BM627 - Dyson's Innovation Strategies in the UK Tech Industry

This report provides an overview of innovation management within the context of the UK's tech industry, focusing on Dyson as a case study. It examines Dyson's historical and current innovation strategies, utilizing tools such as SWOT analysis and the value chain model to assess the company's strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. The report details Dyson's product, process, positioning, and paradigm innovations, as well as a competitor analysis highlighting Samsung and Whirlpool. The analysis also covers Dyson's capabilities, including R&D, supply chain, and marketing, and explores the company's approach to Blue Ocean Strategy. The document concludes that while Dyson excels in product innovation, there is a need for greater diversification and exploration of new business areas, which can be further explored using Desklib's resources for students.

Managing Innovation
in Business

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The main aim due to which this project was selected to get executed was to showcase the
scope and importance of business innovation in the continued success of many major firms that
are currently operating in UK's tech industry. The detailed analysis of the external environment
was done using a variety of different tools such as SWOT analysis and value chain model in
order to gain insight into how home care product making companies are adapting to rapid
changing consumer trends. The report also included the history of innovation by these companies
along with the current trends in the industry.

Table of Contents
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY.............................................................................................................2
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................4
MAIN BODY ..................................................................................................................................4
The organization and industry overview................................................................................4
The organization's existing innovation performance and capabilities....................................5
The industry in 2021...............................................................................................................8
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................9
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................10

INTRODUCTION
When it comes to the current retail industry landscape, there are many disruptions abound
and despite the sector having really high barriers of entry, it is very tough for currently existing
players to increase their customer base and market size without focusing on gaining competitive
edge and unique selling points derived from innovative measures in (Bubbico, Greco and
Menale, 2018).
This report will include an innovation audit on Dyson which is a major multinational
technological company in the UK in order to provide overview of the tech business scene in UK,
highlight the firm's major innovative history along with the current industry outlook within the
segments and product lines it offers.
MAIN BODY
The organization and industry overview
The tech industry in the UK has seen unprecedented growth over the last decade and it
has come forward as one of the most major elements of the national economy and a crucial part
of UK's GDP as according to recent data. Between 2010 and 2020, the number of British unicorn
firms which is a business term for companies valued above 1 billion dollars grew from a mere
number of 8 all the way to 81 and the same extent of growth was seen for start-ups and firms
nearing the unicorn status. The sector is fully optimized and things are looking bright for the
upcoming years as many new innovative measures are coming up in the economy (Curley and
Salmelin, 2018).
Founded in 1991 by James Dyson, Dyson limited is a major presence in the UK's tech
industry and is a multinational company with it's current headquarters located in Singapore. The
firm specializes in empowering people in terms of their household work by providing new
technological product lines and services such as Vacuum cleaners, air purifiers, fans along with
hand and hair dryers. The company has been a pillar in the technological landscape of UK as it
has actively funded major R&D investments along with new ventures aiming to better people's
lives. It also employs a large workforce worldwide anticipated to be upwards of 13000 and is a

major provider of jobs. A brief look at the firm's impressive innovative history has been
described below using 4 P's of innovation.
 Product – From the ball barrow in 1978 to revolutionizing the concept of cleaning with
the vacuum cleaner by the use of centrifugal force and eliminating the stagnant home
cleaning by disrupting their market offering, the company has always pioneered smart
and innovative product solutions (Hameed, and et.al., 2021). The firm's current market
innovations such as tech savvy and futuristic designed hair dryers and the Air multiplier
which is a table fan which pumps both hot and cold air are great modern examples of
home use innovations.
 Process – The strategy of Dyson has always been to streamline and simplify complex
processes as it gained initial recognition from providing bag-less solution to traditional
vacuum cleaners. The company has also successfully shifted it's base of major operations
from UK to Asia and it also has quality supply chain processes which powers it's e-
commerce websites globally (Dyson to move global HQ to historic Singapore building,
2022).
 Position – Over time, Dyson has made various changes to the way it segments and
targets it's customers in the industry within which it operates as it went from a UK only
physical retailer of home-made appliances to becoming a multinational physical and
digital retailer. From smart lamps to cordless and AI powered vacuum cleaners, the
company has positioned itself as a market leader for advanced home products. Paradigm – Dyson is slowly transitioning it's overall vision and mission to become much
broader and ambitious in scope as it it aiming to make a big impact in the clean and
sustainable energy storage devices apart from home care products which is evident from
it's acquisition of a Michigan start-up Sakti3 for 90 million dollars which is a smart
battery manufacturer (Dyson acquires Sakti3 for $90M to help commercialize
'breakthrough' solid state battery tech, 2022).
Dyson Competitor Analysis
The industry in which Dyson operates is very competitive as many companies have been
developing new and innovative products to compete in the electronic appliances sector of UK.

