Managing Innovation: A Case Study of PetTrak and Innovation Theories

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MANAGING INNOVATION
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Table of Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................3
1. To describe, in detail and in your own words, one or more innovation theories of your choice 4
2) Theories in explaining the historical development of one or more products and/or services,
and the possible future development pathways of your products or services..................................8
Conclusion.....................................................................................................................................12
Reference List................................................................................................................................13
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Introduction
In simple terms, innovation identifies the process of introducing something completely new in
the market, with the sole aim of helping the individuals in leading a much better life. One of the
greatest advantages of innovation is that it turns out useful for both the organisation as well as
the customer. The current project will concentrate in providing an effective idea about the
different innovation theories that are in practice in the common times.
The case study of PetTrak has been chosen for this purpose. The PetTrak is an example of a new
tracking devise that is aimed towards accessing the current as well as the exact location of the
dogs and pets. It is obvious that a whole lot of innovation is involved in it. The current project
will dive into providing an effective idea about the different innovation theories that are involved
in the process.
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1) To describe, in detail and in your own words, one or more innovation theories of your
choice
It is obvious that innovation is not something that has popped up suddenly. Even if history is
considered then innovation is something that has been practice for quite a long time. In the
words of Fores and Camison (2016), innovation almost dates back to as long as the advent of
humankind. In fact, Innovation is something that describes the whole advent of innovation as
well as the advent of the modern world. Though in the simple terms, innovation identifies the
process of introducing something new in the market with the sole aim of earning profit (from the
side of the business organization), but it is always not as easy as it seems. There is actually
much more to it. In terms of business, innovation identifies the overall process involved in
market researching, conceptualizing an idea, thinking and considering the possible outcomes as
well as materializing the product in the market. There is a whole lot of profit generation as well
as whole amount of market research, devising plans and ideas that are associated with the
process.
It is this evident that innovation is not as simple as it seems and a number of theories, ideas and
models provide a clear idea about innovation and its impacts in the business and society. There
are in fact a number of theories, which help in understanding innovation in a much better way.
Two of the most significant theories of innovation are the radical innovation and the
breakthrough innovation theories. Both of these theories will be discussed in the below sections.
Breakthrough theories of innovation
In the words of Souto (2015), the breakthrough innovation identifies that particular category of
innovation that opens up new markets for the organization. In most of the cases, the
breakthrough innovation creates new markets for the product and it helps in enhancing the
overall markets as well as the profit margin of the organization. The innovation is particularly
that type of innovation that opens up new markets for the organization by introducing completely
new techniques. Otherwise known as the disruptive innovations, this helps in creating new
markets for the organizations and in many cases helps in enhancing its value in the current
market.
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Only 20% or even less than this are categorized as breakthrough innovation. However, it needs
to be mentioned that not every innovations are disruptive in nature, there is actually something
extra linked with these types of innovations that helps in signifying it from the rest of the
innovation typologies.
In most of the cases, these type of innovations are introduced by the entrepreneurs or the new
star ups who aim at introducing something of completely new edge to the market.
It needs to be mentioned in this regard, that the disruptive innovations actually take time to build
and enjoy some sorts of profit from the market. In most of the cases, the usage of high-end
technology that can make the life of the customer an effective one is something that makes the
breakthrough innovation an effective one.
Like all of the other processes, there are again a number of advantages as well as the
disadvantages that are associated with the overall disruptive or the breakthrough innovation. In
the words of Perin et al. (2016), there is actually no one who can assure the exact benefits or the
disadvantages that can be obtained from this type of innovation process. The concept is indeed a
much risky one. The breakthrough innovation often turns out to be a difficult one for the
organization as there are a number of disadvantages that are accompanied with it. Excessive risks
in terms of investment as well as new market identification are the most significant among them.
Often this type of innovation turns out to be extremely advantageous for the organizations and
help them to create and enjoy a strong position in the market. Again, at the same time, it can turn
out to be extremely disastrous for the organization.
Hence, before opting for this type of innovation, the organizations need to be “extra cautious “.
Again, if the case study of PetTrek is considered, then the product can be considered as an
example of breakthrough innovation. These types of products have been developed with the sole
aim of helping the pet owners to locate their pets whenever they are out of sight. It is expected
that this type of technologies will help the pet owners to locate their pets as soon as possible.
Moreover, this product is also completely new in the market; hence, it is also expected to enjoy
some sorts of profit and goodwill in the market (Tzabbar and Margolis, 2017).
