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Change may come about because it is imposed on us. Or, we may voluntarily participate

in or initiate change when we find something significantly wrong in our current situation. Thepersonal and collective experience of change is characterized by uncertainty, anxiety, and

struggle. If it works out, it can result in a sense of mastery, accomplishment, and professional

growth. Change is to become different, it is to make (someone or something) different.

Educational change is a broad term that refers to both shifting paradigms within

education and efforts of reform within education. The former is often a part of the latter, since

most change within the field of education is initiated for the improvement of the institution.Similarly, shifting perspectives within the field of education are most often a result of an

awareness of new ideas and new needs. The efforts taken to adjust to those new ideas and meet

those needs can be categorized as educational change.

According to a study conducted by educational researcher Robert Marzano, there are two

kinds of educational change.

First-order change refers to any surface level change that is a response to new ideas. Inthis level of change the response as well as the new ideas must fit into the current conceptual

framework within education. If it does not, the change is rejected in favor of maintaining thecurrent framework. This change does not drive reform as it is only accepted if it is compatible

with accepted norms.

Second-order change refers to what more closely resembles reform and actual change

within the field. It concerns itself with the accepted norms and current conceptual framework but

works with those for change rather than change to those norms. The current paradigm is part of

the change process, but compatibility with it does not determine the success of the change.

What is reform?

Reform is the progressive change from one set of ideas and practice to another. It issometimes relegated to historical events that take place over time. Reform is measured by the

growth or decline of a social construct. It a change that is intended to correct a situation that is

wrong or unfair, or make a system workmore effectively.

What is School Reform?

Many schools are currently in the process of going through what is known as school

reform or education reform. Changes in the schools policies are now being considered due to

new demands that are coming from social, economic and technological forces. These demands

are being made on what the students need to know and learn in order to be successful. It isimportant to understand what education and school reform are, and what they mean for the

children and the local schools. This will help to understand the improvements that are beingmade to the education system in the community.

Parents should keep in mind that parental participation is an important part when it comesto successful reform of schools and education, especially when they consider that the education

reform process is going to affect both the children in school and their parents as well.
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What is Education Reform or School Reform?

The first thing to know is that both terms are generally used for the same purpose.

Education reform is an umbrella term or a catch phrase that incorporates a wide range of

different policies and programs into the education system. Reforms are typically designed to

make changes to some rule or some procedure that is affecting the way that the school operates.Terms such as renewal and reform are meant to be thought of as bringing about small steps in the

direction of change. Compared to the concept of school restructuring, it is important to realize

that renewal and reform do not make great changes to the organization of the school, but ratherits policies and its programs instead.

If schools in the area are going through the renewal or reform process, then it is time forthe stakeholder as a parent to get involved in the process so that they can have a say in their

childs education.

When it comes to school reform and education reform, it is important to know that there

are basically two distinct forms of school reform, and each has a different impact on the school,the students and the education that is provided. The first type of school reform is specifically

related to the subject matter and the teaching methods for the school and the second is related tothe governance procedures and the administration of the school.

Types of School Reform

The type of reform that is specifically related to the subject matter and the teaching

methods for the school is going to affect what the children are taught as well as how they are

taught within the classroom. Some of the most common types of reforms include back to basics,whole language instruction, concept based mathematics, using computers and other technology

in the classroom and stressing the multicultural influence on literature and history for example.

Curriculum guides are constantly being developed that exist to describe what all students should

be able to do and should know in order to be successful in school and life.

The type of reform that is related to the governance procedures and the administration of

the school is going to affect how the school is managed as well as what types of roles theadministrators and the teachers will play. Decision making based on site, shared leadership and

programs for community involvement are all examples of school and education reform that

involve governance procedures and school administration. Education reform of this magnitude iscapable of being started from the powers inside the school or outside of the school depending on

what the schools needs are. For example, policymakers in the government may launch sc hool

reform, and policymakers inside the school may also launch their own programs for education

reform.

What Is Innovation?

An invention is useful only to the inventor unless it is offered to the public, however

niche that public may be. If the invention improves some product, process or service for the

public, then that invention transforms into an innovation.


