3M Case Study Analysis: Innovation, Commercialization, and Wi-Charge

This case study analyzes 3M's innovative organizational culture and its success in the business environment. It examines how 3M prioritizes consumer needs, fosters an innovative environment, and utilizes commercialization strategies to maintain market dominance. The analysis includes the Wi-Charge product as an example of innovation. The study highlights the importance of commercialization in bringing innovative ideas to market and achieving financial rewards. It also discusses the process of hiring and recruitment as crucial to a firm's innovative culture. The study concludes by emphasizing the impact of innovation on individuals and the role of patents and consumer analysis in 3M's success. References are provided to support the analysis.

3M CASE STUDY ANALYSIS
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3M case study analysis
Introduction
In today's world of technology advancement and volatility in a business environment, innovation
is crucial to the success, growth, and development of a firm (Ozkaya et al. 2015,p309).3M is one
of the firms that has benefited and can attest to the significance of having an innovative culture
as it has over the last decades. Therefore this paper will critically analyze the 3M study through
an innovative organizational perspective.
What makes 3M an innovative organization
It is no secret that consumer taste and preference will change from time to time due to the
volatility of the business environment.3M managed to create a focus on their consumers by
studying their various patterns as well as interacting with them from time to time concerning the
various products 3M offered. Moreover, they also picked in the ideas that consumers had in
relations to their need which was prioritized by the firm. This eventually made 3M stay ahead of
the coemption and continued to dominate the market. Moreover, since its establishment 3M is
known to have an innovative culture that propels the generational of ideas and managed
effectively (Yu and Shih 2018).
This has been achieved through the creation of a conducive working environment with effective
communication channels among different departments in the firm regardless of the hierarchy.
This allows the effective generation and collaboration of ideas within the departments which
encourages employee’s innovativeness. Moreover, 3M’s managerial systems do not allow
employee micromanagement which promotes independence to pursue ideas they are passionate
about and will benefit the firm. Through patenting its innovations, the firm has been able to

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prevent other rivals from copying and profiting for a period of time contributing to the
dominance in the market as an innovative leader.
The firm has also focused on picking up innovative ideas by holding innovative competitions and
identifying ideas that have the potential to revolutionize the market. These ideas are put into
reality as fast as possible and into the hands of the consumers. The process of hiring and
recruitment is crucial to the success of a firm. Through the various innovative competition, 3M
has been able to recruit individuals with the right skill set and attitude that will prosper in the
firm’s innovative culture in the long run.
Importance of the commercialization process
The commercialization process is among the best and the fastest way an innovation can impact
the world just from a simple idea. A firm’s idea, service or product is effectively introduced to an
exponential number of audiences across the globe that otherwise would be difficult to reach with
a speed which is hard to replicate with other channels (Witell et al. 2016). firms such as 3M that
are able in commercializing their ideas will get have the satisfaction wide adoption of their ideas
in the market fast and effectively. This is accompanied by a finical reward that is translated intro
profits contributing to the growth and development of the firm while gaining the market share in
the long run.
commercialization process allows organizations to conduct a research on the market in order to
create a brand identity and position in the market. This allows a product to perform well in the
market and dominate over the firm’s rivals. Commercialization also ensures quality product

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service delivery is achieved by identifying barriers that might hinder an innovation to prosper or
affect the sales generation negatively.
This is made possible during the prototype process where its functionalities are tested against
the goals and objectives required from the actual product. successful commercialization of a
service, product or idea tends to bring recognition and credibility to a firm such as 3M where it is
identified as among the lead innovators in the industry (Kinouchi, Soares and Cardoso 2016).
Wi-charge innovative product
Wi-charge from the Israeli WI-Charge company is an innovative product that solves the most
nagging problem in modern devices, battery charging. WI-charge is a wireless charging
innovative product that surpasses the normal wireless charging of modern devices where a
device is placed on top of a wireless charging unit. However, Wi-charge surpasses this
technology through attaching a wireless charging unit to any ceiling where it also serves as a
normal light, emitting infrared beams to the receiver units, which the user has attached to their
devices. The receiver unit which is actually finger sized captures the light which is converted to
electrical power, a similar process in solar panels through a photovoltaic cell which charges the
modern device. (Richard 2018)

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Figure 1: Wi-charge simultaneous wireless charging (Richard 2018)
Another reason that makes the product innovation is that unlike the normal wireless charging
where only one device could be charged at a particular moment, the Wi-charge is able to charge
multiple devices at the same time when they are in sight of the flared beams adding to the
comfort of using your devices while using the device. This product further eliminates that need
of consumers using the conventional method of charging their devices using cables. This
conventional method had many disadvantages and effectiveness such as dilapidation of the
cables, which incurred more cost when replacing or repairing(Richard 2018).
This innovative product will definitely change how we charge our wireless devices through the
use of smart energy making consumer lives simpler through its quality product service delivery.
The parent firm intends on expanding the product's functionality to a much wider audience than
the currently confined rooms such as homes and offices. It intends on expanding to public spaces
such as parks and recreational facilities as well as bars, restaurants and coffee shops. This will
eradicate the use of cable completely like the way, according to Amankwah-Amoah (2016,p

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123), CD-ROM eradicated the use of floppy disk in a whisk due to superseding its technology
and having an efficient product service delivery
Conclusion
Innovative organizations pride themselves with impacting the lives of individuals all over the
world as 3M has done for more than a hundred years. Having acquired many patents through
research,innovation and analyzing the consumer's needs has been vital in becoming a lead
innovator in the market. A new product, the Wi-charge has many characteristics of an innovative
product. It has solved the nagging problem of charging modern device batteries which are set to
eliminate the use of cables in the near future.
References
.A simple impact index for scientific innovation and recognition. CoRR. 2(3), pp.9-18.
Amankwah-Amoah, J., 2016. Competing technologies, competing forces: The rise and fall of the
floppy disk, 1971–2010. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 107, pp.121-129.
Ozkaya, H.E., Droge, C., Hult, G.T.M., Calantone, R. and Ozkaya, E., 2015. Market orientation,
knowledge competence, and innovation. International Journal of Research in Marketing, 32(3),
pp.309-318.
Richard, B. 2018. 4 innovative products that impressed the CES 2018 awards judges. [ONLINE]
Available at: https://www.neowin.net/news/4-innovative-products-that-impressed-the-ces-2018-
awards-judges/.

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Witell, L., Snyder, H., Gustafsson, A., Fombelle, P. and Kristensson, P., 2016. Defining service
innovation: A review and synthesis. Journal of Business Research, 69(8), pp.2863-2872.
Yu, O. and Shih, R., 2018, Developing an Innovative Organizational Culture: A People-Centered
and Value-Focused Approach with Case Studies. In 2018 Portland International Conference on
Management of Engineering and Technology (PICMET) (pp. 1-5). IEEE.