Diffusion of Innovation (Case Study Sample)

DIFFUSSION OF INNOVATION
What does the case reveal about the challenges facing the adoption and diffusion of a new, radical invention and the pathway that such diffusion can take?
Diffusion is the process of innovation communication among a social system through certain channels over time. Diffusion of innovation is a defining theory with intent to explain how, why and at what rate a newly established idea or a technological innovation spread through culture CITATION Eve03 \l 2057 (Rogers, 2003). The factors that influence diffusion of ideas or technology are the innovation itself, channels of communication, and the social system under which the information is shared and time CITATION Eve03 \l 2057 (Rogers, 2003).
As revealed in the case study- Owen gun, the adoption, diffusion and acceptance of innovation of entrepreneurs face many challenges.
Firstly Owen gun faced rejection by the army officer at the first time it was presented even though there was a demand of such type of idea at that time. The reason being the gun was of small calibre of .22 with weak firepower thus didn’t have relative advantage over the existing guns. Relative advantage is the degree to which an innovation or idea is perceived by the consumer to be better in function than competing brands or ideas CITATION Eve03 \l 2057 (Rogers, 2003). The best way to overcome it is ensuring the people who are to approve your idea have a good understanding of the idea, how it works and its advantage over the rest. The innovation prototype must be impressive and convincing to the adopters but in this case the Owen gun was to the army officer thus was rejected. The idea should be well presented to capture the wider picture of an innovation will accomplish and cost of implementation.
Secondly, even after modification of the prototype to meet the army requirement and compete with the superior quality oversea alternative, Owen gun had limited support for the higher authority to adopt it. The army opposed its production and supported the adoption of STEN instead. Fortunately it impressed the captain dyer Lewis and war dell who did their best in sending the gun to the higher authority to be adopted and given a trial opportunity to demonstrate its performance capability to the army. A significant step is reached when an opinion leader gives support to an innovation. In this case support of the Owen gun by the minister of army Hon sir Percy spender. An opinion leader is an influential person in spreading positive or negative idea about an innovation CITATION Kat09 \l 2057 (Katz & Lazarsfeld, 2009)
Thirdly even though the Owen gun was adopted and passed the trials, the challenge was produce enough of then to meet the market demand. This was worsen by the fact that Evelyn Owen was given patent thus he was the sole producer. Production material was not enough such as the steel required to produce the gun thus affecting the diffusion of the innovation. This is usually a major challenge to an innovation challenge to entrepreneur when mass production is required (Valente, 1996).
With reference to the case, explain the theories of innovation diffusion making sure that you cover as many of the relevant issues as possible in your analysis.
In this case the theory of innovation diffusion had many turning point from the time the Owen gun idea was presented to the time it was adopted and implemented. The first stage it went through was compatibility with the existing values and practices. Compatibility is the degree to which an innovation is perceived to align with the value, needs and previous experience of the utilizers. CITATION Les09 \l 2057 (Robinson, 2009). In the first presentation, Owen gun was not what the army wanted or perceived to suit the intended use. They had been using an mp40 machine gun that was bigger and more powerful compared to the prototype presented. The bullet used in .22 inch was small and the gun had low firepower. The first gun and its bullet was perceived to belong to the civilians and not for a world war army. After the modification of the prototype, the Owen machine gun was large enough, advantageous thus the army finally accepted it and acknowledged it as it had all they had wished for wished for.
External variables can influence the acceptance or rejection of an innovation (Kinnunen, 1996). In the case, The Owen gun at first was rejected due to the fact that it had no relative advantage over its competitors i.e. MP 40 and STEN. Relative advantage is the degree an innovation is perceived to supersede other ideas by the adopters CITATION Les09 \l 2057 (Robinson, 2009) . For the improve prototype was adopted after showing relative advantage over its competitors and this was seen the Owen gun was accepted it was exposed to the trial ability test and it past. Trial ability is the degree to which an innovation can be experimented with on a limited basis. CITATION Les09 \l 2057 (Robinson, 2009) After the world war ended it was also tested against other four superior guns in the British ordinance job and was rated first in four of the five trials. The gun shown its simplicity in use and convenience in different environment.
As per the army report from the trial result Owen showed superiority over STEN which the army pushed for. This changed the army perceived Owen from ease to use to perceived usefulness. The army officials later placed orders for the product. This reveals the next step of technology acceptance model-intention and attitude towards an invention.
Finally the army having been impressed by Owen gun, it was adopted and became the weapon of choice for the army. It was being used by the frontline troops at target "the Digger’s darling. This was the last stage of technology acceptance model where an innovation is actually in system use.
The opinion leaders influence the acceptance or rejection of an innovation. Their opinions matter a lot in the process. In this case the army officials supported the STEN even when it was proved that Owen was superior thus the slow rate of acceptance of the Owen gun. The intervention of the new minister of army, Hon Frank Forde increased the production of the guns and helped in the diffusion of the innovation to ensure the system use of Owen gun.
Kuratko and Hodgetts (1998) (the case study) have identified a set of common characteristics likely to be found among entrepreneurs and associated with the process of enterprise. Outline the characteristics you can identify within the case, explaining their significance to the successful commercialization of the Owen Gun.
According to Kuratko and Hodgetts (1998), the following character commonly found in entrepreneurs was identified: team building, optimism, persistence, commitment and determination, opportunity oriented.
Team building- this is combination of expertise by working as a group to achieve a common goal. At first Owen worked as an individual thus the .22 gun calibre he produced had many limitation that led the army officer to rejecting it. Later he deliberately put the gun on the neighbour’s compound to seek for support and idea. Together with warden they formed a team that were able to improve on the prototype to form the Owen machine gun. This expounds on the importance of team building.
Optimism is being hopeful and confident about the future. Owen and the Wardell brothers had hope that their product would be adopted even if the higher authority and the army had all their focused on STEN from Britain.
Persistence- every entrepreneur should firmly stick to his idea and push for its success even if the three is difficulty. Even though the Owen gun was rejected and faced many opposition in its adoptions, Owen and Wardell brothers did lose hope and kept pressing on for the adoption and mass production of the Owen gun.
Commitment and determination- this means that one is determined to accomplish a task or whatever even if there is some uncertainty in the process. Despite lack of material to produce the Owen gun, support and presence of superior competitors in the market, Owen and the Wardell brothers continued to work as a team to achieve a common goal.
Owen even asked for a three week duty leave so as to work on the prototypes production even though its future was uncertain.
Opportunity orient...