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An innovation can be big or small. Brand-new or just a bit different, it doesn't matter. An

innovation can be clearly complex or seemingly simple. Innovations are often thought of interms of technical achievement, but can also be a design. The type, industry and style of

innovation are irrelevant; an innovation's impact determines its qualification.

The presence of a genius can help with innovation it may speed up the end result byhaving a person who can see and make the future happen. However, innovation is more than the

work of any one "Einstein." Innovation involves the taking of the work of an individual (or team)

of inventors and taking it to a broader audience.

The future of many businesses depends upon their ability to innovate. Competition is

fierce. Knowledge spreads quickly. The ability of a company to not only keep up with its currentbusiness practices, but to exceed its own and its competition's expectations are critical to

survival.

What do you understand an innovation to be?

An innovation is the new use or application of existing technology for a completely

different purpose from which it was originally used or intended. This is not a dictionarydefinition, it is a re-worded dictionary definition to make it more understandable. Look up the

term innovation in a dictionary to get a more technical definition.

Let's look at a very simple example of innovation that you probably haven't even thought of as aninnovation:Liquid Paper

Liquid Paper

In its simplest and most basic original form, Liquid Paperis white paint in a nail polish

bottle. Think about it: Bette Nesmith Graham was not a very good secretary. In the days beforeLiquid Paper, the only way to correct a typing mistake was to either start all over again, or to

erase it with a special eraser. The eraser actually didn't do that good a job, the paper would teareasily as it was a fairly harsh eraser. Bette Nesmith Graham ended up starting again a lot.

One day, while watching painters touching up mistakes in their paint work, she had a thought:

What if I applied some white paint over the mistake with a small brush, then I could cover up mytyping mistakes.

From thereLiquid Paper was born.

Nine key elements present in successful industrial innovations are:

1. Identifying a market opportunity: If you are not going to be able to sell it to consumersbecause they don't need it, then you may not be successful.

2. Obtaining and managing resources: You must be able to access resources such aspeople, money, knowledge and facilities. These resources must be managed, so that they

don't run out, especially when you need them the most.
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3. Research and development: Research as described above, covers many facets. Maybe,there is a need for historical research to see what has been done before. You don't want toreinvent the wheel. Sometimes there are actually some great ideas that you can get from

history but the technology of the time didn't allow for the innovation to be fully realised.

For example, some of Leonardo Da Vinci's designs for submarines and helicopters

remained as fairly eccentric ideas for many years.Maybe there is a need for materials research or market research. Research is

something that is on-going. It is part of the development process of the product. To keep

a product in the public eye it needs to be regularlyrevised and improved, for example,Liquid Paper has been improved with new solvents so that it dries faster, thinners are

sold separately, different methods of application such as pens, tape and different colours

are available.

4. Protecting intellectual property: The main things that need to be protected are thedesign, the name, the logo, any new materials or methods and any artwork or textwork.This could be as simple as applying for a patent, a trade mark or a copyright. Different

things are protected in different ways, so you may need all three. Copyright protects thewritten word, patents protect the workings and trademarks protect logos and the way inwhich names are written etc.

5. Product design: How does the product look? Is it functional? Does it look good? Does itwork? In some cases looks are not as important as the function, in other cases, looks aremore important. For example, a chair may be quite beautiful to look at but if it isn't

comfortable then it is not very effective for its intended function.

6. Obtaining supplies: Can you maintain a regular and consistent supply of raw materialsand keep the costs the same? Consumers are happy if prices go down in the future, but

are more hesitant to buy if the price increases. As materials become more high-tech, are

they worth substituting? Does increased production warrant the implementation ofexpensive high-tech machinery?

7. Manufacture: Computer technology has changed the way machines operate. The use ofcomputer based technologies means that products can be produced faster and with greaterconsistency. But consider this, are small product runs still done best with traditional

machines?

8. Promotion: Before any product can be sold, the public needs to know of its existence. Itmay need the help of a promotions company or an advertising campaign to achieve wider

consumer awareness and marketplace presence.

9. Distribution, sales and service: Once everybody knows how great the product is, themanufacturer needs to ensure that the product is available in the shops in regular and

reliable supply, the quality is consistent and that consumers can have their questions

answered and problems solved should they arise.

