Understanding Disruptive Innovations and the Bottom of the Pyramid

Abstract

<p><span lang="EN-GB">Disruptive innovations by their nature, induces a reshuffling of the position of companies within their industry while the bottom of the pyramid typifies the emerging and developing economies of the world. An observable similarity between the characteristics of disruptive innovation and the attributes of the bottom of the pyramid (BOP) prompts a logical question - can disruptive innovations occurring at the BOP impact the esteemed position of today's top companies? With the aid of an agent-based model (ABM) simulation, this paper examines different scenarios of the occurrence of disruptive innovations at the top of the pyramid (TOP) and the BOP. The paper further, examines the associated impact and effect of such occurrence on the future sustainability of today's companies and highlights some vulnerability that managers need pay attention too.</span></p>