by E.M Rogers and it explains how and over time, a product
or an idea gained the diffuses and momentum by a specific social system or a population.
Theories of Innovation
Innovation is recognised as a most important and significant concern of every business
enterprise and its part inside its market is irreplaceable. it helps in ascertaining degree within
which enterprise provides itself in creating fresh services and products in addition to its value of
existing processes. Innovation is brought into action in products and services terms and its
development, the way in which work is carried out, ways in which task is managed, etc. This is
considered as an element that helps in providing a strategic edge to a business enterprise within a
marketplace. Innovation helps in driving customers attention to a wide range of latest offerings
of an organisation and it works towards the business growth for a long run (Breuer, Leuz and
Vanhaverbeke, 2019). Beside this, it also helps in providing customer satisfaction by creating
such services and products that meets customer's needs, requirements and demands in a specific
marketplace.
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The requirement for an organisation for bringing innovative techniques and processes can
be determined by R&D department within a business organisation that continues to conduct
study regarding latest techniques and trends which are prevailing within an organisation. The
enterprise after it takes certain steps for executing advanced procedures and technologies across
the premises for gaining market recognition and retaining customers for a long period of time. In
this context, there are various kinds of innovation theories which can be utilised and
implemented by an organisation. For this organisation and in order to identify its innovation
development, diffusion of innovation theory is utilised as follows-
Diffusion of Innovation Theory
This theory is developed and introduced by E.M Rogers in 1962 year and it is among the
most ancient theory of social science. It is basically utilised as a communication procedure that
explores various methods in which an innovative process or idea 9is communicated by utilising
various channels (Conrad, 2019). There are different methods by which data is transmitted,
which is ranged between interpersonal communication to mass media. Diffusion of Innovation
theory helps in assisting determination of those aspects that can be affected at innovation rate in
a way under which innovation can be adopted by a person. It helps in exploring the way under
which innovation gains momentum and them helps in diffusing specified population. This
diffusion's end outcome is an adoption of such innovative ideas an processes. The most
significant aspect of these adoption is that personnel is required to perceive modified and new
idea, good and technology.
According to this theory, adopting new innovative technique, idea, service or product do
not take place on instant basis instead it is a procedure that requires time element. In this, some if
the individuals adopted the innovation at early stage while other individuals adopt it later. It is
basically has been observed that those individuals who adopt innovation at early posses
distinguished behaviour and characteristics than those who takes time to adopt such innovation.
So as to advance an imaginative procedure or practice among the focused on group of spectators,
it is exceptionally basic that the consideration is laid over the conduct qualities of a person inside
such populace so as to recognize opportunities to embrace and develop (Croce and et. al., 2019).
According to this way of thinking of this hypothesis, there are five adopter classes and the people
lion's share has a place with centre classifications but then it is noteworthy to increase an
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