These nine key elements form the basis of the innovation cycle, a continuous interactive

cycle with each element interacting with each other and leading on to another.


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Innovation cycle

Six factors critical to the success of a new innovation are:

1. Effort and risk: Consistent and focused effort is essential. All problems need to besolved as they arise to minimise the delay in ongoing development of the product.Innovators need to be conscious of the risks involved in pursuing the development of

their product, including financial and personal strain.

2. Managing all the elements of industrial innovation: All of the nine key elements mustbe continually addressed either by the individual or company or by experts or consultants

paid for their expertise.

3. Seeking out sources of innovation: Innovation is not confined to manufacture, forexample, new machines and materials. It may be necessary to be innovative in financial

dealings, in packaging or promoting the product. The innovation doesn't have to stoponce the design is complete. It is an ongoing process.

4. Integration of all elements in industrial innovation: The nine key elements continuallyimpact on each other. As one element changes, so will the status of the others. Care must

be taken to assess each proposed change and to see how it impacts on other aspects of the

innovation before firm decisions are made.


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5. Continuing improvements: The product must change and improve to stay fresh in theconsumer's eyes. Rival products may steal your market away. The Dyson range ofvacuum cleaners is a good example of ongoing innovation.

6. Sustained investment: This is not only in the form of money, but also as time,knowledge, staff training, equipment etc. Most innovations which are successful over

time have a substantial investment made in terms of time, finances, energy anddetermination.

Factors affecting innovation

Some other factors to consider if you want your innovation to be successful and you want to

be able to expand your markets overseas:

Political: These are things to do with governments. Is there an existing trade agreementbetween our countries? Do we have a policy which might contradict theirs? For example,

the use of some food additives. Are our labelling laws the same for things like product

safety? Are we speaking to them at the moment, that is, does Australia have a goodrelationship with the country? For example, when the French were testing nuclear

weapons in the South Pacific the reaction to French products was very negative.

Economic: These are things to do with finances and money. Is the product going to befinancially beneficial to the country? For example, with Dynamic Lifter the farmers getbetter crops using an organic fertiliser. Will there be a creation or loss of several jobs in

one industry yet the creation or loss of jobs in another as a result?

Cultural: These are things to do with the beliefs, customs and religion of other countries,for example, the live export of sheep to the Middle East is influenced by cultural beliefs.

Sales of swimwear to this market are less likely to be successful due to cultural beliefs.

Sometimes a product needs to be renamed as a word that is appropriate in one language is

inappropriate in another, for example, the Pajero 4WD vehicle needed to be renamed forsale in South America. Sometimes a designer may like a particular traditional ethnic

pattern and use it on their product, only to find that it is religious text or sacred.

Legal: Is the product safe for use? Could there be litigation as a result of injury or poorperformance? Are labelling laws strictly adhered to, for example, in terms of standards,

or content listings etc. Has any part of the design been stolen? Is the design properlyprotected by patents etc?

Environmental: Is the manufacturing process going to pollute or destroy the naturalsurroundings? Is the product going to do this? Will it benefit the environment? A productor manufacturing process can even do both. Is the raw material endangered, for example,

some rainforest timbers?

Ethical: Does the product do what it claims? Has the idea been stolen from someoneelse? Are the people who the product has been intended to assist, able to afford it?


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Timing: The time of year a product hits the market can be crucial to its success. Noticethe must haves that hit the market in time for Mothers' Day, Fathers' Day and Christmas.Why do toys hit the market in time for the school holidays? Videos and movies are

released then too.

Entrepreneurial activity: Sometimes there is the need for someone outside the designgroup to help bring the product to the market, for example, someone with the contacts, money,

know how and experience in that industry. Sometimes an idea needs to be sold to a larger

company as they have the resources to bring it to the market and keep it on the market . Dynamic

Lifteris now owned by Yates. Sometimes it is as simple as the designer no longer has the energy

nor the means to keep going and sell the idea to someone else that can. Other times, it is because

they just can't afford to do it by themselves.

"Real" Innovation does not happen haphazardly or sporadically within organizations."Real" Innovation is accomplished consistently and systematically, given the true voice of the

customer and a process for delivering solutions. Companies that innovate successfully do sousing an efficient and repeatable methodology. Success is not dependent upon genius itemerges from the disciplined application of a proven innovation methodology.

