Innovation at the boundaries of technology have a huge risk of making the wrong choice. This case is the decision taken by IBM in its semiconductor process strategies: materials for use as a dielectric insulator in its advanced technology of silicon chip edge. While at the time of the decision, it looked like a good choice, the next problem is caused by the material properties of the company will have to switch to alternative. Although the major violations, the company managed to recover quickly. Case probes organizational capabilities and problem solving approach that enables the recovery. Errors in making huge bets on the cutting edge of scientific innovation are more expensive, and the company is actually buying real options for their R & D strategies to measure the level of simultaneous investments in competing alternatives.
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by Willy Shih, Giovanni Carraro Source: Harvard Business School 19 pages. Publication Date: October 20, 2009. Prod. #: 610023-PDF-ENG
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