Select a ‘circular’ product, service, product service or wider ‘system innovation’ with which you are familiar or find interesting (but haven’t previously used in any previous assessment) and you and/or others consider to be innovative. Then present a response to the following tasks.
- a) Briefly describe the example and with reference to relevant definitions/theories explain why you and/or others consider it be innovative? Is the innovation ‘disruptive’ and if so, what is being disrupted or likely to be disrupted? In other words what is the comparator? From your research, explain the nature of the innovation, how it came about and how this relates back to relevant theories and models in the module. This should include an application of the ReSOLVE framework to your case example to identify areas of the circular economy that the innovation addresses.
- b) What lessons and conclusions can be drawn from your case example in terms of factors that have acted as enablers or barriers to implementing innovative ideas (in organisations, or in wider society) with respect to the circular economy.
Draw on your ideas from the formative assessments to plan/structure this work.
Assignment checklist
Aspect Notes
The product/service/system etc Describe it with references and sources
Who is the innovator/what is the innovation
Who benefits
Why is it innovative According to who/definition
Innovative to region/firm/sector etc
What frame of reference/theoretical perspective e.g. Disruptive/Open/BoP/Definitions
Were there specific entrepreneurial qualities involved
Is the Innovation Disruptive What is disruption
How do we know
What is being disrupted and how
How did the ‘innovation’ come about Who, what, when, how
What was the context
How was it funded
What were the challenges/barriers that had to be overcome
Innovative to who
What were the processes
Stage gate/ideation or more formal R&D, blue sky, govt funded etc
What were/have been/might be the outcomes Market penetration
Diffusion
Scenarios e.g. Growth Within
Organisational dimensions e.g. changes/collaborations/ecosystems
Relevance of the innovation to the CE Apply the ReSOLVE framework
Which elements of the ReSOLVE framework align with the innovation?
Lessons to be drawn from the case study for CE Did it work? If so, why – if not, why not
What were the succeiquss factors/barriers?
Conclusions Short and punchy