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Mastering the Hype Cycle: How to Choose the Right Innovation at the Right Time
It happens over and over again. Some innovation (a new product, a management trend) comes along that captures the public's imagination. Everybody joins the parade with great fanfare and high expectations. This "next big thing" promises to transform the companies that adopt it -- and inflict great peril on those that don't.
Then, when the innovation fails to deliver as promised immediately, everyone starts bailing out. Investments are wasted; stock prices plunge; disillusionment sets in.
It doesn't have to be this way. In Mastering the Hype Cycle , Jackie Fenn and Mark Raskino explain what drives this pattern and how your company can avoid its potential dangers. By understanding the hype cycle, you can ride it more skillfully -- timing your investment decisions so that the innovations you adopt stand the best chance of succeeding in the long-term.
Drawing on company examples and Gartner's proven STREET (Scope, Track, Rank, Evaluate, Evangelize, Transfer) framework, the authors show how to orchestrate the key steps in the innovation-adoption process -- from choosing which innovations to take on and when in their life cycle you should adopt, to paving the way for a successful introduction.
The hype cycle isn't going away. But this book arms you with the strategies you need to ride the crest of a new idea to success -- and steer clear of the trough of disillusionment.
Then, when the innovation fails to deliver as promised immediately, everyone starts bailing out. Investments are wasted; stock prices plunge; disillusionment sets in.
It doesn't have to be this way. In Mastering the Hype Cycle , Jackie Fenn and Mark Raskino explain what drives this pattern and how your company can avoid its potential dangers. By understanding the hype cycle, you can ride it more skillfully -- timing your investment decisions so that the innovations you adopt stand the best chance of succeeding in the long-term.
Drawing on company examples and Gartner's proven STREET (Scope, Track, Rank, Evaluate, Evangelize, Transfer) framework, the authors show how to orchestrate the key steps in the innovation-adoption process -- from choosing which innovations to take on and when in their life cycle you should adopt, to paving the way for a successful introduction.
The hype cycle isn't going away. But this book arms you with the strategies you need to ride the crest of a new idea to success -- and steer clear of the trough of disillusionment.
256 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2008
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137 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
June 27, 2011
Fenn and Raskino do a good job explaining what the hype cycle is, and why its relevant in terms of innovation adoption. All in all, its a very thorough book with the first half providing the theory, and the second half acting as a detailed how-to guide. It's clearly written, with plenty of graphs and case studies, which helps to make the ideas discussed more easily digestible.
However, it did get a bit repetitive at the end, and I felt that perhaps they were looking to fill up some space. I'm not sure each step of the "STREET" process they mention needed such in-depth analysis. Also, by book's end, I grew a bit weary of colorful terms like "the trough of disillusionment" and the "peak of inflated expectations."
I do, however, commend Fenn and Raskino for their honesty. It would have been very easy to market the "hype cycle" as a potential, one-size-fits-all innovation, like some of the innovation examples detailed in the book. Instead the authors take care to emphasize that sometimes the best course of action is to avoid unnecessary baggage, and to prioritize innovations that benefit a company's core ideals.
However, it did get a bit repetitive at the end, and I felt that perhaps they were looking to fill up some space. I'm not sure each step of the "STREET" process they mention needed such in-depth analysis. Also, by book's end, I grew a bit weary of colorful terms like "the trough of disillusionment" and the "peak of inflated expectations."
I do, however, commend Fenn and Raskino for their honesty. It would have been very easy to market the "hype cycle" as a potential, one-size-fits-all innovation, like some of the innovation examples detailed in the book. Instead the authors take care to emphasize that sometimes the best course of action is to avoid unnecessary baggage, and to prioritize innovations that benefit a company's core ideals.
July 12, 2021
Chart Basis, Pro’s and Con’s - Seeing mention of the hype cycle in Berinato’s "Good Charts: The HBR Guide to Making Smarter, More Persuasive Data Visualizations, " I recalled seeing examples during my consulting assignments where these diagrams and Gartner magic quadrants came into play. Struck anew by the parallels with technology adoption/change acceptance curves (see my review of Duarte’s "Illuminate: Ignite Change Through Speeches, Stories, Ceremonies, and Symbols"), I became interested in looking at this book to further understand the hype cycle origins and meaning.
Most drawn to this book will know that Gartner is a prominent research and advisory company started in 1979 that has expanded beyond its initial information technology focus to include other business functions. Co-authors Fenn and Raskino both still at Gartner, had been involved in devising the hype cycle chart and pioneering its use---a way to characterize a new technology or other innovation from its triggering and initial inflated expectations through the ‘trough of disillusionment’ and ‘’slope of enlightenment’ to adoption and ‘plateau of productivity’ (like other similar schemas such as described on page xiv and in Moore’s "Crossing the Chasm, 3rd Edition (Collins Business Essentials)"---see my review). As suggested in the book’s extended title, executives and managers can (and often do) use these charts in helping make innovation investment and implementation decisions, making it worthy of attention in that regard.
After their Preface, the authors proceed through 11 chapters: of narrative: (1) Hype Cycle Winners and Losers, (2) Behind the Hype Cycle, (3) Hype Cycle Traps and Challenges, (4) Hype Cycle Opportunities and Lessons, (5) What it Takes to Master the Hype Cycle, (6) Scope - Establishing the Context for Innovation, (7) Track - Collecting the Candidates, (8) Rank - Prioritizing Innovation Candidates, (9) Evaluate - Understanding Rewards and Risks, (10) Evangelize and Transfer - Making It Happen, and (11) Riding the Hype Cycle.
