Diffusing Supply Chain Innovations at Hewlett-Packard Company: Applications of Performance Technology

Hewlett-Packard Company (HP) is a global electronics company that employs an internal, self-funding consulting lab to create supply chain management innovations for its businesses. The lab is challenged to diffuse new technologies effectively across HP's worldwide organizations. This paper outlines how the lab follows Everett Rogers and Diane Dorniant's principles to accelerate the diffusion and adoption of their innovations. Performance technologists are members of the consulting lab, and the paper discusses how their competence in supply chain engineering methods allows them to improve the diffusion process. The performance technologists work with their engineering colleagues to modify innovations to ease diffusion, define the client adoption path, create resources to lead clients through adoption, and improve the diffusion process. Examples of results from the lab's efforts are shown and arguments are presented on why this approach is superior to alternative diffusion techniques that have proven less successful at Hewlett-Packard.