Innovation and Commercialisation: Aston Martin Case Study

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Innovation and Commercialisation
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Contents
Introduction................................................................................................................................1
LO1............................................................................................................................................2
P1 Explain innovation and determine its importance to organisations in comparison with
invention.................................................................................................................................2
P2 Explain how organisational vision, leadership, culture and teamwork can shape
innovation and commercialization.........................................................................................4
M1: Analyse different sources of innovation, and how organisations can foster and develop
an environment and culture of innovation.............................................................................5
D1: Critically analyse how innovation is developed, embedded and measured in an
organisational context............................................................................................................6
LO2............................................................................................................................................7
P3 Explain the 4Ps of innovation and explain the use of the innovation funnel to examine
and shape innovative ideas.....................................................................................................7
P4 Explain developments in frugal innovation and provide examples of how it is used in an
organisational context............................................................................................................8
M2 Analyse and apply the innovation funnel in an organisational context...........................9
M3 Evaluate the role of frugal innovation in an organisational context..............................10
LO3..........................................................................................................................................11
P5 Explain the importance of the commercial funnel and the application of new product
development (NPD) processing for commercialisation of innovation.................................11
P6 Build an innovation business case for an organisation, including ways to access
funding.................................................................................................................................13
M4 Build a detailed innovation business case which includes how to measure its overall
effectiveness using appropriate techniques available to test, iterate and improve...............14
D2 Critically evaluates the nature of innovation and the context in which it is developed,
providing evidence-based judgements on how organisations can overcome challenges to
develop successful innovations............................................................................................15
LO4..........................................................................................................................................16
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P7 Evaluate the different tools that organisations can use to develop, retain and protect
knowledge and intellectual property....................................................................................16
M5 Present supported evidence-based evaluation of these different tools in the context of
the wider business environment...........................................................................................17
Conclusion................................................................................................................................18
References................................................................................................................................19
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Introduction
In the modern era, the actual relevance of innovation is rising at a faster pace, and in turn, it
has been found that every business organisation is focusing a lot on conducting innovation
related practices. Generally, the concept of innovation takes place with the help of any new
idea, and it is necessary that specific idea must be unique (Andriyiv, 2017). Along with this,
with the rise in the level of competition in the market, it has become quite necessary for every
firm to focus on the concept of innovation as through this the company can easily gain
competitive advantage. Sources of innovation can be different where it can be introduced
with the help of brainstorming sessions, and any frequent idea developed easily. The concept
of innovation and invention are also different from each other in every possible manner.
For the present study, the organisation selected is Aston Martin that operates in the
automobile sector of UK. The company offers a wide range of vehicles in the market that is
of high quality. The automobile products belong to luxury class. The report focuses on the
innovation of new product of Aston Martin various tasks have been covered such as sources
of innovation, the difference in between invention and innovation etc.
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LO1
P1 Explain innovation and determine its importance to organisations in comparison with
invention
Innovation is considered as the process of translating an idea into goods and services that
creates value for the customers. The concept of innovation is very crucial in the case of Aston
Martin as through this the organisation can easily develop a new type of products in the
market. Further, the market is very competitive where the company operates, and in this case,
the role of innovation is very crucial as the organisation can build its overall strength in the
market easily (Asiyah, et. al., 2017). Basically, with the help of a new idea or concept, it is
possible for the selected organisation to work on the concept of innovation in the best
possible manner. The real importance of innovation from the point of view of the firm has
been demonstrated below:
 Innovation helps a lot in providing a reason for the customers so that they can
purchase the products of the firm
 To satisfy the need of the customers in a different manner innovation is important
 Building a unique brand image in the market is only possible with the help of
innovation
 For enhancing the sales volume and profitability level of the business, innovation is
very crucial (Astuti, 2017).
 Innovation assists a lot in enhancing the customer base and market share of the
organisation in the market
Hence, this is the actual relevance of innovation from the point of view of Aston Martin.
