Continuous Casting Investments at USX Corporation

by Clayton M. Christensen

Abstract

Focuses on the difficulty established companies face when confronted with disruptive technological innovations. The power that their prior asset investments, their cost structures, and their customers have in constraining their investment and innovation decisions are clearly illustrated. Rewritten version of an earlier case.

Keywords: Disruption; Assets; Cost; Investment; Technological Innovation; Problems and Challenges; Mining Industry; Real Estate Industry;

Format: Print

18 pages

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Citation:

Christensen, Clayton M. "Continuous Casting Investments at USX Corporation." Harvard Business School Case 697-020, April 2003. (Revised from original July 1996 version.)

About the Author

Clayton M. Christensen

Kim B. Clark Professor of Business Administration

General Management

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More from the Author

Book | 2012

How Will You Measure Your Life?

Clayton M. Christensen, James Allworth and Karen Dillon

Citation:
Christensen, Clayton M., James Allworth, and Karen Dillon. How Will You Measure Your Life? HarperBusiness, 2012.

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Book | 2011

The Innovator's DNA: Mastering the Five Skills of Disruptive Innovators

Jeffrey H. Dyer, Hal B. Gregersen and Clayton M. Christensen

Some people are just natural innovators, right? With no apparent effort, they discover ideas for new products, services, and entire businesses. It may look like innovators are born, not made. But according to Jeffrey Dyer, Hal Gregersen, and Clay Christensen anyone can become more innovative. How? Master the discovery skills that distinguish innovative entrepreneurs and executives from ordinary managers. In The Innovator's DNA, the authors identify five capabilities demonstrated by the best innovators: (1) Associating: drawing connections between questions, problems, or ideas from unrelated fields; (2) Questioning: posing queries that challenge common wisdom; (3) Observing: scrutinizing the behavior of customers, suppliers, and competitors to identify new ways of doing things; (4) Experimenting: constructing interactive experiences and provoking unorthodox responses to see what insights emerge; and (5) Networking: meeting people with different ideas and perspectives. The authors explain how to generate ideas with these skills, collaborate with "delivery-driven" colleagues to implement ideas, and build innovation skills throughout your organization to sharpen its competitive edge. They also provide a self-assessment for rating your own innovator's DNA. Practical and provocative, this book is an essential resource for all teams seeking to strengthen their innovative prowess.

Keywords: Competency and Skills; Disruptive Innovation; Competitive Advantage;

Citation:
Dyer, Jeffrey H., Hal B. Gregersen, and Clayton M. Christensen. The Innovator's DNA: Mastering the Five Skills of Disruptive Innovators. Boston, MA: Harvard Business Press, 2011.

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Article | Stanford Social Innovation Review | spring 2011

Picking Green Tech's Winners and Losers

Clayton M. Christensen, Shuman Talukdar, Richard Alton and Michael B. Horn

Keywords: Technology;

Citation:
Christensen, Clayton M., Shuman Talukdar, Richard Alton, and Michael B. Horn. "Picking Green Tech's Winners and Losers." Stanford Social Innovation Review (spring 2011).

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