What is KRA?

KRA is the set of activities on which performances are rated.

KRAs are key result areas which are the main objectives of the employee in anorganization.

Key result areas or KRAs refer to general areas of outcomes or outputs for which a roleis responsible.

KRAs are also known as key work outputsProcess individual determine the KRAs of their roles:

They list their main day to day responsibilities/activities. They review the answers to their why questions, looking for common themes or areas. For each activity, they ask why do I do this? They identify their KRAs from these themes. They share their KRAs, preferably with those they report to, those they work along with,

and those who report to them.

KRAs prepared should be:

SpecificKRAs should be specific and should make sense. MeasurableKRAs should be measurable. AchievableKRAs framed should be achievable. Related to jobKRAs should be related to job. Time boundKRAs framed should be defined for a specific period.


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Identifying KRAs helps individuals

Clarify their roles. Set goals and objectives. Focus on results rather than activities.

Align their roles to the organizations business or strategic plan. Prioritize their activities, and therefore improve their time/work management Communicate their roles purposes to others Make value-added decisions

Individual Implementation:

Develop specific goals and objectives, and plans to reach them. Take control of their time/work management strategies Work with those they report to, those they work along with, and those who report to them

to identify their kras so all on a team have clarity regarding outputs.

Scope

Deliverables. Measurement matrix. Performance revisal. Acceptance. KRA really helps to get hr thinking strategically.

Jerry Mechlings Five Steps in Educational Reform

Over time, innovation is what makes most human endeavors better and more productive, and

over the past 50 years the big changes have largely been enabled by information technologies.That's clearly true for most medical procedures, many police investigations, certainly the

biological sciences and computing itself.

But, what about education? It has been the prototypical victim ofBaumol's "cost disease," where

productivity lags because the process doesn't yield to new technologies. As a result, while a Civil

War doctor entering a hospital today wouldn't know where to begin, the Civil War teacher wouldbe rather at home in most of today's classrooms. Despite mind-boggling growth in computer

capabilities, teachers remain the "sage on the stage," not "the guide on the side."

We're on the cusp of breakthrough educational reconfigurations, however. We're dissatisfiedwith our overall educational performance; we can't remain a leading society when our students

score lower on globally administered tests than 30 or so other nations. Regardless of whether our

public educational institutions want to change, they'll have to. What's different now is that almostall governments are under enormous cost pressures and demographics ensure that these pressures

won't go away.
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But this pressure can be a positive catalyst for change, and we need to coalesce around a

productive way forward. With that in mind, consider the following five-point, technology-enabled plan:

1. Measure results to learn what works and hold the system accountable. The No Child Left

Behind movement gave us a start, with standardized tests for students and publicly reportedaggregates for schools. But measurement must now be extended to teacher value-added

measures, which offer a much better way to understand what's working and hold teachersproperly accountable -- even while adjusting for factors beyond teachers' control. What gets

measured gets improved.

2. Harvest the growing development of intelligent teaching materials. After years of starts

and stops, we're on the cusp of generating teaching materials that use computer-assisted

interactivity to aid study and learning, and don't just present reading material in electronic form.

In the early 1960s, B.F. Skinner was touting "teaching machines" that gave him better feedbackon what his students did and did not understand, so he could revise the flow and present the

material more effectively. While students, of course, learn from the teacher, much of the mental

work involved in learning comes from thinking about teaching materials and interacting withother students.

3. Deliver more content through virtual classrooms and schools. Internet-delivered education

offers enormous economies of customization and scale. Many school boards are finding that they

can't afford the course variety they used to offer. Can't budget for Italian next year? How aboutgiving credit for the version offered over the Internet by the statewide virtual high school? As

with most disruptive technologies, virtual education won't initially be considered as good as the

old model. But, it is a lot less expensive and, over time, it will improve. Clayton Christensen ofthe Harvard Business School predicts that in a few years as much as 25 percent of K-12 credits

will be delivered through this back-door channel.

4. Offer academic certification as an independent service. Where is the state university

system that will provide a degree to anyone who can pass their tests, regardless of whether thestudents took their courses at the university? We need more rigorous academic certification to

make the economy work better, especially when workers and jobs shift as often as they do today.

