The Innovator’s Dilemma by Clayton Christensen – Book Summary
How successful firms lose their market edge by doing everything they’re supposed to do right About the Author and the
Clayton Christensen
Clayton Christensen: Disruptive Innovation and the Quest for Enduring Growth
Clayton M. Christensen (1952–2020) was an American scholar, entrepreneur, and bestselling author whose theory of disruptive innovation transformed strategy and innovation management. A Harvard Business School professor, he explained why incumbent leaders often fail—not from incompetence but because the same processes that drive current success can blind them to new, simpler entrants that redefine markets.
His landmark book The Innovator’s Dilemma reshaped how companies approach R&D, portfolio bets, and organizational design. Follow-on works such as The Innovator’s Solution and Competing Against Luck (Jobs to Be Done theory) offered playbooks for building growth businesses systematically. Christensen’s ideas continue to guide executives, startups, and policymakers navigating technological and business model change.