My favorite parts include background and devising of the hype cycle, references to the Amish and their choices regarding technology use, and application of the STREET process (chapters 6-10) to monitor/evaluate innovations. In the first part of the book (on page 26), Fenn and Raskino relate the combination of ‘hype driven expectations’ and typical maturation to characterize human response to the new and novel in a storyline not unlike those discussed in Archer and Jockers’ "The Bestseller Code: Anatomy of the Blockbuster Novel." The authors also describe a number of instances (pages 91-94) where different Amish groups have made determinations about the extent and how they will incorporate technology in ways that will help them preserve their cultures. In the second half of the book, they detail steps where observation and decision making applied in business that might be similarly adapted for use in dealing with broader cultural and social concerns as treated in Rose’s "Confronting Technopoly: Charting a Course towards Human Survival" (see my review).
Gartner is still issuing hype cycle reports as I write and they continue to offer this means for trying to monitor what is coming in the way of new information technology and other related developments. So, it is well worth it to learn about their foundation as well as the pros and cons of their utilization.
Most drawn to this book will know that Gartner is a prominent research and advisory company started in 1979 that has expanded beyond its initial information technology focus to include other business functions. Co-authors Fenn and Raskino both still at Gartner, had been involved in devising the hype cycle chart and pioneering its use---a way to characterize a new technology or other innovation from its triggering and initial inflated expectations through the ‘trough of disillusionment’ and ‘’slope of enlightenment’ to adoption and ‘plateau of productivity’ (like other similar schemas such as described on page xiv and in Moore’s "Crossing the Chasm, 3rd Edition (Collins Business Essentials)"---see my review). As suggested in the book’s extended title, executives and managers can (and often do) use these charts in helping make innovation investment and implementation decisions, making it worthy of attention in that regard.
After their Preface, the authors proceed through 11 chapters: of narrative: (1) Hype Cycle Winners and Losers, (2) Behind the Hype Cycle, (3) Hype Cycle Traps and Challenges, (4) Hype Cycle Opportunities and Lessons, (5) What it Takes to Master the Hype Cycle, (6) Scope - Establishing the Context for Innovation, (7) Track - Collecting the Candidates, (8) Rank - Prioritizing Innovation Candidates, (9) Evaluate - Understanding Rewards and Risks, (10) Evangelize and Transfer - Making It Happen, and (11) Riding the Hype Cycle.
My favorite parts include background and devising of the hype cycle, references to the Amish and their choices regarding technology use, and application of the STREET process (chapters 6-10) to monitor/evaluate innovations. In the first part of the book (on page 26), Fenn and Raskino relate the combination of ‘hype driven expectations’ and typical maturation to characterize human response to the new and novel in a storyline not unlike those discussed in Archer and Jockers’ "The Bestseller Code: Anatomy of the Blockbuster Novel." The authors also describe a number of instances (pages 91-94) where different Amish groups have made determinations about the extent and how they will incorporate technology in ways that will help them preserve their cultures. In the second half of the book, they detail steps where observation and decision making applied in business that might be similarly adapted for use in dealing with broader cultural and social concerns as treated in Rose’s "Confronting Technopoly: Charting a Course towards Human Survival" (see my review).
Gartner is still issuing hype cycle reports as I write and they continue to offer this means for trying to monitor what is coming in the way of new information technology and other related developments. So, it is well worth it to learn about their foundation as well as the pros and cons of their utilization.
October 8, 2025
Useful and clear model for how to think about large scale adoption of technology. Met Jackie Fenn in person through Gartner. Lovely person.
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July 25, 2011Great book - took me over a month to get through it's 220 pages when I could normally get through a Neal Stephenson tome in the same time ------because it's so appropriate and interesting.
Best coverage of Innovation in IT I've ever seen - everything else on Innovation and research are primarily consumer product focused so this was truly a rare treat.
Very timely and accurate guidance on how to properly track ideas and concepts through the various stages - how to prepare for challenges and avoid or overcome them.
The big question now is who do I lend my copy to first and how many copies should I get for those who REALLY need to read it and take it to heart.
In these times of tough choices and limited resources - makingthe right product decisions early on when it's still cheaper to change is a critical business decision that is all too often taken for granted.
Best coverage of Innovation in IT I've ever seen - everything else on Innovation and research are primarily consumer product focused so this was truly a rare treat.
Very timely and accurate guidance on how to properly track ideas and concepts through the various stages - how to prepare for challenges and avoid or overcome them.
The big question now is who do I lend my copy to first and how many copies should I get for those who REALLY need to read it and take it to heart.
In these times of tough choices and limited resources - makingthe right product decisions early on when it's still cheaper to change is a critical business decision that is all too often taken for granted.
November 7, 2010
It's hard to give less than three stars to a book your boss makes you read. This was an interesting concept, almost fully explained in the first chapter, and will stand on my bookshelf for years to come as a reference and guidepost. I'll dig deeper into each chapter as duty calls.
December 26, 2009
A cool system, and a good way to consider implementing new tech and projects. Got a bit repetitive at the end though!
February 13, 2011
A well-thought, well-written book. The explanation of the hype cycle, and the steps to take to avoid missteps when selecting innovations are sound advice for all managers.
October 16, 2013
Great book to understand when what will be a viable point for investment/growth
January 24, 2019
I received this as part of a marketing class for grad school and it was a good book and has been a great resource.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews