To Master Disruption, Teach It.
“Docendo discimus”
It's an old adage, attributed to the Roman philosopher Seneca, and in modern times to the physicist Frank Oppenheimer — by teaching, we learn.
In mid 2024, I put that theory to the test. I was honored to be invited to teach a course on Disruption - specifically Industry Disruption and Corporate Transformation - at Northeastern University's D'Amore-McKim School of Business.
I walked in confident. I have spent a career in growth and innovation, with deep experience in software and fintech. I had, of course, read Clayton Christensen’s classic The Innovator's Dilemma. I've studied Schumpeter’s concept of "creative destruction." I knew many of the case studies - particularly the famous ones such as Blockbuster and Kodak.
But standing in front of a classroom of sharp, questioning students requires a different level of mastery than sitting in a conference room.
The Difference Between Knowing and Teaching It's one thing to read about disruption. While the Innovator's Dilemma is a timeless book - and the Christensen Institute is doing a wonderful job carrying on Dr. Christensen's legacy - reading is a passive way to learn.
But when you have to explain why incumbents fail to see the wave coming to a room of digital natives, you can’t hide behind theories - or even 20+ year old case studies.
Teaching forces you to deconstruct complex theories into their most basic components. I found that while I knew the what of Schumpeter and Christensen, teaching forced me to grapple with the how and the why on a much more granular - and evolving - level.
It turns out, you don't truly understand the Innovator’s Dilemma until you have to defend it against a 21-year-old who just found a hole in the logic - and wants to apply it to today's market.
AI Changed the Syllabus The timing of my new role was perfect - and incredibly lucky.
If I were teaching this course ten years ago, we would be focused disruption through a different lens —analyzing how digital photography ate Kodak - and then how smartphones ate digital cameras - leading to how the iPhone killed Nokia. On that note, thank you to my friend and Nokia veteran Amy O'Connor for recently giving us the insider's view.
But today, we aren't just studying history; we are living the case study. AI is the living, breathing embodiment of the theories we discuss in class - and a disruptive force that is - arguably - without historical parallel.
Every week, I am not just teaching the "theory" of disruption; I am working with students to analyze how LLMs and generative agents are dismantling and reassembling industry value chains right now. We are applying Schumpeter’s creative destruction to the very tools they are using to present their examples and write up their discussions. And of course those same tools will shape, and disrupt, the careers they are aspiring and beginning to build.
From Classroom to Boardroom This experience has fundamentally changed how I work and advise.
Because of my work in the classroom, I am forced to stay on the absolute bleeding edge of what is happening. I can’t rely on the playbooks of past years. My students keep me honest, and the curriculum keeps me disciplined.
To really learn something, teach it. To really understand where your industry is going, look at it through the eyes of the generation that is about to reinvent it. I feel so fortunate - and grateful - every day to have the opportunity to do exactly that.
Discussion: How do you force yourself to stay on the edge of your industry? Do you have a "classroom" equivalent that forces you to relearn what you think you know?
