How unit 2 is examined
This unit covers where ideas come from (technology push, market pull, analogies, technology transfer), the abilities and context of innovation management, and the tools that manage the process (agile, Six Thinking Hats, NUF test). Push versus pull and the NUF test and Six Hats carry the marks.
Sources of innovation (push, pull, analogies), transfer of technology
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Definition. <mark>Technology push (knowledge push) innovation starts from a scientific or technical capability created by R&D and looks for a market, whereas market pull (need pull) innovation starts from an identified customer need and looks for a technology to satisfy it.</mark>
Diagram.
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Key points.
- In technology push, a laboratory discovery or new capability comes first, and the firm then searches for applications and customers, as with lasers, nylon or the transistor.
- In market pull, customer needs, complaints or market gaps come first, and R&D is directed to solve them, as with low-cost smartphones or fuel-efficient cars.
- The driver of push is science, technology and R&D strength; the driver of pull is customer demand, competition and market research.
- Push carries higher market risk because the customer may not want the product, while pull carries lower market risk but usually yields incremental improvements.
- Push tends to produce radical, breakthrough innovations; pull tends to produce incremental ones because customers describe needs in terms of what they already know.
- For R&D, push needs strong research investment and patience, while pull needs R&D that stays close to customer feedback and short development cycles.
- For marketing, push requires creating and educating the market, while pull requires market research and quick response to demand.
- Most successful innovation is a coupling of both: technology opportunity meets market need.
- Analogies are a source too: an idea from another field or nature is transferred to a new problem, as Velcro copied burr hooks and aircraft design copied bird wings.
- Transfer of technology is moving know-how from its creator (a university, laboratory or firm) to another user through licensing, joint ventures, consultancy, buying patents or training; it lets the receiver innovate without repeating the research.
| Basis | Technology push | Market pull |
|---|---|---|
| Starting point | New technology or discovery | Customer need |
| Driver | R&D and science | Market demand |
| Risk | High market risk | Lower market risk |
| Type | Often radical | Often incremental |
| Example | Laser, Post-it | Fuel-efficient cars |
| Implication | R&D leads, marketing follows | Marketing leads, R&D follows |
Answer frame. Open with the definition of both; draw the flow diagram; then develop points 1-7 as the comparison table; add analogy and technology transfer if asked; close that best results couple push with pull. For "Innovation arises from knowledge push", stress points 1, 3 and 5, then contrast with pull and conclude that knowledge push is one source, not the only one.
Pitfall: Do not say push is better than pull; the examiner expects both sources with their risks and a coupling conclusion.
Asked: [7 marks] (May 2022, May 2024, Jun 2025) Explain Technology Push and Market Pull Innovation in detail; difference between knowledge push and need pull innovation. Asked: [7 marks] (May 2024) "Innovation arises from knowledge push". Discuss briefly.
Creative methods and approaches used in innovation management
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Definition. <mark>Managing innovation requires a set of core abilities (recognizing, aligning, acquiring, generating, selecting and executing), applied in a context that shapes how they are used.</mark>
Key points.
- Recognizing means scanning the environment to spot technology and market opportunities and threats early.
- Aligning means fitting the innovation with the firm's overall strategy so effort goes where it adds advantage.
- Acquiring means obtaining the needed technology, knowledge and resources by R&D, buying, licensing or partnering.
- Generating means creating the ideas and solutions in-house through creative techniques such as brainstorming.
- Selecting means screening and choosing the ideas worth funding, for example with the NUF test.
- Executing means turning the chosen idea into a launched product or process, managing project, cost and time.
- Together these abilities build competitive advantage because rivals find them hard to copy.
- Context is the setting the firm works in: its industry, size, culture and environment.
- Context changes the process: a small start-up uses informal, fast routines, a large firm uses formal stage-gates; a stable industry favours incremental innovation, a turbulent one favours radical.
- A culture that tolerates failure supports creative methods, so managers adapt the abilities to their own context instead of copying another firm.
Answer frame. For core abilities, open with the definition; list the six in order as a numbered list with one sentence each; close with competitive advantage. For context, open by defining context; take industry, size, culture, environment in turn with an example each; close that there is no single best process.
