Title: Technological innovation – customer-centred or market-centred

Authors: Hiroshi Suzuki

Addresses: GE Energy, 1–14–14 Akasaka, Minato-ku, Tokyo, 107–8453, Japan

Abstract: Many businesses promise customer satisfaction to society. The typical Japanese way is customer-centred and different from the global approach, i.e., a market-centred one. More than the former, the latter approach promotes technological innovation. The author picked up two examples in technological innovations; one is software, the other is a control system. The software, Smallworld, is discussed as a network asset management tool. This software was originally developed in the UK to satisfy customers| potential needs. A US company acquired this original company and added more value to this tool. Now, this software is being sold in Japan through local partners. Another example is a generator control system. The typical Japanese design concept has a hierarchy configuration as master/slave while that of the US approach has an autonomous scheme. This difference results in a different business approach. A three-dimensional model explains the successful innovation processes.

Keywords: technological innovation; marketing; customer-centred; market-centred; Smallworld; technology products; solutions; Japan; customer satisfaction; software innovation; network asset management; generator control; technology intelligence; technology management.

DOI: 10.1504/IJTIP.2006.011309

International Journal of Technology Intelligence and Planning, 2006 Vol.2 No.2, pp.200 - 209

Published online: 14 Nov 2006 *

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