Exploring How Lead Users Develop Radical Innovation: Opportunity Recognition and Exploitation in the Field of Medical Equipment Technology
Summary. Lead users in medical equipment—primarily surgeons—develop radical innovations independently when manufacturers won't invest in them. These users create functional prototypes, build networks of collaborators, and test feasibility before convincing established manufacturers to commercialize their ideas. Lead users effectively perform the coordination and knowledge-gathering work that manufacturers typically handle, bridging gaps in the innovation pipeline and enabling radical breakthroughs.
Cite this article
Lettl, C., Hienerth, C., & Gemuenden, H. G.. (2008). Exploring How Lead Users Develop Radical Innovation: Opportunity Recognition and Exploitation in the Field of Medical Equipment Technology. IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management. https://doi.org/10.1109/tem.2008.919717
Lettl, Christopher, et al. “Exploring How Lead Users Develop Radical Innovation: Opportunity Recognition and Exploitation in the Field of Medical Equipment Technology.” IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management, 2008. https://doi.org/10.1109/tem.2008.919717.
Lettl, Christopher, Christoph Hienerth, and Hans Georg Gemuenden. 2008. “Exploring How Lead Users Develop Radical Innovation: Opportunity Recognition and Exploitation in the Field of Medical Equipment Technology.” IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management. https://doi.org/10.1109/tem.2008.919717.
@article{lettl-2008-exploring-how-lead-users-develop,
title = {Exploring How Lead Users Develop Radical Innovation: Opportunity Recognition and Exploitation in the Field of Medical Equipment Technology},
author = {Christopher Lettl and Christoph Hienerth and Hans Georg Gemuenden},
journal = {IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management},
year = {2008},
doi = {10.1109/tem.2008.919717},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1109/tem.2008.919717}
}
TY - JOUR TI - Exploring How Lead Users Develop Radical Innovation: Opportunity Recognition and Exploitation in the Field of Medical Equipment Technology AU - Christopher Lettl AU - Christoph Hienerth AU - Hans Georg Gemuenden JO - IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management PY - 2008 DO - 10.1109/tem.2008.919717 UR - https://doi.org/10.1109/tem.2008.919717 ER -
Details
- DOI
- 10.1109/tem.2008.919717
- Countries
- Denmark, Austria
- Regions
- Europe
- Categories
- innovation-theory, innovation-networks, general-innovation
- Added
- 2026-04-28