Archive for May, 2015
Diffusion of Innovation
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. In addition to the gatekeepers and opinion leaders who exist within a given community, change agents may come from outside the community. Change agents bring innovations to new communities– first through the gatekeepers, then through the opinion leaders, and so on through the community.
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Adopter category |
Definition |
| Innovators | Innovators are willing to take risks, have the highest social status, have financial liquidity, are social and have closest contact to scientific sources and interaction with other innovators. Their risk tolerance allows them to adopt technologies that may ultimately fail. Financial resources help absorb these failures. |
| Early adopters | These individuals have the highest degree of opinion leadership among the adopter categories. Early adopters have a higher social status, financial liquidity, advanced education and are more socially forward than late adopters. They are more discreet in adoption choices than innovators. They use judicious choice of adoption to help them maintain a central communication position. |
| Early Majority | They adopt an innovation after a varying degree of time that is significantly longer than the innovators and early adopters. Early Majority have above average social status, contact with early adopters and seldom hold positions of opinion leadership in a system (Rogers 1962, p. 283) |
| Late Majority | They adopt an innovation after the average participant. 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 status, little financial liquidity, in contact with others in late majority and early majority and little opinion leadership. |
| Laggards | They 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. Laggards typically tend to be focused on “traditions”, lowest social status, lowest financial liquidity, oldest among adopters, and in contact with only family and close friends. |
12 Essential Criteria To Sell Your Business One Day To Your Employees or Partners.
Selling your business to an inside buyer is one of four possible exit strategies for a happy and successful exit. Being an “Innie,” as we call owners with this strategy, can be deeply rewarding. Long-term, valued employees become like extended family to many owners. To see the business continue forward under the leadership you selected and groomed, acknowledges all your efforts and extends the business legacy.
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Navix Exit Planning Checklist – Selling to an Inside Buyer
Workshop – 15 Steps to Achieving a Happy Exit from Your Business – May 11, 2015
I’m not ready to leave my business yet – why should I worry about exit planning?
Ideally, exit planning starts when your business does. The longer you wait, the more likely you will have to deal with things that you wish you had done, or not done, along the way.
Waiting to strategize your exit means that you don’t know if today’s business decisions will help or hurt success at exit.
Ask yourself “Is my business ready for me to exit today?” If not, why not? The answer is usually a weakness in the business. Exit planning, in no small measure, is about strengthening the business. Planning for tomorrow’s exit creates a better business today.
Please join us for a free workshop – click on the link below for more information and to RSVP.
Tim Kinane
Tim is a Consultant to Business, Government and Not-for-Profits Organizations specializing in innovative and challenging ways for organizations to survive, to thrive and to build their teams.
