Abstract

The case “Illumina – Maintaining Growth Momentum in a Plateauing Genome Sequencing Market” talks about Illumina Inc.’s journey to becoming the market leader in the genome sequencing market and the challenges it faced in growing the market. The case starts out with a brief history of the company and the role played by Jay Flatley, its CEO, in keeping the company at the forefront of technological innovation in the genome sequencing industry. The case then focuses on the company’s breakthrough product, the HiSeq X10 that drastically brought down genome sequencing costs, thereby making it more affordable and paving the way for the development of various applications. The case also documents Illumina’s efforts to spur the development of applications of genome sequencing in various areas such as prenatal health, oncology, consumer applications, and population sequencing. The case concludes with an insight into the impact of market saturation on Illumina and the strategies it was adopting to propel market growth.

Learning Objectives

The case is structured to achieve the following Learning Objectives:

• Analyze the role of product innovation in the emergence of a company as a market leader
• Explore the part played by innovation in gaining competitive advantage
• Assess the importance of applications in spurring market growth for a technology company
• Devise growth strategies for a market leader faced with the maturity or decline stage in the product life cycle

Keywords

Genome Sequencing, Innovation, Illumina, Market Saturation, Decline Stage, Product Life Cycle, Competitive Advantage, Technology Applications, Leadership, Moore’s Law, New Product Development, Acquisition, Patent Infringement, Moonshot, Pricing