Is Your Idea 'Disruptive'?

A question which is asked time and again. To understand this, we need to first understand what 'disruptive' means.

Disruption in any Industry refers to an innovation which questions the current working of the Industry and comes out with a model which creates so much value that it displaces the current one. To be judged disruptive, an innovation must result in the following.

Creation of a Market: The establishment of a new market within an existing Industry is a must. This market keeps expanding, eventually encompassing most of the Industry itself.

Establishment of a New & Sustainable Business Model: The actual value lies in this model and the products/services attached to it.

Change in Consumer Behavior: A disruptive idea changes the way consumers perceive and use products and services relating to the Industry.

Some examples of powerful disruptions in the past include -

UBER - changed the way the taxi market completely using technology and innovation. All stakeholders benefited from this.

APPLE (IPAD) - challenged the idea of a portable computer.

SKYPE - changed the way people communicate with each other by offering a service which is much cheaper than traditional telecom services.

ZYNGA - introduced people to the concept of social gaming. There was always a need to connect with new people to play games with. Zynga did just this and how well it worked.