Perspectives of innovation: A study of how innovation is defined in a group of indian american professionals

The definition of innovation varies from individual to individual and between individual and the team or the team and an organization. The perception of innovation and how individuals define innovation can make an organization stay competitive or go out of business. Research had shown that a traditional approach of idea generation as innovation at well intentioned organizations afforded success only 10% of the time after three years. In forming and managing project teams, which are made up of individuals or selling a service or product to a certain demography it is important and beneficial to understand their perception of innovation and if they see innovation as new, change or improvement. This study is built upon the earlier work of Zhuang (1995), Zhuang, Williamson, and Carter (1999), and McLaughlin and (2013). Prior research conducted by Caraballo and McLaughlin (2012) focused on understanding the perception of innovation as defined or understood by a homogeneous demography of Latino American professionals. This dissertation furthers the research conducted by Caraballo and McLaughlin (2012) with a focus on comprehending how a homogenous group Indian American professionals in the United States perceive or define innovation into the three categories of new, improve and change. While innovation may be understood by individuals as a multi-dimensional construct, the research tried to identify the relationship between perceptions, and gender, age and job function for the homogenous group of Indian Americans in the United States. The research followed the approach and methodology used by Caraballo and McLaughlin (2012) and the study is quantitative, exploratory and used web-based surveys to gather responses from respondents.