Moreover, it has been found that invention and innovation differ from each other and the key
differences have been shown below:
Basis of comparison Invention Innovation
Meaning It is mainly associated with
creating any new form of the
product.
Innovation is limited to
adding new features in the
present product
Overview The invention is directly
associated with the new idea
that is linked with a particular
product or service (Bahri, et.
al., 2015)
This concept mainly
focuses on the actual
implementation of the idea
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When it takes place When any new type of idea
strikes any particular scientist
Any particular
improvement is required in
the product
Associated with Single product A different form of
products
Skills required Scientific Marketing, technical,
strategic are needed
Hence, the above analysis clearly demonstrates the real difference between invention and
innovation. Further, the actual implementation of the new idea mainly takes place with the
help of innovation, and in turn, it brings favourable results for the firm in the best possible
manner.
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P2 Explain how organisational vision, leadership, culture and teamwork can shape innovation
and commercialization
The different elements such as organisational culture, leadership, vision and teamwork are
regarded to be most important, and they directly contribute a lot in shaping innovation and
commercialization. Considering the vision of Aston Martin it has been found that the
organisation focuses a lot on setting the right direction and at the same time focusing on
product innovation so as to boost the organisational performance. This vision directly shapes
innovation and commercialization (Bukhari, et. al., 2019). In accordance with the strong
vision, the company focuses a lot to focus on the innovation related practices, and this is the
main reason due to which the innovative products of Aston Martin are quite successful in the
market where it operates.
Along with this, leadership practices of the selected firm also shape innovation and
commercialization. In case if the leader is highly innovative then in such case innovative
activities are easily carried out in, and at the same time, it contributes a lot in the business
success also. On the other hand, it has been witnessed that if the organisational leadership is
not up to the market and proper efforts are not at all applied by the leaders for innovation,
then it supports a lot in gaining competitive advantage. Moreover, the element such as
organisational culture is also very crucial wherein the case if the culture of the firm is proper
or up to the mark then in such case employees can be encouraged to take part in the
innovation process (Djukec and Hunjet, 2016).
At present the culture of Aston Martin is innovative, and this provides real strength to the
firm in the market. Lastly, teamwork also shapes innovation and commercialization where in
case if efficient teams are developed within the workplace and all the team members are
highly efficient then it brings favourable results.
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M1: Analyse different sources of innovation, and how organisations can foster and develop
an environment and culture of innovation
Different valid sources of innovation are present that are effective for Aston Martin. One of
the main sources is a market structure where it may be possible that this source may provide
proper direction and opportunity to the firm. Through this source, Aston Martin can focus on
innovation, and at the same time culture can be developed so as to bring favourable results
for the business in the market (Ghofur, et. al., 2017). Another main source of innovation is
unexpected where it has been found that innovation can take place naturally and there are no
specific criteria. Moreover, the lifestyle of the people that are working in Aston Martin can
also be considered as the main source of innovation. In case if all the staff members are
highly innovative and they focus on generating new ideas then through this organisation can
easily foster and development innovation environment along with the culture in the
workplace.
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D1: Critically analyse how innovation is developed, embedded and measured in an
organisational context
As per the view of Ikegwuani (2018), for the proper development of innovation, it is
necessary for the firm to have some unique idea. With the presence of idea, it becomes quite
easy to conduct the innovation-related activities properly. For instance, if Aston Martin has
some unique idea regarding the development of new cars, then innovation can be developed,
and it is generally measured with the help of customer response or the real users of the
innovative product. According to toLubis and Effendi (2017), innovation is mainly measured
on the basis of response like whether people have found it fruitful or not. Within the
organisation like Aston Martin internal analysis is carried out with the help of which it
becomes quite easy to know the actual effectiveness of innovation, and it is identified
whether it is feasible in the near future or not. Hence, in this way innovation is developed,
embedded and measured within Aston Martin.
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LO2
P3 Explain the 4Ps of innovation and explain the use of the innovation funnel to examine and
shape innovative ideas.