While clearly not perfect, the SAT and ACT scores provide a much more objective basis for

admitting students into colleges than we had before. We need similar measures of performance

to build demand for innovative education and to guide job allocation decisions throughout theeconomy.

5. Bring practitioners into lifelong learning networks. In a world of complex jobs and careers

we need to help students find the mentors and connections they need to gain real-world valuefrom their education. Some schools have long touted their lifelong networks. For example, many

think that Harvard classrooms aren't that exciting, but that the Harvard "network" is of enormous

value. It is now cost-effective to use computer technologies to bring practitioners into


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classrooms, with benefit to practitioners as continuing education and to students as a much better

window into the real world and careers.

As with the boy who cried wolf, it may be hard for many of us to believe that real education

reform is now possible. Opposition from many teachers and their unions will clearly be both an

obstacle and a moral challenge. But for many innovations, the third or fourth time has been thecharm. Our educational institutions are in pain and a critical mass of pressure and possibility is

now at hand.

Success with educational innovation would clearly have a huge impact on parents, school boards,

teachers and teacher unions, curriculum developers, employers, and the larger economy andsociety -- and, of course, the students.

Diffusion of Innovations is a theory of how, why, and at what rate new ideas and technology

spread through cultures. The concept was first studied by the French sociologist Gabriel Tarde

(1890) and by German and Austrian anthropologists such as Friedrich Ratzel and Leo Frobenius.Its basic epidemiological or internal-influence form was formulated by H. Earl Pemberton, who

provided examples of institutional diffusion such as postage stamps and compulsory school laws.

History

Diffusion of innovation theory seeks to explain the spread of new ideas. First developed

in the early 1950s using research in rural sociology, it continues to be widely used. Rogers

proposed 4 main elements that influence the spread of a new idea: the innovation,

communication channels, time, and a social system. That is, diffusion is the process by which an

innovation is communicated through certain channels over time among the members of a social

system. Individuals progress through 5 stages: knowledge, persuasion, decision, implementation,

and confirmation. If the innovation is adopted, it spreads via various communication channels.

During communication, the idea is rarely evaluated from a scientific standpoint; rather,

subjective perceptions of the innovation influence diffusion. The process occurs over time.

Finally, social systems determine diffusion, norms on diffusion, roles of opinion leaders and

change agents, types of innovation decisions, and innovation consequences. To use Rogers

model in health requires us to assume that the innovation in classical diffusion theory is

equivalent to scientific research findings in the context of practice, an assumption that has not

been rigorously tested.

The origins of the diffusion of innovations theory are varied and span across multipledisciplines. Rogers identifies six main traditions that impacted diffusion research: anthropology,

early sociology, rural sociology, education, industrial, and medical sociology. The diffusion of

innovation theory has been largely influenced by the work of rural sociologists. In the bookDiffusion of Innovations, Rogers synthesizes research from over 508 diffusion studies and

produces a theory for the adoption of innovations among individuals and organization.
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What qualities make innovations spread?

Diffusion of Innovations takes a radically different approach to most other theories of

change. Instead of focusing on persuading individuals to change, it sees change as being

primarily about the evolution or reinvention of products and behaviours so they become better

fits for the needs of individuals and groups.

InDiffusion of Innovations it is not people who change, but theinnovations themselves.

Why do certain innovations spread more quickly than others? And why do others fail? Diffusionscholars recognise five qualities that determine the success of an innovation.

1) Relative advantage

This is the degree to which an innovation is perceived as better than the idea it supersedes

by a particular group of users, measured in terms that matter to those users, like economic

advantage, social prestige, convenience, or satisfaction. The greater the perceived relative

advantage of an innovation, the more rapid its rate of adoption is likely to be. There are noabsolute rules for what constitutes relativeadvantage. It depends on the particular perceptions

and needs of the user group.

2) Compatibility with existing values and practices

This is the degree to which an innovation is perceived as being consistent with the values,

past experiences, and needs of potential adopters. An idea that is incompatible with their values,

norms or practices will not be adopted as rapidly as an innovation that is compatible.

