During a recent webinar titled The Five Most Important Drivers of Success in Product Innovation – That Most People Get Wrong! with Dr. Robert Cooper, President of the Product Development Institute Inc., he fielded a number of audience questions. Bob is also the creator of the Stage-Gate ® system,... Read More

I have heard delegates at our annual strategic roadmapping conference say “We have started our roadmapping process, but it has been delayed by more urgent issues,” or “We are having a major re-organization and will not be doing our strategic planning until that is complete.” Of course there will... Read More

Key to the successful implementation of an innovation solution is the design of the innovation processes and of the configuration requirements for the software. The activity of solution design, frequently referred to as blueprint creation, occurs during a number of detailed workshops involving the... Read More

Shhhh, there is a dirty little secret in idea management: just because you build and run idea campaigns doesn't mean you'll find good ideas. Yes, believe it or not, this happens quite often. Not every idea campaign yields implementable ideas. This is typically not a failure of the tool, but a... Read More

I was recently asked by an associated of mine what I thought was the top features an idea management system must have or must do. This is an interesting question and I thought I'd share with you what I think and why, but I'd like to hear what you guys think also so please by all means jump in and... Read More

Companies with complex products or processes are frequently engaged at a given moment in a number of activities which can be described in terms of technology development, open innovation or both. In my experience, it is advantageous to link some of these by implementing a technology development... Read More

Sustainability has become a key aspect of company strategy, discussed at all levels of the organization as well as with customers, investors, and the public at large. However, it is not always easy to demonstrate the alignment of the specific innovation initiatives you are working on with the... Read More

In a prior role, I was responsible for leading a bottom-up innovation program at a large Fortune 50. Although I had top level support, the culture of the company at the time was such that the initiative was structured to be bottom-up. I had to win the hearts and minds of people and show value... Read More

Product portfolio management determines the innovation investments businesses will fund—and those they won't—in order to achieve performance goals. For consumer goods firms, these investment options extend across the entire innovation lifecycle and include early-stage ideas, new product concepts,... Read More

In 1996, the First Lady of the United States Hillary Rodham Clinton published a book called It Takes a Village: And Other Lessons Children Teach Us. In the book, Mrs. Clinton focuses on the impact individual and groups outside the family have, for better or worse, on a child's well-being.... Read More