Some competitors of Dyson have been highlighted below along with their product comparison
with Dyson.
 Samsung Electronics – This company is a direct competitor to Dyson in many market
segments as it is also a huge multinational corporation based on Korea which is a sub-
brand of Samsung and sells variety of electronic goods in the UK and other global
markets where Dyson also competes. The company has a lot of advantages over Dyson as
it has a much better supply chain network and has more products which have popular
public demand such as smart refrigerators. Its advanced line of vacuum cleaners labelled
the 'jet series' is giving Dyson a run for its money as the former model named Samsung
Jet 90 picks larger debris and delivers slightly higher performance than Dyson's V11
animal vacuum cleaner.
 Whirlpool – It is an American multinational manufacturer of home appliances and
competes directly with Dyson in many electronic market niches. Whirlpool has much
larger workforce and revenue advantage over Dyson's and it has many unique products
which Dyson does not have an answer to such as ovens and washing machines. However,
Dyson's vacuum cleaners are also an advantage as Whirlpool does not cater to these
segment and the air purifiers of Dyson are much better than Whirlpool.
The organization's existing innovation performance and capabilities
Dyson has been successful in maintaining market relevance and strong sales worldwide
as the coronavirus shut people down in the confines of their home which indirectly translated to
more revenue for personal care and home oriented products which is an area Dyson specializes
in. However, the firm has also been rocked by many challenges which have been highlighted
below with the help of a SWOT analysis.
Strengths
 Efficient and highly specialized R&D
department
 Highly innovative and futuristic
products
Weaknesses
 High prices compared to competition
 Not enough diversity in product design

Opportunities
 Moving into the clean energy solutions
and storage sector
 More aggressive global expansion into
lesser known territories
Threats
 Rise in number of competitors
providing cheaper cleaning solutions
 Failure to expand in new business
segments such as electric vehicles
To gain an idea about Dyson's current capabilities, a Value chain analysis model has been
explained below which is a tool of strategic management which bifurcates the firm's activities
and key operations into primary and support functions for better understanding of the business.
Primary Activities:
 Inbound and outbound logistics – Dyson enjoys a robust supply chain in UK in both
procurement of raw material and providing finished goods to consumers. It has re-
engineered it's logistics with innovative measures such as a quality watch tower. It also
has partnered with many leading vacuum makers around the globe to take care of it's
supply such as Shark and Electrolux.
 Operations – Operating in more than 80 countries worldwide has led to Dyson making
state of the art storage facilities and warehouses which facilitate it's operations by
sustaining a healthy amount of inventory levels. Value addition is created by providing
new features such as table fans having temperature control options.
 Sales and marketing – Home and personal care products are very competitive as there is
separate competition available at every price and the barriers of entry aren't high to deter
people from entering with new ventures (Hogg, 2019). Dyson uses social media
promotion and digital marketing to drive sales as it's e-commerce platform is very robust
and it's marketing strategy depends on word of mouth and publicity.
 Services – Apart from simply providing smart home care products, Dyson has several
other service arms which it is working towards attaining market proficiency in which has
been supplemented by a 3.67 billion dollar investment to research on new technologies to
expand in new areas such as machine learning and AI (Dyson to spend $3.67bn on new
technologies, 2022).
Support Activities:

 Technology development – Dyson has been popular among business pundits and
industry observers alike due to it's extensive focus on its R&D department and it's
relentless pursuit of technological excellence. The company's aim is to make regular
products such as a common hair dryer to appear and be futuristic in it's utility which has
been a contributor towards it's success.
 Procurement – The vacuum cleaning technology that has made Dyson what it is today is
no easy feat to keep producing as the demand always remains high. A business must
always keep a steady supply and inflow of materials to sustain it's required production
level. Suppliers such as TTI, Phillips and SSB are readily tied with Dyson and keep it's
extensive production schedule afloat.
 Human resource management – The role of human resource management is very
crucial in managing a large multinational establishment such as Dyson and the company
fully understands that as it takes care of their workforce by designing a lucrative
compensation package and focus on their career development frequently through training
and certifications.
 Company infrastructure – Dyson operates through advanced physical retail outlets with
impressive infrastructural capabilities as most of it's complex machinery which is on
display comes with specially designed demo zones and interactive areas for customer
convenience. The company owns expansive properties which act as officers and
warehouses in UK and Singapore primarily.
From the above analysis, it is clear that the major reason why Dyson is currently
surviving well enough in the market is because of it's innovative products but more
experimentation and diversity is needed in operations to make impact on a bigger scale. The firm
has impressive multinational capabilities and it's current existing focus on investing billions in
search of new technologies can pay interesting dividends in the future. Dyson must look to focus
on increasing product variety and extend into new business areas.
Dyson's approach to Blue Ocean Strategy
Blue ocean strategy refers to the approach through which businesses use advanced means
of technological innovation to create brand new market spaces and niche without the existence of

