Vijay Govindarajan Launches edX Courses

The courses teach the theory and practice of breakthrough innovation.

It presents a broad way for companies to think about how to gain or maintain market leadership by managing the present (box 1), selectively abandoning the past (box 2), and creating the future (box 3). This spring, Govindarajan is launching two online courses that present his theory of innovation while challenging participants to think deeply about how the theory can be applied to their specific business.

The courses—Developing Breakthrough Innovations and Executing Breakthrough Innovations—are offered through edX, the online education platform used by colleges and universities across the globe. Govindarajan and Tuck’s Office of Digital Education collaborated to create a total of seven modules across the two courses. Each module is made up of a series of short videos that explain the main concepts and explore examples. At the end of each module is an exercise that asks participants to investigate the concept in their own business environment through online surveys and discussion questions.

Govindarajan has always enjoyed the face-to-face interaction of teaching and consulting in person, but the online edX platform allows him to do something he could never do in an analog world: teach to all the employees of a Fortune 500 company while simultaneously sparking internal conversations about innovation. “That’s why I find this edX platform to be amazing: it doesn’t make what I do with companies obsolete. In fact, it’s a wonderful way to enhance my impact,” he says.

Leaders from a diverse list of companies agree. “Earning a Professional Certificate in Developing Breakthrough Innovations and Executing Breakthrough Innovations will prepare you for an effective career in R&D,” says Donnell Walton, the director of science and technology at Corning Incorporated. “After all, science and technology are foundational for breakthrough innovations. These essential edX courses provide both the theory and practice of breakthrough innovations.” The course has also received endorsements from representatives of large, mature firms such as Procter & Gamble, Prudential, United Rentals; smaller startups, such as The Guarantors; and nonprofits, like ETS.

The courses, which can be completed on participants’ own timeline, are available for a small fee and are open for registration now. For more information, visit edX.