3) Simplicity and ease of use

This is the degree to which an innovation is perceived as difficult to understand and use.

New ideas that are simpler to understand are adopted more rapidly than innovations that requirethe adopter to develop new skills and understandings.

4) Trialability

This is the degree to which an innovation can be experimented with on a limited basis.

An innovation that is trialable represents less uncertainty to the individual who is considering it.

5) Observable results

The easier it is for individuals to see the results of an innovation,the more likely they are to adopt it. Visible results lower uncertainty and also stimulate peer

discussion of a new idea, as friends and neighbours of an adopter often request information about

it.According to Everett Rogers, these five qualities determine between 49 and 87 percent of

the variation in the adoption of new products. These five qualities make a valuable checklist to

frame focus group discussions or project evaluations. They can help identify weaknesses to be


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addressed when improving products or behaviours. I suspect, however, that three relative

advantages are more influential than others: personal control, time saving and self-esteem. Seethe paper at

Reinvention is a key principle in Diffusion of Innovations. The success of an innovation

depends on how well it evolves to meet the needs of more and more demanding and risk-averseindividuals in a population (the history of the mobile phone is a perfect example).

A good way to achieve this is to make users into partners in a continuous process of

redevelopment. Computer games companies, pharmaceutical corporations and rural researchinstitutes are examples of organisations that seek to make users active partners in improving

innovations by supporting user communities or by applying participative action research

techniques.

Many computer games are now built with the intention that they will be modified by

enthusiastic users. Says consumer behaviour expert, Francine Gardin. Theyre actually

participating in the design of the game. These consumers are really passionate about the

game its almost like a cult. They have an incredible sense of loyalty and ownership of thatbrand. Instead of complaining, they fix the product. The concept of reinvention is important

because it tells us that no product or process can rest on its laurels: continuous improvementis the key to spreading an innovation.

Elements

The key elements in diffusion research are:

Element Definition

Innovation Rogers defines an innovation as "an idea, practice, or object that is

perceived as new by an individual or other unit of adoption".

Communication A communication channel is "the means by which messages get

channels from one individual to another".

Time "The innovation-decision period is the length of time required to

pass through the innovation-decision process". "Rate of adoption is

the relative speed with which an innovation is adopted by members

of a social system".

Social system "A social system is defined as a set of interrelated units that areengaged in joint problem solving to accomplish a common goal".

Decisions

Two factors determine what type a particular decision is :

Whether the decision is made freely and implemented voluntarily, Who makes the decision.


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Based on these considerations, three types of innovation-decisions have been identifiedwithin diffusion of innovations.

Type

Definition

Optional Innovation-

Decision

This decision is made by an individual who is in some way

distinguished from others in a social system.

Collective Innovation-Decision

This decision is made collectively by all individuals of a social system.

Authority Innovation-

Decision

This decision is made for the entire social system by few individuals in

positions of influence or power.

Mechanism

Diffusion of an innovation occurs through a fivestep process. This process is a type ofdecision-making. It occurs through a series of communication channels over a period of time

among the members of a similar social system. Ryan and Gross first indicated the identification

of adoption as a process in 1943. Rogers categorizes the five stages (steps) as: awareness,interest, evaluation, trial, and adoption. An individual might reject an innovation at any time

during or after the adoption process. In later editions of the Diffusion of Innovations Rogers

changes the terminology of the five stages to: knowledge, persuasion, decision, implementation,

and confirmation. However the descriptions of the categories have remained similar throughoutthe editions.
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Five stages of the adoption process

StageDefinition

Knowledge

In this stage the individual is first exposed to an innovation but lacks

information about the innovation. During this stage of the process the individualhas not been inspired to find more information about the innovation.

PersuasionIn this stage the individual is interested in the innovation and actively seeks

information/detail about the innovation.

Decision

In this stage the individual takes the concept of the innovation and weighs the

advantages/disadvantages of using the innovation and decides whether to adopt

or reject the innovation. Due to the individualistic nature of this stage Rogers

notes that it is the most difficult stage to acquire empirical evidence.

Implementation

In this stage the individual employs the innovation to a varying degree

depending on the situation. During this stage the individual determines the

usefulness of the innovation and may search for further information about it.

