Analyzing Lenovo's Innovation Strategy through Design Thinking

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Innovation and Sustainable Business
Development
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Executive summary
In this report, it will explain the Lenovo company background, its trend which is design thinking.
It is described that the innovation trend helps to make an innovation strategy. In the report, it
shows some impacts of this trend, benefits, importance towards the organization. It will also
discuss the strategy tool, a business model canvas which helps to understand the design thinking
trend. It will describe some finding, recommendations which focus on company business
improvement.
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Table of Contents
Executive summary.........................................................................................................................2
Introduction......................................................................................................................................4
Body discussion...............................................................................................................................5
Conclusion.....................................................................................................................................15
References......................................................................................................................................16
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Introduction
Lenovo Company is the multinational technological Chinese company, its headquarters in
Beijing, North Carolina united states. It makes designing, developing, manufacturing and selling
the laptops, tablets, smartphones, electronic storage devices, televisions. It is famous for laptops,
and largest personal computer by unit sales. Its operations in various countries and sell the
products around 160 countries. In this report it describe that company makes plans for innovation
strategies by following new designs thoughts. This report aims is to develop the innovation
solutions and improve the sustainability of the business. It will also describe various benefits and
own personal skills to implement the innovation.
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Body discussion
1. Select a business impacted by the advances of 'design thinking' movement as
described in the paper by Liedtka (2018) or impacted by the advances of 'lean
startup' movement as described in the paper by Blank (2013).
Lenovo Company is the multinational technological Chinese company, its headquarters in
Beijing, North Carolina united states. In the given article it describes the human tendencies in
innovation way, how design thinking tools helps to teams. Design thinking shows great impacts
towards the Lenovo company business. Company vice president follows this tool into its
business plans. They lead to design the Lenovo PC’s and the smart devices. Brain vice president
makes effective evolution in the consumer design.
In this article it describes various benefits of the design thinking; it also describes that structure
and linear designing helps to the managers of the organization will follow and adjust these types
of behaviors. So in that case it has shown positive impacts because company use new designing
structure into its products and make its products innovative and attractive (Liedtka, 2018).
Innovation plans and strategies help to growing the market share by the help of innovative
products and services. Given article ideas and perceptions support to the organization to
understand the psychological safety which is necessary. Designing thinking helps to understand
the customer’s needs wants, idea generation and testing the ideas and information. So in this
situation its shown great impact towards the organization. After the implementation of this trend
Lenovo produce two new storage systems DM-series and DE-series. ThinkPad, idea Pad, Lenovo
connect wireless roaming services are other types of products which is produce by the company.
Design thinking exercise is the effective way and helps in make sense of knowledge.
In the given article it discusses some factors which include customer’s needs, idea generation,
and identify solutions. Those solutions are tested and help to develop the innovations. Company
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followed these types of key factors and applied into its business plans because it is effective and
provides best outputs.
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2. Succinctly introduce the selected organisation and selected innovation trend.
Company introduction:
Lenovo is the multinational Chinese company which produces laptops, cell-phones, digital
tablets for its customers. It was founded in 1984, Beijing; 34 years ago. Key people of this
company are Yang Yuanqing CEO of the company. This company produces various types of
digital products which include smartphones, desktops, netbooks, printer’s scanners, and many
storage devices. There are 54,000 employee’s works in the company. The founder of the
company is Liu Chuanzhi. Company is listed in the Hong Kong stock exchange. The company
works for managing its newly acquired company into its large business atmosphere. It acquires
the IBM Company in 2005. It provides various types of services to its users which include
Lenovo connect wireless services, various types of applications which help to the customers to
connect and transfer the files.
Innovation trend is design thinking:
Design thinking is the non-linear process which searches to the user’s perceptions, challenges,
and assumptions. In this process, it is directly linked with the innovation process. It redefines the
issues, problems, and identifies the ideas of innovative, creative solutions for examine and test.
In this type of method, it includes some components which help to complete the phrase:
understand, defining, idea, prototype, and test. The designing team uses the design thinking tools
because it helps to the designers to know what their customers and users want. This tool helps to
think outside the box, accomplish the right type of research then create the prototype and test the
products and services. Design thinking helps to the organization to think the innovative ideas and
implement into business plans (Gobble, 2014).
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3. Succinctly define the following concepts and their relationships: the organisational
environment, innovation trend, innovation strategy, innovation capabilities,
innovation value creation and capture.
