"THE INNOVATOR'S DILEMMA" AUTHOR CLAYTON CHRISTENSEN TO SPEAK AT ECONOMICS CLUB LUNCHEON
Clayton Christensen, associate professor of business administration at Harvard University and author of "The Innovator's Dilemma," the best-selling book on how companies struggle to adapt to major technology changes, will discuss his theories during this fall's first Old Dominion University Economics Club of Hampton Roads luncheon Friday, Sept. 10.
Co-sponsored by Old Dominion's College of Business and Public Administration, the luncheon will begin at noon at the Sheraton Waterside Hotel in downtown Norfolk. Due to limited space, reservations are required. The cost for the luncheon is $30 for non-members.
Christensen, whose 1997 book took the business world by storm due in part to the emergence of the Internet as a commerce tool, will present "Managing the Threat and Opportunity of Disruptive Technology." During the talk, he will discuss how good management can sow the seeds of failure when companies are confronted with disruptive technologies such as Internet telephony, electric vehicles and digital photography. He will also explore changes in technology that could affect the fortunes of many of today's strongest institutions.
Christensen's research and teaching interests center on managing technological innovation, developing organizational capabilities and finding new markets for new technologies. Prior to joining the Harvard Business School, he served as chairman and president of Ceramics Process Systems Corporation, a firm he co-founded with several Massachusetts Institute of Technology professors in 1984. In 1982, he was named a White House Fellow and served through 1983 as an assistant to U.S. Transportation Secretaries Drew Lewis and Elizabeth Dole.
Christensen earned a master's degree in applied econometrics and the economics of less-developed countries from Oxford University, where he studied as a Rhodes Scholar. He also received a master's degree in business administration from Harvard Business School.
The author of numerous books and professional articles, Christensen has been published in the Wall Street Journal, Harvard Business Review, Business History Review and Strategic Management Journal, among others. He also advises many of the world's leading corporations concerning their management of technological innovation.
Other upcoming speakers for the Economics Club of Hampton Roads include David Goode, chairman, president and chief executive officer of Norfolk Southern Corp., Oct. 14; Jean Chatzky, editor at large for Money magazine, Nov. 9; and Mark Zandi, chief economist at Regional Financial Associates, December (date to be announced).
For more information or to make reservations, call Claudette Johnson at 683-3520.