Confirmation

Although the name of this stage may be misleading, in this stage the individual

finalizes their decision to continue using the innovation and may use the

innovation to its fullest potential.

Rates of adoption

The rate of adoption is defined as: the relative speed with which members of a social

system adopt an innovation. It is usually measured by the length of time required for a certainpercentage of the members of a social system to adopt an innovation. The rates of adoption for

innovations are determined by an individuals adopter category. In general individuals who firstadopt an innovation require a shorter adoption period (adoption process) than late adopters.Within the rate of adoption there is a point at which an innovation reaches critical mass. This is a

point in time within the adoption curve that enough individuals have adopted an innovation in

order that the continued adoption of the innovation is self-sustaining. In describing how an

innovation reaches critical mass, Rogers outlines several strategies in order to help an innovationreach this stage. These strategies are: have an innovation adopted by a highly respected

individual within a social network, creating an instinctive desire for a specific innovation. Inject

an innovation into a group of individuals who would readily use an innovation, and provide

positive reactions and benefits for early adopters of an innovation.

Characteristics

Rogers defines several intrinsic characteristics of innovations that influence an

individuals decision to adopt or reject an innovation. Therelative advantage is how improved an

innovation is over the previous generation. Compatibility is the second characteristic, the level of

compatibility that an innovation has to be assimilated into an individuals life. Thecomplexity ofan innovation is a significant factor in whether it is adopted by an individual. If the innovation is
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too difficult to use an individual will not likely adopt it. The fourth characteristic, trialability,

determines how easily an innovation may be experimented with as it is being adopted. If a userhas a hard time using and trying an innovation this individual will be less likely to adopt it. The

final characteristic, observability, is the extent that an innovation is visible to others. An

innovation that is more visible will drive communication among the individuals peers and

personal networks and will in turn create more positive or negative reactions.

Adopter categories

Rogers defines an adopter category as a classification of individuals within a social

system on the basis of innovativeness. In the book Diffusion of Innovations, Rogers suggests a

total of five categories of adopters in order to standardize the usage of adopter categories in

diffusion research. The adoption of an innovation follows an S curve when plotted over a length

of time.

The categories of adopters are: innovators, early adopters, early majority, late majority,and laggards

Adopter

category

Definition

Innovators

Innovators are the first individuals to adopt an innovation. Innovators are willing to

take risks, youngest in age, have the highest social class, have great financial

lucidity, very social and have closest contact to scientific sources and interaction

with other innovators. Risk tolerance has them adopting technologies which may

ultimately fail. Financial resources help absorb these failures.

EarlyAdopters

This is the second fastest category of individuals who adopt an innovation. These

individuals have the highest degree ofopinion leadership among the other adopter

categories. Early adopters are typically younger in age, have a higher social status,

have more financial lucidity, advanced education, and are more socially forward

than late adopters. More discrete in adoption choices than innovators. Realize

udicious choice of adoption will help them maintain central communication

position.

Early

Majority

Individuals in this category adopt an innovation after a varying degree of time. This

time of adoption is significantly longer than the innovators and early adopters. Early

Majority tend to be slower in the adoption process, have above average socialstatus, contact with early adopters, and seldom hold positions ofopinion leadership

in a system.

Late

Majority

Individuals in this category will adopt an innovation after the average member ofthe society. These individuals approach an innovation with a high degree of

skepticism and after the majority of society has adopted the innovation. Late

Majority are typically skeptical about an innovation, have below average social
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status, very little financial lucidity, in contact with others in late majority and earlymajority, very little opinion leadership.

Laggards

Individuals in this category are the last to adopt an innovation. Unlike some of the

previous categories, individuals in this category show little to no opinion leadership.These individuals typically have an aversion to change-agents and tend to be

advanced in age. Laggards typically tend to be focused on traditions, likely tohave lowest social status, lowest financial fluidity, be oldest of all other adopters, in

contact with only family and close friends, very little to no opinion leadership.