Radical theories of innovation
On the other hand, the radical theory of innovation is just a step ahead of the Breakthrough or the
disruptive theories of innovation. The theory identifies the process of introducing a complete
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new technology along with a new business model. In the words of Nilsson et al. (2017), the
radical theory is considered as the most frequently discussed theory of innovation and at the
same time, it is also the rarest as well as the less used theory of innovation. However, as
discussed in the beginning that the radical theory is just a step ahead of the breakthrough theory
of innovation, hence the costs of investments are much more as compared to the breakthrough
innovation discussed in the above sections. But if the process is implemented and executed in an
effective way, them the output can be transformational. As put forward by Van Lancker et al.,
(2016), it can also bring about significant changes in the existing market. Often this type of
innovation and the products of this innovation types, enhances the competition of the market and
can even give rise to a completely new market.
If the innovation continuum is considered and analyzed then the radical innovation forms the
furthest end of this type of innovation. This type of innovation happens only when the entry of a
certain new product or a service brings about significant changes in the overall industry. Merely
10% or sometimes even less of the total innovations can be categorized as the radical
innovations. People tend to avoid this type as there is ample hard work, market research as well
as other factors that are associated with it. If reports are to be believed then more than 50 % of
the organizations who adopt radical innovation fail miserably. Some fail due to the wrong
selection of the product, while some others fail owing to the ineffective marketing strategies
(Plattner et al., 2016).
However, there is always a positive side to radical innovation. Unlike the breakthrough
innovation, the radical innovation results in more amounts of rewards. In the words of Kaplan
and Vakili (2015), the chances of profit are considerably high in this case. There are a number
of incidents where the radical innovations have indeed changed the faces of innovation in the
market.
However since nothing comes without disadvantages or cons, hence there are also certain level
of difficulties that are associated with radical innovation. Selecting the right idea or rather, the
right product is the most effective among them. The first stage always involves identifying a
proper idea that helps in identifying the particular strategy that will help the organization in
securing a suitable position in the market. The first step always turns out to be most effective
one. Often, it has been identified that the organizations fail in the first step (Silva et al.,2017).
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It also needs to be mentioned in this regard, that the radical innovation though comes with few
risks, but if planning is done in an effective way, then this can prove to be extremely beneficial
for the organizations.
The above sections have thus proved to be effective enough in providing a clear idea about the
different theories of innovation that are in practice in the contemporary times. It has been noted
that in spite of the ample risks that are involved, both the breakthrough and the radical theories
of innovation have significant importance in the market.
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2) Theories in explaining the historical development of one or more products and/or
services, and the possible future development pathways of your products or services
The company PetTrak is based in the United Kingdom and is known for its provision of best
services that are viable for the rescue of the pet owners during the growth of an issue. The
company is based renowned for the provision of viable pet rescue services that has an impact on
the growth of the business. In its recent area of innovative development, the company has
produced a global positioning system and a mobile based GPRS for pets that prone to being
missing. With the use of this innovative technology, the pet owners are confident about their pets
being led about in any directions. The theories that have been chosen for the enumeration of
these innovative technological devices are Radical Innovative Theory and Breakthrough
Innovation Theory. These theories will be applied to comprehend the historical development of
products and services with these theories. It will also outline the areas that have provided an
understanding of the various factors that would lead to the future development of the products
and services, with these innovative theories. Therefore, with a critical analysis of the pet tracking
devices, a historical invention and the incorporation of invention will be used for understanding
these products and services.
Historical Development trajectory of GPS and GPRS for pets using Innovation theories
Innovation has its roots in history for the production of the pet tracking devices that had been
invented by the company Garmin (Zeagler et al., 2016). The company initially produced the
GPS devices for dogs to locate them in difficult terrains. This was the first company that
engineered in the production of the GPS dog tracking devices. The Garmin GPS collars were
also engineered to locate the dogs in difficult climatic conditions (Garmin, 2019). The company
Garmin became of the best company that improvised and innovated the dog collar that were
useful to track dog with up to 10 miles. The company also procured Tri-Tonics and introduced
the use of the Garmin Astro to develop a track of the dogs on a watch screen. However, this
innovation was intended to provide to assess and procure an understanding of the areas that
pertained to the growth of the dog’s service (Bianchi et al., 2018). Hence, the company was able
to acquire success in its initial development phase. The development trajectory or the pets
tracking services were integrated with the use of the breakthrough innovation to cater to the
growth of the business and influence the audience on making an impact on the social audience
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(Luker, 2016). PetTrak has made the use of the radical innovation theory to invent and
introduce its new chips for dog tracking devices (Giunta, 2017).
