product innovation

Team Culture and Hybrid NPD Processes

Posted on 10.10.22

Culture is one of those words that we all know what it means, yet we struggle to identify and name it. Team and organizational cultures are best characterized from those within the group. They might describe the culture as open and risk-tolerant or as hierarchical and lacking trust.

New product development (NPD) is a systematic approach to convert nascent ideas into salable products and services. Not every idea makes it to the marketplace nor should they. We develop new products by taking advantage of new technologies and by combining concepts into new opportunities. NDP is a fun arena in which to work because product managers can apply business knowledge, technical skills, and market research to drive success.

A Typical Hybrid NPD Process

Most product development professionals are familiar with waterfall or staged-and-gated process. These approaches to NPD include upfront customer research and product design followed sequentially by prototype testing and manufacturing scale-up. Thus, the term “waterfall” as each phase flows to the next with appropriate management approvals and team hand-offs.

At the opposite end of the spectrum are Agile processes that support project management of (primarily) software product development. Scrum is the most widely deployed Agile methodology and uses short periods of collaborative teamwork to accomplish small tasks. Flexibility is valued above planning, yet full Agile practices are difficult to successfully implement for NPD.

Hybrid NPD processes include WAGILE (read more here) and Lean NPD (read more here). These processes embrace the discipline of setting boundaries (e.g., gates or management reviews) while simultaneously supporting frequent experimentation and direct customer feedback. Integrating the structure of waterfall approaches with the desire for continuous learning of Agile systems, hybrid NPD offers key benefits to product development such as improved speed-to-market and increased customer satisfaction.

Teamwork in a Hybrid Environment

Product development teams have their own culture, just as any group has its own culture. For hybrid NPD processes, teams must actively collaborate to achieve a shared purpose. This starts with trust. In The Innovation ANSWER Book, we discuss the theory of intellectual trust and emotional trust. Taking the necessary, calculated risks for NPD success requires teams built on emotional trust. Let me give an illustration from the feline world.

Along with a number of our neighbors, we feed a handful of stray cats. We’ve named them based on their looks and coloring, so we have “Ginger” and “Gray”, for instance. Most of the strays give us only intellectual trust. They wander by each person’s door, checking to see if food has been set out. Yet, they are easily spooked if we walk too close to them or attempt to pet them. They intellectually trust us to deliver food but are unwilling to take further risks.

However, a couple of the strays have built adequate emotional trust with the humans. They meow at us and allow people to get close. One neighbor has invited one in to watch television with her, have a snack, and then be on his way. She has a cute collection of photos of the white cat. Another of the strays was sitting outside my door one day with a beat-up cat I’d never seen before. She trusted us to feed and help him back to good health.

Team Trust and Hybrid NPD

Do your NPD teams have a culture of trust? Are our teams willing to take risks or do they scatter like stray cats when the going gets tough?

Successful implementation of quicker and more effective hybrid NPD processes requires a high degree of emotional trust. Management must trust their teams (within well-defined boundaries) to execute the development work in the best way they know how. Team leaders must trust the process to balance risk of investment and speed. Individual contributors trust their own excellence and commitment to growing a culture of disciplined, yet flexible, product development tools.

Learn More

Please contact me at [email protected] to learn more about hybrid NPD project team effectiveness.

A Division of Global NP Solutions, LLC

Study. Learn. Earn. Simple.

Why Product Development is Like a Bank Loan

Posted on 09.12.22

Loans among friends can quickly impact their friendship in a negative way. I have learned that loaning a book to a friend really means giving them the book. Not intentionally, people lose or damage the items they have borrowed so they cannot return them. (Or are embarrassed to admit it.)

My dad was a CPA, so I also learned at a very early age that family and friends should never loan money to family and friends. He spent many hours sorting out promises and loans in the estates of his clients, including treasures of furniture and jewelry along with monetary wealth. Nothing good ever came from these squabbles among family members.

That’s why throughout time, advanced societies use neutral parties for loans. Americans borrow money from banks and repay those loans over an agreed-upon period of time. The bank charges interest because they do not have the use of that sum during the loan. Interest also covers the risk that the borrower may never repay the loan. Where there is higher risk, the interest rate is also higher.

New product development (NPD) is much like a bank loan. A company is making an investment gamble and cannot use the resources committed to a project in any other way. For example, human resources can only work on one thing at a time. If you choose to design and develop a new product, your human talent cannot also simultaneously work on production improvement. Hiring more staff allows multiple initiatives to occur at the same time, but we are all restricted – as human beings – to doing only one thing at a time.

Investment

NPD is like a bank loan from the perspective of investment. Financial experts do not loan money to every person who walks through the door. Entrepreneurs are well aware that they must prepare a legitimate business case to receive a bank loan. The banker is evaluating whether the investment will pay off as well as considering other investment options. Money, like time, can usually only be spent once.

