Innovate or Perish: Managing the Enduring Technology Company in the Global Market

Innovation Teams and Networks

The increased understanding of network theory and the analogies among electronic, social, and physiological models has stimulated interest into the internal interaction of innovation teams and the team interface with the surrounding world.

Team member function, roles, and connectivity has been described, analyzed, and evaluated. Focus has been on team communication, culture and values, and the team’s connectivity and networking capabilities.

Innovation team members all bring different internal and external relationships in the form of networks into the team (see Exhibit 7.3). By mapping out the combined network, it is possible to explore relationships based on different criteria (see Exhibit 7.4). However, most information can be extracted from analyzing the simple set of immediate relationships for a person and identifying the “ego” network of different individuals and different factions or groups within the network (see Exhibit 7.5).

Exhibit 7.3. A Network of Relationships Exists Between Various Entities

[View full size image]

Exhibit 7.4. Network Analysis Enables Exploration of the Relationships within a Network

[View full size image]

Exhibit 7.5. More Information Can Be Extracted from Analyzing the “Simple” Set of Relationships

[View full size ...