Disruptive Innovation A Case Study Of Uber

Clayton Christensen introduced the idea of disruptive innovation. He used this phrase as a way to think about successful companies not just meeting customers current needs but anticipating their unstated or future needs. His theory worked to explain how small companies with minimal resources were able to enter a market and displace the established system. The objective of this case-based study is to test the theory of disruptive innovation proposed by Christensen for the case of Uber Technologies Inc. Uber is a ride sharing company which connects riders and drivers through a digital platform. The paper suggests that the new ecosystem of ride sharing services created by Uber has been able to create a dent into the otherwise hard to crack taxi industry. The author concludes that Uber is not a disruptive innovation but has caused digital disruption in the taxi industry. It has been stated that further research to study the impact on Uber with the advent of new competition in the ride sharing industry needs to be conducted.