The main four 4Ps of innovation takes into consideration product, process, position and
paradigm. Further, it has been found that all the P’s is most important with respect to Aston
Martin. Below discussed are the key main 4Ps:
Product: This type of element mainly relies on bringing changes in the products of
the firm by applying a large number of efforts (Palić, et. al., 2018). Aston Martin
applies different type of efforts where planning is done and at the same time
initiatives are taken so that the right product can be developed as per the customer
requirement. Hence, this the main reason due to which product as one of the element
is considered to be most important
Process: The second main crucial element is a process where it is all about
considering the innovative ways for the development of the products. In the case of
Aston Martin new processes are built such as manufacturing etc. so as to develop
unique products.
Paradigm: This element takes into consideration the alteration in the mental model
that assists in knowing what a company does
Position: This element undertakes the changes in the context in which the products
are actually developed.
Hence, in this way, the 4Ps of innovation identified are most crucial from the point of view of
Aston Martin. In order to shape innovation idea and examine innovation within Aston Martin
the use of innovation funnel is quite crucial. Different steps are present in the funnel that is
highly effective in every possible manner (Pardjono and Dwi, 2017). The first step of the
funnel is broad that supports in enhancing the knowledge level. In the second step, mainly
screening is carried out, and the last part of the funnel is narrow where it is mainly ensured
that ideas are implemented in a proper manner. Hence, every step in the funnel is most
important, and through this, the innovation related practices can be easily carried out within
Aston Martin.
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P4 Explain developments in frugal innovation and provide examples of how it is used in an
organisational context.
Frugal innovation is all about designing a new type of business model and at the same time
redesigning a new form of products and services for the benefit of the organisation. The
developments in frugal innovation are taking place at a faster pace where the company like
Aston Martin is focusing on building a new business model so as to stay ahead of its
competitors in the market. At the same time, the organisation is redesigning new automobile
vehicles from the point view of innovation, and this has supported a lot to enhance the
customer base of the firm in the market where operations are being carried out (Prodanov,
2018). Moreover, frugal innovation is very important for the company like Aston Martin as
through this the organisation can easily know what type of products and services are required
to be developed that are totally unique and designed in a proper manner so that overall goals
of the organisation can be accomplished in the best possible manner.
For instance, if Aston Martin has adopted frugal innovation practice in its business then in
such case, the firm will focus on determining the new elements that can be undertaken in the
products. At the same time, the new business model will be redesigned so that innovation
related practices can be conducted in the right manner (Rizal, et. al., 2018). This practice of
frugal innovation will be highly beneficial and feasible for the firm, and it will provide long
term advantages to Aston Martin in the market where it mainly operates. In short, frugal
innovation is mainly utilized for developing new ideas and at the same time business
activities can be conducted easily. Hence, through this, it can be stated that the concept of this
innovation is highly beneficial.
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M2 Analyse and apply the innovation funnel in an organisational context.
Innovation funnel is mainly applied within Aston Martin, and through this, the business
practices are carried out efficiently in the market. Along with this, the funnel supports a lot in
identifying the key areas where innovation can take place in a positive manner.
Source: (Author, 2019)
The key steps that are present in the funnel with respect to Aston Martin have been
highlighted below:
1. Knowledge enhancement: The first main step is the wide mouth of the funnel, and
the main aim is to collect different ideas that are highly effective. In this stage, Aston
Martin can collect information from various areas such as competitors, existing
partners etc. so as to implement the innovation-related practice properly.
2. Screening: In the second step narrowing segment is present where proper screening
takes place, and in turn, ideas are matched with the goals (Rosdiana, 2016). Further,
resources are allocated so as to carry out innovation related practices properly.
3. Product release: The last stage is a narrow segment of the funnel where Aston Martin
can mainly introduce its new products in the market.
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Knowledge enhancement/ idea
generation
Defining and screening
Developing
/ product
release