Entrepreneurial opportunities often exist when industries are created or transformed by new technologies, new business models or new product categories. The pursuit of these opportunities, however, creates challenges for both start-ups and established firms. This course introduces a research-based set of conceptual frameworks and tools that help students to identify, evaluate, launch, and grow innovative ventures that revolutionize markets. We will discuss cases set in a range of industry contexts including: folding bicycles, online Indian art auctions, aviation (air taxis), electronic publishing, fashion, digital imaging, education, and clean energy.

Course Instructor

This course will be taught by Professor Mary Tripsas who is an expert on the management of innovation and entrepreneurship.   Her research and teaching explore the transformation of industries by radically new technology, and she is currently engaged in studies of digital publishing, air taxis, and innovation in music.  Her work has been published in a number of leading journals including the Strategic Management Journal, Research Policy, and Organization Science.   Before joining the Carroll School, Professor Tripsas served on the faculties of the Harvard Business School and the Wharton School.    Prior to academia, she was a strategy consultant in the Cambridge and Milan offices of the Monitor Group and worked for IBM both as a software developer and as a member of the sales force. She also served on the board of directors of Lexar Media (NASDAQ: LEXR) from 2003-2006, when the company was acquired by Micron.  She earned her PhD from the MIT Sloan School of Management, her MBA from the Harvard Business School, and her BS from the University of Illinois at Urbana.