rival companies to gain easy market success and profitability through exclusivity in product
design. Dyson has been one of the pioneers in this department as a lot of its product innovation
that has occurred over the years has helped in compete in niches where no other company has
entered. An outlook has been presented below regarding the approaches of Dyson to pursue blue
ocean strategies over the years.
 Dyson found its initial success in the market thanks to blue ocean strategy as the founder,
James Dyson after years of experimentation and innovation, built the world's first bagless
vacuum cleaner which created a niche which was only getting satisfied by Dyson and
nobody else.
 Dyson has already begun working on creating new market segments to compete in with
zero competition as it has developed new vacuum cleaners with laser technology which
can be sued to collect and detect hidden dust particles labelled the Dyson V15 Detect
which is a revolutionary concept
 Dyson carried on its legacy to research and innovate in ways other companies aren't as it
has invested 3.67 billion dollars towards research and development of innovative
products with new technologies. This will potentially allow it to once again utilize the
blue ocean for conducting business operations without fear of competition. It has already
begun with integration of VR solutions in its sales channel operations (Dyson delivers
virtual reality in new twist to home shopping, 2022)
The industry in 2021
The UK tech industry has seen major growth over the years and the wave of
entrepreneurship that has taken a hold of the UK economy has made sure that the current trends
are very promising and future proof and some of them are mentioned herein.
 New cleaning technologies – The cleaning industry has shifted the way it makes and
markets its products towards the final customers as the average city life has grown very
busy and the spaces in which people live are getting smaller and more compact which has
created a need for smaller and lighter vacuum cleaners which is being provided by brands
like Dyson. A major reason behind Dyson's success in 2021 are it's two brand new
offering called Omni-Glide which is built for strong and flexible movement to clean
every nook and cranny and the Digital Slim which is very lightweight and designed to

clean rooms off their microscopic content resulting in squeaky clean rooms which is a
necessity in post pandemic living conditions (James Dyson launches new vacuum with
laser detect technology to reveal hidden dust, 2022). The industry has been coming up
with solutions that not only clean dust but are also useful in getting rid of bacteria.
 Clean and sustainable batteries and storage – Technology has played a major role in
advancing the human race to where it is today but it is a fact that it has also been
responsible for a lot of destruction of the environment which has led to an increased
focus on environmental sustainability in 2021 (Johnson, 2020). Lithium-ion batteries are
known pollutants of nature which release a lot of harmful energy which is why
companies like Dyson are looking for green storage and batteries and purchasing start-
ups like Sasti3 to begin research and production.
 AI integration and automation – Both these technologies have dominated the modern
business landscape this year and the current trend is to automate most complex activities
in any major business with the help of robotics in order to minimize the chances for
human error and to relieve stress and immense work pressure which IT personnel find
themselves under (Moellers, Visini and Haldimann, 2020). Dyson has been AI
technology and robotics quite smartly as it's new and upcoming vacuum cleaners will be
cordless and can function on their own in a limited capacity. The company's retail outlets
are also using systems of augmented reality to create smart demos and interactive areas
which display the marksmanship and features of the complex machines made by Dyson
for public viewing.
CONCLUSION
The above concluded report went into detail regarding the role played by innovation in
making a firm remain profitable for a long period of time and survive the various market
disruptions consistently to remain afloat in the current turbulent business environment. Major
emphasis was paid on the broad industry overview of the UK technology sector with special
focus on home and personal care products such as hair products and vacuum cleaners. Many
strategic management tools were used to conduct analysis of the external environment of these
companies along with judging their current innovation capabilities such as SWOT analysis and
value chain analysis model. The report was concluded with the current trends dominating the UK
tech industry.

REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Bubbico, R., Greco, V. and Menale, C., 2018. Hazardous scenarios identification for Li-ion
secondary batteries. Safety science, 108, pp.72-88.
Curley, M. and Salmelin, B., 2018. The evolution of innovation. In Open Innovation 2.0 (pp. 39-
45). Springer, Cham.
Hameed, and et.al., 2021. Motivating business towards innovation: A panel data study using
dynamic capability framework. Technology in Society, 65, p.101581.
Hogg, P., 2019. Artificial intelligence: HR friend or foe?. Strategic HR Review.
Johnson, J.S., 2020. Developing qualitative propositions in sales research: existing approaches
and a new multiphasic technique. Journal of Personal Selling & Sales Management,
40(1), pp.19-24.
Moellers, T., Visini, C. and Haldimann, M., 2020. Complementing open innovation in multi‐
business firms: practices for promoting knowledge flows across internal units. R&D
Management, 50(1), pp.96-115.
Online Referencing
James Dyson launches new vacuum with laser detect technology to reveal hidden dust, 2022
[online] available through
<https://www.dyson.co.uk/newsroom/overview/features/may-2021/james-dyson-launch>
Dyson to spend $3.67bn on new technologies, 2022 [online] available through
<https://www.bbc.com/news/business-55096998>
Dyson to move global HQ to historic Singapore building, 2022 [online] available through
<https://www.bbc.com/news/business-50596775>
Dyson acquires Sakti3 for $90M to help commercialize 'breakthrough' solid state battery tech,
2022 [online] available through <https://venturebeat.com/2015/10/19/dyson-acquires-sakti3-for-
90m-to-help-commercialize-breakthrough-solid-state-battery-tech/>
Dyson delivers virtual reality in new twist to home shopping, 2022 [online] available through
<https://www.reuters.com/markets/europe/dyson-delivers-virtual-reality-new-twist-home-
shopping-2021-11-19/>