internal value chain functions: ideas can come from research and development, internal value chain functions such as design, production, marketing and finance, and spillovers from competition. 2. external value added chain – • Suppliers – Invent new products that use their components as inputs and develop other products that are complementary to their components • Customers – the customer's special requirement can be the new product in the market • Complementary innovators – for an example Microsoft is a complementary innovator to Compaq3. university government and private laboratories: companies may need related research and development activities both basic and applied.4. other nations and regions – influence the ideas of other countries and some nations specialize in some kind of innovation. Example: Italy – shoes and leather goods5. competitors and related industries: indirectly concerns what we can gain from competitors and related industries. For example, another company's high R&D and scientific knowledge costs may be an advantage to another related industry. Circumstantial sources can be divided into three categories. • Functional sources of planned business activities are planned by