Product development is an investment by a firm in the idea. Management must be convinced that the business case (market and technology) for the new product is the best use of limited financial resources. Just like bankers, management considers trade-offs on the use of limited resources (time, money, equipment, and staff). Product development is often a long-term investment for a firm.

Risk

Again, banks take risks that some people will default on their loans. Just as I have learned that “loaning” a book to a friend really means “giving” them the book, bankers recognize that a certain percentage of loans will go bad. Not only has the bank made an investment by loaning that money, the risk is they will lose not simply the gains (interest) but also the principal. In other words, they may be worse off because the transaction took place.

New product development is inherently risky. We do not know – at the beginning of a project – whether we can develop a cost-effective technology or whether consumers will buy the product at a price to deliver a profit. Some product designs will never be commercialized, and the investment is lost, just like a defaulted loan.

Collateral

Banks often ask for collateral in exchange for risking their money. If you borrow money to buy a car, the car itself holds value. If you default on the loan, the bank can repossess the car to regain some of their investment. Similarly, if you take out a home mortgage, the house itself serves as collateral for the loan.

While investment and risk have ready parallels between NPD and bank loans, collateral is a little more esoteric. Companies specialize in certain products, technologies, and markets. Their knowledge, including patents and license or franchise potential, serve as long-term collateral for product development.

For example, if the R&D group at your firm investigates a new plastic treatment for a part on a new product, they retain that knowledge whether or not the part is used on a commercial product. Learning and knowledge are key to successful product design and development. That’s what companies mean when they say, “Our people are our greatest asset.” The knowledge asset is the collateral for an NPD gamble.

NPD is Like a Bank Loan

Banks take risks and invest money where they expect a payback. They charge interest to earn a profit on those investments. Loan risks are balanced by collateral, or assets, that will recover a portion of the investment if the borrower defaults. This system is fair for both the lender (the bank) and the borrower.

New product development (NPD) is an investment risk taken by companies of all sizes. They hope that sales revenues will deliver a profit on the investment made in designing and developing the new product. The risk of a failed project is balanced by the collateral of increased corporate knowledge.

Do you need to understand and evaluate NPD risks? If so, please contact me and we’ll discuss how processes and portfolios can reduce the inherent risk of NPD. We strive to help our clients improve speed-to-market and improve effective team collaboration.

A Division of Global NP Solutions, LLC

Study. Learn. Earn. Simple.

The Culture of NPD Processes

Posted on 05.12.22

We all know that culture influences business outcomes more than any other variable. Great strategies must be translated into effective business plans and implemented at the operational level. Yet, if there is a breakdown in communication as a result of cultural conflict, a great business strategy can fail mightily.

Having an open, accepting cultures paramount for success in innovation. The ability to “fail” allows new product development (NPD) teams to take risks. Without risks, there is no opportunity for innovative growth. And, of course, growth drives learning.

If you’ve read this far, you’re probably thinking, “Yes, culture impacts innovation success, but what do I do about it?” The answer is that every organization must adapt their NPD process to their culture. When there is a logical match between organizational culture and the NPD process, strategic goals for innovation are readily achieved.

Different Organizational Cultures

Culture is an unwritten set of rules that dictate how a group of individuals interact. At a societal level, Asian cultures are known for group consensus while American and European cultures are better known for independent actions. There is no right or wrong culture; however, people’s behaviors will reflect the dominant culture.

The Prairie Dog Culture

Prairie dogs share a lot of their living space with other prairie dogs. They mostly live underground within a complex network of tunnels. Yet, a sentinel is posted who alerts the group to a threat at which point, the entire community responds as one – diving into the tunnels for safety.

The Lion Pride Culture

Lions, on the other hand, are fairly solitary animals in the wild. Lion prides have a hierarchy that leads to the paternal head. As in the movie, The Lion King, the head lion might make poor decisions, but the rest of the pride follows. Similarly with a good decision, the pride follows along obediently.

Everything In-Between Culture

Of course, between the extremes of a prairie dog clan and a hierarchical lion pride are the vast majority of organizational cultures. Some companies lean more heavily to one side than the other. Yet, every organization has a distinctive culture that encourages (or discourages) innovation.

Culture and the NPD Process

One of the biggest challenges of Agile implementation for tangible product development, and in large corporations, is cultural change. The Agile philosophy pushes decisions to the lowest levels in an organization. However, many senior executives are threatened by their perceived lack of involvement in these day-to-day decisions. They wonder how they can take responsibility for profit and loss, if they don’t control each and every decision.

Of course, this lack of trust results in a hierarchical decision framework. From an innovation standpoint, these organizations find it impossible to adopt Agile processes. Instead, fear of failure results in a review- and approval-heavy staged-and-gated processes. It’s not unusual to see “half-gates” in these organizations, as senior leaders micromanage the decision points.

