"Innovation distinguishes between a leader and a follower"

Steve Jobs

New product & service design represents a vital activity to ensure sustainable competitive advantage. Provide your answer to the following questions:

1. How Research & Development activities contributeto productivity improvement and the generation of new products and services?

1. In today's interconnected, global, and "real-time" economy, how do business can leverage technology advancement to sustain the competitive advantage it generates from product and service development?

While developing your answers:

1. Provide a concrete example to illustrate your points.
2. Consider some of the concepts covered in class such as utilization, efficiency, eco-design as well as other concepts such as value creation, customers' involvement among others.