Innovation Types

Innovation in Wardley Mapping is not a single activity but a set of distinct types that occur during evolutionary transitions. Understanding these types helps in predicting the nature, risk, and impact of change.

In a Wardley Map, innovation is often associated with movement from left to right. However, the characteristics of innovation change dramatically depending on which stage of evolution the component is in or transitioning towards.

Evolutionary Innovation Types

1. Genesis (Stage I): Pure Creation

This is the act of proving something is possible. It is often driven by scientific curiosity with no known practical application yet.

• Example: Heron's steam engine, the first battery.
• Nature: Highly unpredictable in both timing and outcome.

2. Genesis → Custom Built (Stage I → II): "Breakthrough"

This involves taking theoretical knowledge or a "proof of concept" and making it work for a specific, practical purpose.

• Example: The first practical steam engine designed to pump water from mines.
• Nature: Very high risk, but very high value if successful. It must solve a major, tangible problem.

3. Custom → Custom: Bespoke Implementation

These are high-value, unique implementations tailored for specific clients.

• Nature: Limited by the scarcity of experts who can perform the work. Each implementation is unique, often delivered via a consultancy-style model.

4. Custom → Product (Stage II → III): "Market Creation"

This transition establishes repeatability and standardization, forming a recognized "market" for the component.

• Nature: The transition to scalability. Investment requirements per unit drop dramatically due to serial production.

5. Product → Product (Intra-Stage III): "Feature Differentiation"

Sustaining innovations that occur within the established product space to improve an existing offering.

• Example: Adding a better camera to a smartphone.
• Nature: Limited long-term impact as competitors adapt quickly, though it can help establish brand reputation.

6. Product → Product (Inter-Product, Stage III): "Copy/Surprise"

Unpredictable disruption occurring when functionality between different products overlaps, leading to substitution.

• Example: The iPhone displacing the Blackberry.
• Nature: Unpredictable timing and outcome. Some features suddenly become highly desirable, catching incumbents off-guard.

7. Product → Commodity (Stage III → IV): "Nonlinear Revolution"

The most disruptive and yet predictable transition. When product competition stalls and new features add no marginal value, customers shift to high-volume, low-cost commodity versions.

• Example: Cloud computing (AWS) displacing server products.
• Nature: Highly predictable in direction but often dismissed as "impossible" or "inferior" by incumbents due to extreme inertia.

8. Commodity → Commodity (Intra-Stage IV): Rare/Impossible

Attempting to change established standards within the utility space.

• Example: Trying to change national electrical standards (voltage or frequency).
• Nature: Extremely difficult because commodities are deeply embedded in infrastructure and have massive network effects.

The Predictability Insight

One of the most critical insights from this breakdown is the variance in predictability:

• Unpredictable ("What"): Genesis and product-to-product substitutions are largely unpredictable in their nature and timing.
• Predictable ("When/How"): The transition from Product to Commodity is predictable in its direction and eventual inevitability, though it is often the one where organizations face the most failure due to cultural and political inertia.

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Innovation is a core driver of evolution. To see how these types play out in practice, explore the ILC Model or learn about the Evolution Stages themselves.