Asked: [7 marks] (May 2022) What are the core abilities in managing innovation? Asked: [7 marks] (May 2022) How context affects innovation management?
Approaches to management of the innovation process (agile management, Six Thinking Hats, NUF test)
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Definition. <mark>Agile management is an iterative, flexible, customer-centric approach that delivers in short cycles with rapid feedback; Six Thinking Hats is Edward de Bono's parallel-thinking tool; the NUF test screens ideas on being New, Useful and Feasible.</mark>
Agile management.
- Work is done in short sprints of one to four weeks, each ending in a usable increment.
- Cross-functional teams of design, engineering and marketing work together instead of in hand-offs.
- Customer feedback after every sprint steers the next one.
- It matters for innovation because it gives speed, adaptability to changing needs and lower risk, since a wrong idea is found after weeks, not years.
- Example: a phone maker builds a basic app in two weeks, tests it with users, and adds features sprint by sprint.
Six Thinking Hats. One thinking mode per hat, and the whole group wears the same hat at a time, so ideas are not lost in argument.
| Hat | Mode |
|---|---|
| White | Facts, data and information needed |
| Red | Feelings, intuition, no justification |
| Black | Caution, risks, why it may fail |
| Yellow | Benefits, optimism, value |
| Green | New ideas, alternatives, creativity |
| Blue | Process control, summary, next steps |
Idea-generation flow: Blue sets the aim, White gives facts, Green generates ideas, Yellow and Black assess them, Red gauges feeling, and Blue concludes. Example: a team designing a low-cost water purifier wears Green to list ideas, then Black to test each.
NUF test. Each idea is rated on three questions: New (is it really new?), Useful (does it solve a real problem?), Feasible (can we build it with our resources?). Steps:
Step 1: List the ideas to be screened.
Step 2: Score every idea on New, Useful and Feasible, for example 1-10 each.
Step 3: Add the three scores (maximum 30).
Step 4: Rank ideas; drop low scorers or any idea failing one criterion.
Step 5: Take the top ideas to detailed study.
Use it at the idea-screening stage, after idea generation and before spending on development, to cut many ideas to a few.
Answer frame. NUF: define the three letters, give the scoring steps, then when to use it. Six Hats: introduce de Bono, tabulate hats, give the session flow example. Agile: define, give the principles, then speed, adaptability and risk reduction, with the example.
Pitfall: Do not present NUF as a creative technique; it is a screening filter, not an idea generator.
Asked: [7 marks] (May 2022, May 2024) What is NUF test? How and when to use it? Asked: [7 marks] (May 2024, Jun 2025) Briefly explain "Six Thinking Hats as idea generation"; explain in detail. Asked: [7 marks] (Jun 2025) Define agile management. Why it is important in innovation?
Last-minute revision
- Technology push starts from R&D and looks for a market; market pull starts from a customer need.
- Push is often radical with high market risk; pull is often incremental with lower risk.
- Best innovation couples push and pull.
- Analogy borrows a solution from another field, such as Velcro from burrs.
- Technology transfer routes: licensing, joint venture, patents, consultancy, training.
- Six core abilities: recognizing, aligning, acquiring, generating, selecting, executing.
- Context factors: industry, size, culture, environment.
- Six Hats: White facts, Red feelings, Black caution, Yellow benefits, Green creativity, Blue process.
- NUF: New, Useful, Feasible, scored per idea and used to screen ideas.
- Agile: sprints, cross-functional teams, rapid feedback; gives speed, adaptability, less risk.
Memory hooks
- Push = Product first; Pull = People first.
- Core abilities: RAAGSE, as Recognise, Align, Acquire, Generate, Select, Execute.
- Hats: "Wise Rabbits Bite Yellow Green Bananas" for White, Red, Black, Yellow, Green, Blue.
- NUF: "Novel, Usable, Fit to build".
- Agile: short sprints, quick feedback loop.
Coverage checklist
- Sources of innovation (push, pull, analogies), transfer of technology: push versus pull (3 sessions), knowledge push.
- Creative methods and approaches used in innovation management: core abilities, effect of context.
- Approaches to management of the innovation process (agile management, Six Thinking Hats, NUF test): NUF test, Six Thinking Hats, agile management.