Organizational environment:
Lenovo Company internal environment which includes employees, management and corporate
culture; these components support the company as well as its business. There are 54,000
employee’s works in the company. Company is affected by the performance, resources, and
operations. The company focus on the new technology; customer’s needs and develop the
solutions to identify their needs, wants and desires.
Innovation trend:
Design thinking provides the idea to the organizations which are what customers want and needs.
Company designers make the design for the purpose of balancing the information, requirements
to meet and fulfil the customer’s needs. It directly connected with the customers and the
organization (Prorokowski, 2014).
Innovation strategy:
It is the plan to grow and support to the market share by innovative products and services.
Lenovo Company follows the intellectual property strategy for its new products. It helps and
supports to the company to make its products innovative and fulfil the customer’s needs and
desires.
Innovation capabilities:
These capabilities are made by internal sources and external sources. Company founder makes
plans of innovative products for its users. Lenovo company employees always work towards
business growth. It internal background workers do efforts to identify the customer’s needs and
improve the technology according to their perceptions. Company
Innovation value creation and capture:
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Value creation and value capture is the high priority for an advanced understanding of innovation
practices. Company concentrate on the value and creation of its products. Values in innovation
operated not only by the value creation but also by the skills and abilities to capture the values. It
is directly connected with the company business.
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4. Succinctly describe how the creation of an innovation strategy ensures strategic
alignment within organisations and why it is important.
Strategic alignment support to the higher performance by improving efforts of people, process
and inputs to know the quantitative objectives and minimize the risk of waste, useless directions,
resources to unclear purposes. The company use strategic alignment for its innovation strategy
and make a balance between the tasks accomplishment as well as business wholeness. Strategic
alignment on innovation project is important and necessary.
Lenovo uses the innovating strategy and implements effective plans for its products. In that
case, the company follows the innovating for a relevant purpose. Absence of alignment between
the corporate strategy as well as innovations aims gives negative results. It is an analysis that
there is 54% of executives experience and observes that they struggle to align the innovation
strategy into their business plans with business strategy. On the other hand, 72% of executives do
not support the innovating factor in their competition. 65% of companies invest its revenues
which are 15% in the innovation that align business strategies with innovation and creation; it
was their higher management challenges (Janasz, 2012).
 It is important because it provides effective outcomes such as:
 Develop supportive and helpful culture.
 Renovate the factors which affect the organization strategic alignment
 Arrange the management
 Promote and encourage the personal as well as team contribution, efforts, and hard
works.
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5. Analyse the impact of the selected innovation trend on the selected organisation.
You should apply at least one strategy tool to analyse the impact, opportunities and
threats to the organisation. Use the business model canvas by Osterwalder and
Pigneur (2010) to support your analysis and argumentation.
It is investigated that design thinking trend shown great impacts towards the Lenovo company.
Design thinking is the backbone of the innovation strategy. Company use the innovation it
supports to take the business success. It constantly creates the new categories of the products
which enhance the consumer experience, bit the competitors and movement towards the growth.
Strategy tool which is SWOT applied to analysis the company impacts, opportunities as well as
threats. This tool helps to understand the impacts of trends, what opportunities it gain and which
type of threats is arises.
Strengths:
It is investigated that company used the current trends and innovate for its products. It provides
various advantages which are company expose its business in china and helps in the growth. It
expands the varieties which are smartphones; smart TV’s and shows its potential involvement in
the PC+.
Weakness:
Product recalls affected the company brand image. Due to the recalling lithium batteries which
are used in the ThinkPad computers of Lenovo. Market growth of the company is slow because
new entrants of the other companies (Christofilopoulos, 2016).
Opportunities:
Maximize of the smartphone market gives the chances to the company to expand its revenues. It
is analysis that company is focus on the cloud computing market and gain the profits by growth
of this factor.
Threats:
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Increase competitions affect the company market share. It also affects the PC market. It is
evaluated that average selling prices is decrease due to minimize the trend.
Business Canvas Model
Key
partners
Yang
yuanquing
Liu
chuanzhi
Key
suppliers
Product
manufacture
s
Material
suppliers
Key activities
 Operating
activities
 Daily
activities
Value proposition
 Increase
comfort for
products
and
services.
 Maintain
the costs.
Customer
relationship
 Word of
mouth
generation
 Effective
manageme
nt for
product
Customer
Segments
Customers:
people who
need a
smartphone
s, laptops
Key resources
Physical:
manufacturing
facilities
Technology
network
Talented
employees
Brand.
Channels
Lenovo app
Reach it app
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