Towards a revised model of innovation in organizations

• Main Author: Rahmanseresht, Hossein
• Other Authors: Maclagan, Patrick W.
• Published: University of Hull 1988
• Subjects: 658; Management systems and sciences
• Online Access: http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.262475

Some critics of studies of innovation in organizations suggest that the process of innovation needs to receive more attention. They imply that a process study, as opposed to a survey type research, can offer a deeper insight into the nature of that process. The objective of this study is to enhance our understanding of the process of innovation. For this purpose, a relatively in-depth study of an attempt at innovation in a higher education setting in Iran is undertaken. This research consists of four parts. In Part One, innovation is viewed from a theoretical perspective. Part Two is devoted to the description of the case. Part Three covers the analysis of the case. Part Four comprises the implications of the study for theory and practice as well as a research agenda. Derived from a single case study, the findings can be regarded as indicating hypotheses to other students of innovation. These findings that: (a).Irrespective of its manifestation, innovation is driven by its essence, which is abstract. (b).A process of innovation has two sides: on the surface it is linear and, like an organizational chart, is static; but it is iterative and sine linear under the surface. It is dynamic like the reality of organization. (c).It will be misleading to distinguish between the administrative and technical as a way of accounting for the possible differential impacts of some variables on strategic innovations. (d).Different aspects of the same elements may affect either the initiation or the implementation of an innovation. (e).More attention has to be paid to the relationship between group variables as well as organizational fairness, or equity, and innovation.