Business has been going swimmingly until recently when you found out that a competitor you’ve never heard of, or taken seriously, is now capturing significant portions of your market. How did this happen? How could it have been prevented? Are you focusing on building a better horse and buggy when someone else is building the first Model T? In this session, I’ll share my experiences working in and leading Emerging Technologies teams at IBM, HP and Red Hat and provide you with a step-by-step guide for building a unique function within your business that can identify and manage disruption ahead of your own product teams and your competitors.

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How to build your own
Emerging Technologies function
Steve Watt
#emtechsxsw
CC flickr @davidyuweb

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Creative Destruction
Data provided courtesy of Ralph Katz, Professor at MIT Sloan School of Management

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Disruptive Technologies - A long term example
CC flickr @orangegreenblue

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A recent example

5. @wattsteve #emtechsxswCC flickr @sabertasche2
is this possible?
But

6. @wattsteve #emtechsxswCC flickr @drbethsnow
Those low-margin customers don’t matter

7. @wattsteve #emtechsxswCC flickr @dakiny
Optics
I may look like
a raccoon, but
I’m actually a
dog

8. @wattsteve #emtechsxswCC flickr @beeveephoto
Stubbornness and Arrogance
I’m the expert
in this market,
that new
startup is
going to fail.

9. @wattsteve #emtechsxswCC flickr @ronmacphotos
Sticking your head
in the sand
I have millions
invested in our
roadmap. I’m
secretly hoping
this will all
blow over

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Lack of Incentive
CC flickr @jym
My performance review
and compensation is based
on how well I deliver on our
current strategy. I don’t
have the time or energy for
this battle.

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Do you want to anticipate & manage disruption or not?
CC flickr @laurabloom

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Great, but carefully consider
these aspects to increase
your chances of success.

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Where should the function reside?
CTO
VP of Product EngineeringVP of Emerging Technologies
CTO
VP of Product Engineering
Director of Emerging Technologies
VP of R&D
Director of Product DevelopmentDirector of Research
VP of R&D
Director of Product Development
Director of Research
Yes No

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How does it work?
CC flickr @diggingforfire @mpeterke @23065375@N05
Assemble the team
Identify and Experiment with the
disruptive technology
Socialize the Point of View
Advise the Stakeholders1
2 3
4

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Who do we hire?
The Negotiator
The Strategist
Core Engineering
Early Adopters / Customers / Conferences
Product Management
C Suite
Internal - Emerging Technologies
External
Internal - Rest of Company
Field Engineering The Evangelist

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Identifying and Experimenting with disruptive technologies
CC flickr @invis

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Socializing the Point of View
CC flickr @oninnovation
Early adopters
Innovators
What do you think of
my prototype?
What is & isn’t
working? Do you want
to partner?

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Advising the stakeholders
TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER
But sometimes, it’s just the point of view that transfers...

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How do I fund the function?
CC flickr @tarat

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What additional challenges should I expect?
It can be hard to be taken seriously when
positing that you can predict the future.
ET requires a thick skin!
Embarrassment
Success comes with a commitment.
Nonsensical marketing/messaging
CC flickr @silveraquarius

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Thanks for coming
For more information:
Email: swatt@redhat.com
Twitter: @wattsteve
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/wattsteve
GitHub: https://github.com/wattsteve

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Backup

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Diffusion and Chasm Theory