innovating in emerging economies

Infographic: 3 steps to unlock growth in emerging economies

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Oct 27, 2020

Since launching the Global Prosperity team at the Christensen Institute we’ve strived to elevate the global development conversation by offering a new lens for understanding what creates prosperity. 

Our research underscores the pivotal role that a particular type of innovation—market-creating innovation—plays in catalyzing robust, inclusive development. To that end, a majority of our work has been educating innovators, development practitioners, and policymakers about these powerful innovations so we may move one step closer to creating widespread prosperity. 

But it’s not enough to convince global leaders of the importance of market-creating innovations—a tactical roadmap is needed to help stakeholders increase their odds of success. This is the feedback I’ve received time and time again from innovators, and it’s largely responsible for inspiring our recent report, Avoiding the prosperity paradox: How to build economic resilience in a post-COVID world.

In the report my colleague Rich Alton and I explain how market-creating innovations can sew the seeds of widespread prosperity post-COVID. The report offers a three-step framework to 1) look for evidence of market-creating opportunities, 2) confirm the potential market is significant, and 3) develop a new value network to profitably serve new consumers. See the infographic below for a glimpse into this process, and refer to the report to explore each step in more depth.

As we delve deeper into this research we’ll continue to share insights that demystify the process of market creation. As always, I hope you’ll reach out to let us know what is most useful for you.

Efosa Ojomo is a senior research fellow at the Clayton Christensen Institute for Disruptive Innovation, and co-author of The Prosperity Paradox: How Innovation Can Lift Nations Out of Poverty. Efosa researches, writes, and speaks about ways in which innovation can transform organizations and create inclusive prosperity for many in emerging markets.