This was disruptive in nature and led to the reframe and the remodelling of the GPS model
tracking devices. However, with the innovations in the production of the dog tracking devices
such as Whistle pet tracker, Nuzzle GPS collar, Tractive GPS tracker for cats and dogs, paw
tracker and so on (Ling et al., 2016). These innovative technological devices were designed for
dogs and had special abilities. Although there were high costs that were associated with the
growth of the product, but breakthrough innovation has made a success in the market. The
company PetTrak made the application of the breakthrough innovation that influenced the
growth of the products and services. The introduction of the global positioning device by the
company has also placed a special emphasis on the better tracking of the pooches that were a part
of the experiment. Garmin GPS dog tracking system were efficient in providing a detailed
description of the movements of the dog. However, with the incorporation of the GPRS and
mobile tracking system, the company PetTrak has provided an understanding of the innovative
service by the revamping the existing dog tracking services through breakthrough innovation.
The GPS collars attained a leading market in the production of technology.
The application of the breakthrough service for the particular product has provided an
understanding for the products. The radical innovation theory also has been applied for the
growth in the market. With the combination of the GPS and GPRS technology, the company
PetTrak has revamped the collar by the comprehension of the cats and the dogs in every two
minutes. The benefits of these products lie in the tracking of the pets at a limited radius.
However, the novelty in the products also lies in procuring an access of the pet in a personal
computer or mobile phone with the use of the internet. The historical development trajectory
service portrays the various additional values that had been added into the already existing
service by Garmin. Initially, the company Garmin, had made the use of the breakthrough
innovation and introduced its pet tracking devices. PetTrak with the application of the radical
innovation theory had incorporated additional values such as the use of the proximity alerts,
quick updates on Iphones and IPods, relay movements of the pets and provide and the provision
of the a two minute survey. Therefore, the company PetTrak marketed its products to
distributors and retail marketing stores such as Asda Tesco and so on.
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The company PetTrak had adopted the GPS/GPRS dog tracking system through the integration
of chips for tracing lost dogs. It introduced the use of the RFID technology to gain an
understanding of the lost dogs in their terrain. These RFID technologies comprised of technology
such as Loc8tor, RoamEQ and Snooper (Goetz et al., 2015). The company was subjected to a
high number of competitors. Hence, innovation in the technological device became an important
trajectory for the companies while integrating innovation in its approaches. Therefore, the
application of these theories served as a conduit to the growth of the business. The company
PetTrak also marketed its products successfully. Hence, it was able to raise a profit by being
effective in it term for marketing its products successfully. Therefore, with the introduction o
such services, the company has been able to use the breakthrough innovation, the company was
able to procure a better market structure that were important for the growth of the business.
Hence, following the historical trajectory, the company was able to procure a better mode of
service for the individual working for the growth of the business.
Future development of the innovative technology provided by PetTrak
There are implications for the future development of the pet tracking services that are introduced
by the company. There is the idea of a rapid technological improvement for the production of the
collared GPS system with the chipsets that would have an impact on the growth of the company
and its provision of pet services (Coccia, 2016). Therefore, with a better understanding of the
innovation and their breakthrough in history, there lies a scope of future development for the
growth of the company. The dog collar tracking set can also be initiated by the integration of
services that have an influence on the growth of the company. Innovation can further be applied
in the integration of the rapid innovation theory for the growth of the business and the services.
This would further affect the growth of the business and help the dog owners to achieve better
tracking of their pooches. However, the scope of development also lies in the integration of chips
and microchips that would boost the accuracy of the GPS tracking system and give a clearer
insight on the exact address of the pets and their owner information.
However, with the use of the technological devices, the company PetTrak would be able to
improve the efficiency of the company to provide a better tracking system for the company.
Therefore, with the use of such informative devices, the company will be able to provide a better
means of service to the pet owners. Therefore, the company PetTrak can make the use of rapid
innovation by installing the information of the owner on the devices of the GPS tracking system
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to lead back the dogs and cats to their original owners. Hence, with the advent of innovation, the
company will be able to acquire a better customer base and influence the development of the
company, Hence, innovation has influenced the company to cater to the development of the dog
collars and increase the safety of the pets.
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Conclusion
The report has provided an understanding on the innovative theories that have been used to
assess the validity of the pet tracking services provided by the company PetTrak in UK. It has
outlined the factors that are in operation for the invention that of the Global positioning system
and GPRS (mobile technology) attached to the collar of the dog. The report has taken into
account the use of the Breakthrough Innovative theory and the Radical innovative theory. With
the better use of these theories, the company PetTrak has been able to classify all the areas that
would have an influence and impact on the growth of the business. Therefore, the future
influences have also been taken into consideration for the better and effective understanding on it
purpose of invention. Therefore, with a comprehensive understanding the report has been able to
outline all-important areas that are significant for the growth and better understanding of the
business.
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