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Innovation process, what it is and how to systematize product innovation |
H. A. P. THOTA, Innovation Business Development, Inc., PO Box 20147, Saint Simons Island, GA 31522-0670 Breakthrough results from product innovation can be engineered by taking a systems approach. The basic need is to engineer an enterprise innovation system that will keep competitors in a constant catch –up mode. A sustainable system taps fully into an organization’s potential when it is built into the fabric of the organization, and is coordinated at all levels of the organization. The system must be able to handle “big ideas” as well as small ones which add up to make big impact on the organization. The Enterprise Innovation Process (EIP) also incorporates best product development tools, techniques and practices to ensure that external elements which impact the success of product innovation are incorporated into the EIP system. Team concept is essential for EIP. There are defined “roles” within the EIP. The control of the innovation process is governed by four “Gates” an initiative must pass through. Those gates are: 1) Screening, 2) Underwriting, 3) Development, and 4) Launch. Each higher level gate carries greater financial consequences. The gates help insure that ideas get through only when they are ready but not before. Organizational Engineering (OE) is the tool needed to mesh the people with the EIP system. With OE Teams are engineered for effectiveness by utilizing the strategic thinking styles and patterns of members to predict group behavior and then guide them to success. OE is an effective tool to remove filters that block group innovation. Marketing environment changes continuously creating new opportunities for product innovation. EIP is a system for capturing and translating these opportunities into a SUSTAINABLE competitive advantage.
Session 50, Getting breakthrough results from product innovation: A practical approach
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