Heterophily and communication channels

Lazarsfeld and Merton first called attention to the principles of homophily and its

opposite, heterophily. Using their definition, Rogers defines homophily as "the degree to which

pairs of individuals who interact are similar in certain attributes, such as beliefs, education, socialstatus, and the like". When given the choice, individuals usually choose to interact with someone

similar to him or herself. Furthermore, homophilous individuals engage in more effective

communication because their similarities lead to greater knowledge gain as well as attitude orbehavior change. However, most participants in the diffusion of innovations are heterophilous,

meaning they speak different languages, so to speak. The problem is that diffusion requires a

certain degree of heterophily; if two individuals are identical, no diffusion occurs because no

new information can be exchanged. Therefore, an ideal situation would involve two individualswho are homophilous in every way, except in knowledge of the innovation.

Opinion leaders within a social system

Throughout the diffusion process there is evidence that not all individuals exert an equal

amount of influence over all individuals. In this sense there are Opinion Leaders, leaders who areinfluential in spreading either positive or negative information about an innovation. Rogers relieson the ideas of Katz & Lazarsfeld and the two-step flow theory in developing his ideas on the

influence of Opinion Leaders in the diffusion process Opinion Leaders have the most influence

during the evaluation stage of the innovation-decision process and late adopters. In additionopinion leaders have a set of characteristics that set them apart from their followers and other

individuals. Opinion Leaders typically have greater exposure to the mass media, more

cosmopolitan, greater contact with change agents, more social experience and exposure, higher

socioeconomic status, and are more innovative.

Organizations

Innovations are often adopted by organizations through two types of innovation-decisions: collective innovation decisions and authority innovation decisions. The collection-

innovation decision occurs when the adoption of an innovation has been made by a consensus

among the members of an organization. The authority-innovation decision occurs when theadoption of an innovation has been made by very few individuals with high positions of power

within an organization. Unlike the optional innovation decision process, these innovation-

decision processes only occur within an organization or hierarchical group. Within the
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innovation decision process in an organization there are certain individuals termed "champions"

who stand behind an innovation and break through any opposition that the innovation may havecaused. The champion within the diffusion of innovation theory plays a very similar role as to

the champion used within the efficiency business model Six Sigma. The innovation process

within an organization contains five stages that are slightly similar to the innovation-decision

process that individuals undertake. These stages are: agenda-setting, matching,redefining/restructuring, clarifying, routinizing.

Consequences of adoption

There are both positive and negative outcomes when an individual or organization

chooses to adopt a particular innovation. Rogers states that this is an area that needs further

research because of the biased positive attitude that is associated with the adoption of a newinnovation. In the Diffusion of Innovation, Rogers lists three categories for consequences:

desirable vs. undesirable, direct vs. indirect, and anticipated vs. unanticipated.

In her article, "Integrating Models of Diffusion of Innovations," Barbara Wejnert details two

categories for consequences: public vs. private and benefits vs. costs.

Public vs. Private

Public consequences refer to the impact of an innovation on those other than the actor,

while private consequences refer to the impact on the actor itself. Public consequences usually

involve collective actors, such as countries, states, organizations, or social movements. Theresults are usually concerned with issues of societal well-being. Private consequences usually

involve individuals or small collective entities, such as a community. The innovations are usually

concerned with the improvement of quality of life or the reform of organizational or socialstructures.

Benefits vs. Costs

The benefits of an innovation obviously refer to the positive consequences, while the

costs refer to the negative. Costs may be monetary or nonmonetary, direct or indirect. Direct

costs are usually related to financial uncertainty and the economic state of the actor. Indirectcosts are more difficult to identify. An example would be the need to buy a new kind of fertilizer

to use innovative seeds. Indirect costs may also be social, such as social conflict caused by

innovation.

Criticism

Much of the evidence for the diffusion of innovations gathered by Rogers comes from

agricultural methods and medical practice.Various computer models have been developed in

order to simulate the diffusion of innovations.

Veneris developed a systems dynamics computer model which takes into account various
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References

Rogers, Everett M..Diffusion of Innovations. Glencoe: Free Press.

Rogers, Everett M..Diffusion of Innovations. New York: Free Press.

ISBN0029266505Wejnert, Barbara (2002)."Integrating Models of Diffusion of Innovations: AConceptual Framework".Annual Review of Sociology (Annual Reviews) 28: 297306.

doi:10.1146/annurev.soc.28.110601.141051 . Retrieved 31 Mar. 2010.

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