Harvard Business Review

SEPTEMBER 29, 2011

As clever as Amazon's technological innovations have been, Bezos's flair for ecosystem innovation is even more impressive. Even when Bezos appears to be a fast follower, he's attempting to generate leapfrog momentum. Cloud and mobile technologies are generations away from maturity.

Innovation 14

Innovation Technology Software Fast Follower 14

Harvard Business Review

NOVEMBER 22, 2010

The theme of the big event was "Technology-led Transition and Innovation-driven Development," which sounds broad. The Ministry of Commerce was showing how some companies "have made use of technology to.promote a low-carbon economy and environmental protection." This last article is the one that really grabbed my attention. In the U.S.

NGO 15

NGO Chemicals Guidelines Telecommunications 15

Harvard Business Review

JUNE 8, 2012

I discovered Xbox Live first via my brother-in-law Joel, a technology executive and gaming enthusiast from Seattle, and my junior high buddies, Emmett and Reid, from Hawaii. Fair or not, Microsoft has long had a reputation for being a fast follower. Not bad for the old guy.

Media 16

Media Company IPO Business Model 16

Harvard Business Review

JUNE 8, 2012

I discovered Xbox Live first via my brother-in-law Joel, a technology executive and gaming enthusiast from Seattle, and my junior high buddies, Emmett and Reid, from Hawaii. Fair or not, Microsoft has long had a reputation for being a fast follower. Not bad for the old guy.

Media 16

Media Company IPO Business Model 16

Harvard Business Review

AUGUST 8, 2013

But massive disruptions in business models, technology, and the work force have been throwing up massive new challenges for CIOs and other technology leaders. Consequently, CIOs and business leaders with a technology focus face more cacophony and challenge than ever before. Organizational DNA. See accompanying chart.)

CIO 9

CIO Succession Fast Follower Chief Information Officer 9

Harvard Business Review

SEPTEMBER 6, 2012

Apple's recent legal victory over Samsung has prompted an outpouring of worried speculation about the future of technology and design that's almost unprecedented. Bloggers and reporters are pushing this idea from a business- or technology-oriented mindset. Some of the concerns being raised are valid.

Innovation 16

Innovation Supply Chain Short-term Long-term 16

Harvard Business Review

JANUARY 10, 2011

The Verizon Wireless side of the telecom giant, which is 45 percent owned by Vodafone, is also deepening ties with Google for the Droid and betting on its faster fourth generation (4G) network based on new LTE (long term evolution) technology to leap forward in the wireless marketplace.

Wireless 16

Wireless Suri Power Long-term 16

Harvard Business Review

APRIL 18, 2012

All this represents a considerable turn away from anything resembling a Washington Consensus and towards a more highly managed system favoring preferential terms for developing countries and redistribution over competition and efficiency. This convergence hypothesis is reassuring on many fronts.

Globalization 15

Globalization Banking Restructuring Politics 15

Harvard Business Review

MARCH 12, 2012

I recently participated in a spirited panel discussion with Bruce Brown, Procter & Gamble's Chief Technology Officer, and Erich Joachimsthaler, Vivaldi Partners' managing director and CEO. How should companies hedge against the practice of copying your products as you go into those markets? IKEA is a great example of this.

Marketing 15

Marketing Hedge Chief Technology Officer Supply Chain 15

Harvard Business Review

DECEMBER 6, 2018

Instead they are waiting for the technology to mature and for expertise in AI to become more widely available. They are planning to be “fast followers” — a strategy that has worked with most information technologies. We think this is a bad idea. System Development Time. System Development Time.

Company 8

Company Maturity System Engineering 8

Harvard Business Review

JANUARY 23, 2014

Rather it’s an on-going nipping and tucking of organizational resources to achieve both growth and efficiency at multiple levels: the company overall, the operating group level, and even within functional groups like human resources and information technology. Are you competing on the basis of on-going product or technological innovation?

Ulrich 8

Ulrich Cost Efficiency Consultative 8

Harvard Business Review

MARCH 15, 2016

For podcast startup Gimlet Media , an abstract question — “Should we become a technology company?” Sprints encourage fast follow-up. Too many projects get stuck in an alternate universe where debates, theories, and hunches are plentiful, but progress is rare.

Consensus 8

Consensus Hotels Project Fast Follower 8

Harvard Business Review

JUNE 1, 2015

The contrast could not be clearer: Amazon – fearlessly making big, risky bets like a serial entrepreneur; and Microsoft, eschewing disruptive innovation in favor of remaining the “ fast follower ” it has always been, wringing profit from previously proven technologies.

Company 8

Company Software Long-term Short-term 8

Harvard Business Review

JANUARY 26, 2011

China's brilliant "Fast Follower" innovation policy is generating the biggest transfer of technology in history. It isn't producing results in terms of new companies, jobs, or economic growth in general, yet billions more flow into NIH and universities every year.

Policies 15

Policies Innovation Fast Follower Long-term 15