Reverse Engineering Googles Innovation Machine - Case Study Example

This is what drives the firm’s product development. Customer needs are monitored and then they are integrated into the way the products of the firm are developed with an intention to make sure that the customer is happy with e products. The fact that the customer needs keep shifting has also meant that the firm has to continually look for ways to innovate in a dynamic way to keep up with the high speed of changing customer needs. Subaru realizes that without keeping up with the changing customer needs, it will be hard for it to remain competitive in the market. This has therefore been the central part of the firm’s strategy with regard to the way it accesses the market.

Google Case

Google’s product development is both similar and different from others found in the other firms. It is similar because like in other firms, product development is the ultimate market strategy for any firm. Firms in a modern economy realize that they have to continually change their product in order to meet shifting customer needs and therefore they have to keep improving their products. Like Google, they have to keep innovating new ways to make the customer happy. However, Google is also different in that its innovation is more dynamic and more spontaneous. Unlike in other firms where any innovation process has to be thought out and be flagged by the senior management, innovation at Google is an everyday process and it is everybody’s responsibility as opposed to it being a process only initiated by the managers. Google’s product development is also customer-focused (Iyer & Davenport, 2008). Their innovation is all about making sure that the customer gets what they want.

In fact, they take advantage of the technology to make sure that they can personalize the products for each customer. This has for instance been achieved using the +1 Google product that helps individuals to have the most customized Google experience. In this regard, the biggest challenge that Google faces in the management of its product portfolio is because it is not feasible to completely customize the products for each of the many millions of people who use Google. No matter how much the firm tries to customize the products, it cannot be able to fully customize them to all the customers’ exact needs and this is a challenge for the firm.