Aditi Ramdorai

Lessons from Low-Cost Healthcare Innovations for the Base-of the Pyramid Markets: How Incumbents Can Systematically Create Disruptive Innovations

This study investigates the phenomenon of disruptive innovation at the base of India’s economic pyramid. We analyze firms’ ability to successfully drive disruptive innovations from within the organization through the lens of organizational ambidexterity. While consensus exists on the need for ambidexterity, the underlying mechanisms remain under-theorized. We seek to address this general gap in the research of organizational ambidexterity. This work looks at the mechanisms of ambidexterity at GE Healthcare to help explain its ability in successfully hosting sustaining and disruptive innovations from within its boundaries. This work contributes to the emerging disruptive innovation theory, by exploring organizational designs required by incumbent firms to deal with strategic challenges associated with disruptive innovations in the context of BOP markets. It also contributes to organizational ambidexterity theory by providing substantial empirical evidence from the GE Healthcare case to show how a company has adopted an ambidextrous design to deal with hosting contradictory innovation types.

Disruptive Innovations Theory

Disruptive innovation theory was established by Clayton Christensen, through a series of scholarly articles and popularized by his seminal book, ‘The Innovator’s Dilemma’. The theory resonated among practitioners in several industries and also resulted in influencing thinking and research in the areas of innovation management, strategy, organization, etc. Researchers consider disruptive innovations as “a powerful means for developing and broadening new markets”.

Error modeling and throughput analysis in integrated communication and broadcast networks

In this paper, based on the testbed of our proposed integrated communication and broadcast networks (ICBN), we have done the field trial and collected traces in the ICBN system. With these traces, five models have been constructed to model the error on the Transport Stream (TS) layer of the system. These five models include uniform error model, GE model, higher order Markov model, Markov-based Trace Analysis (MTA) model and improved two-state model. Then we evaluate the performance of these models using several metrics including TS packet error rate (PER), error and error-free length distributions and conclude that the improved two-state model is most suitable with acceptable complexity. Based on this conclusion, the throughput related to the SubNetwork Data Unit (SNDU) size of our system is given. It can be seen that with the return channel, ICBN greatly improves the throughput compared with broadcast networks.

Study 1: The Bottom of the Pyramid Market as a Source for Disruptive Innovations

Innovations emerging from the Bottom of the Pyramid (BOP) markets have been engaging scholars and practitioners in the last decade. Several concepts have emerged to describe this phenomenon, such as frugal innovation, Gandhian innovation, inclusive innovation, jugaad innovation and reverse innovation, which describe this emerging phenomenon from different perspectives. This emerging phenomenon has the potential to enrich mainstream management theories, however, the BOP phenomenon remains largely under-theorized in academic literature.

Discussion of Findings and Conclusion

This research explores the phenomenon of disruptive innovations addressing the Bottom of the Pyramid (BOP) markets, in the context of affordable healthcare innovations from India. Inductive qualitative research was chosen as the methodology to probe into this emerging and vital phenomenon. Innovations from four companies were examined in detail to obtain a deeper understanding of the nature and origins of these innovations.

Study 3: Lessons from Tata: How Leadership Can Drive Disruptive Innovations

The Tata Swach case study helps unravel the role a senior leader plays in commercializing disruptive innovations from within the boundaries of an established firm. While disruptive innovation literature talks about how CEOs and top leaders have played a critical role in helping the company respond to disruptive innovations successfully, it is relatively silent on exactly what role the leader assumes.

Methodology and Research Process

Exploratory case study research methodology has been chosen for this research. Case study research is the method of choice when limited body of scholarly research is available in a given area and the objective is theory building. The research process ensured continual iteration between theory and data. As one of the aims of this study was to integrate a phenomenon into existing theory, this method was applicable as it also aims to integrate existing theories and bodies of work.

Addendum: Linking Paradox Resolution and Disruptive Innovations for the Bottom of the Pyramid markets

Disruptive innovations for the Bottom of the Pyramid (BOP) markets can enable access to products and services, for millions of people, which were previously beyond their reach. At the same time, disruptive innovations are “powerful means for broadening and developing new markets and providing new functionality”. As evidenced in the case studies of GE Healthcare and Tata, companies pursuing BOP markets were doing so in order to seek new revenue streams. These projects also had strong pro-social motives. Thus, enterprises addressing BOP markets, especially in sectors like healthcare have dual profit and social goals.

Bottom of the Pyramid Concept: Taking Stock

Bottom of the Pyramid or Base of the Pyramid (BOP) refers to the lowest socio-economic segment in the world. The Bottom of the Pyramid concept was established in a series of articles in practitioner journals by Prof. C. K. Prahalad and colleagues, but the idea was popularized by his book “Fortune at the Bottom of the Pyramid”.

Study 2: Lessons from GE Healthcare: How Incumbents Can Systematically Create Disruptive Innovations

Addressing the vast, fast-growing, four-billion-people-strong market segment poses unique challenges to MNCs and also requires new thinking in the field of international strategy. Companies seeking to serve the Bottom of the Pyramid (BOP) segments have to deal with market creation issues, working in informal economies with institutional voids, with broader and diverse set of partners as well as internal organizational barriers.