Total innovation management: a theoretical framework and implications

Abstract

With the arrival of the era of knowledge-driven economy, more and more enterprises find that, innovation all-round is becoming the source and driving force of enterprise's survival and development. Restricted by conditions at that time, traditional theories of innovation management fail to fit to the current violent changes of competition environment, and so are unable to offer a valid innovation management pattern for enterprise by which to instruct the practices of innovation under the new situation. Based on literature review both native and abroad, this paper introduced a new theoretical pattern of innovation management, namely Total Innovation Management (TIM), which was brought forward by Qingrui Xu and his colleagues in 2002. Firstly, this paper introduced the theoretical framework of TIM, which include the characteristics, dimensions, and so on, and then, by comparing TIM with traditional pattern of managing innovation, some similarities and differences were pointed out accordingly. At last, the author argued that, TIM was the emerging new trend of innovation management, and it would be very valuable for enterprises to facing the increasingly intense competition, and the challenge of individualized customer's demand. Key word: Total innovation management, Innovation all around, Innovation by all the employers