In my experience, hybrid NPD processes like WAGILE and Lean NPD, are excellent transitions for hierarchical organizations investigating improvements in speed-to-market. WAGILE (read more here) is a great NPD process when the product managers have close communication and interaction with end-users and customers. Lean NPD is a better approach for organizations that innovate in B2B or wholesale markets, relying on market research external to the core development team.

Culture is the Crown of Innovation

Culture not only drives strategy, but culture dictates the innovation process. Risk-averse organizations are challenged to transition to Agile, regardless of their desire to do so. Instead, adopting a hybrid waterfall-Agile NPD process allows the organization to design and deliver new products quicker, cheaper, and better while building on internal strengths.

Want to learn more? Join the PMI CBC chapter on 17 May for a brief discussion of Project Management in New Product Development. Register here for this free event. Also join our monthly Product Development Lunch and Learn webinar on 13 June at 12 pm Central Time to learn more about Project Management for NPD Processes. Register here.

A Division of Global NP Solutions, LLC

Study. Learn. Earn. Simple.

Listening for Customer Needs

Posted on 04.20.22

I’ve always been interested in how people differentiate “hearing” and “listening”. I remember one of my Japanese colleagues warning me to get a commitment to action from the multi-national team because saying “Yes” in Japan only meant “I heard you”. I’m guilty, too, of nodding and saying “Yes” occasionally when someone asks if I heard them.

Hearing is the mechanical process of sound waves entering our ears and being converted to electrical signals. The electrical signal that registers in our brain allows us to “hear” speech, music, and traffic noises. Animals also “hear” noises – my cat jumps a mile if you clap your hands during one of his many siestas!

Listening, on the other hand, is a qualitative and emotional response to the sounds we hear. Listening requires an analysis and understanding of the words, a commitment to action, and/or a witty conversational response. In new product development (NPD), we often refer to “listening to the voice of the customer” during upfront research. We do not say we only “hear” the customer. We say we “listen” to the customer – gathering the qualitative and emotional responses.

Gathering Customer Needs

Of course, in product development and product management, customer needs drive design and implementation. As product development professionals, we also know that customers are challenged to accurately describe their needs. It is often easier for a consumer to make a complaint or to offer platitudes than to specify needs and wants. Interestingly, the voice of the customer is more about multi-channel listening than hearing sounds.

What is multi-channel listing in product development? It is collecting data and information (the voice of customer, VOC) that reflects a customer’s needs and problems. “Listening” may include focus groups, observation, or journaling. In this case, listening includes all our senses, not just hearing.

Creative Listening

Some creative ways to gather customer needs include shadowing, A/B testing, and journey mapping. Shadowing is a market research technique in which members of the product development team follow customers (or potential customers) while they conduct daily activities. This allows the NPD team to observe all aspects of product usage as well as pain points and competitor product advantages. Shadowing, like many VOC methods, can generate a lot of data. So, the NPD team should be prepared with an analysis and sorting method in advance.

A/B testing can be direct or indirect. Product designers test preference for one or another feature in the new product. Alternatively, one set of customers is tested for acceptance of Feature A and another set is tested for acceptance of Feature B. In this method, you will need to ensure the sample size is adequate for the expected data integrity.

Finally, customer journey maps (see last week’s post here) are a great way to connect the customers’ decisions and emotions with the steps taken to research, purchase, and use a new product. Some organizations structure business functions around the typical steps in the customer journey map. For example, a digital retailer organizes IT projects by webpage presentation (customer shopping), customer ordering domain, shipping, and returns.

Learn More

Listening is tricky business and even more challenging when our customers cannot explain -in words – what they seek as new product features and benefits. We use market research and design thinking tools to listen to the “voice of the customer”. Our skills as product development professionals include multi-channel listening, meaning we must hear and observe our customers interacting with a variety of product solutions.

Join me on 9 May 2022 for our free monthly Product Development Lunch and Learn webinar. This month’s topic is 3 Creativity Tools and you can learn how to better “listen” for customer needs. REGISTER HERE.

A Division of Global NP Solutions, LLC

Study. Learn. Earn. Simple.

Creativity In Product Development

Posted on 04.13.22

What does “creativity” mean to you? For me, my hobby of card-making is creativity. I can combine different colors, textures, and patterns on a 5×7-inch canvas that I send with love to family and friends.

Of course, my work life also includes creativity. Solving problems and coming up with unique answers is creative work, too. However, like most adults, I often fail to equate “creativity” with trouble-shooting or any other of my day-to-day activities. Yet, working in product development demands creativity from all professionals and disciplines to successfully generate products to the marketplace.

New Product Development

New product development (NPD) is a broad term covering the design of unique technologies to the introduction of an existing product into a new market. Products span from the tangible (goods we touch, like cars or cell phones) to software and applications (search engines and instant messaging). Product managers today are often responsible for identifying new customer needs to feed the product development pipeline.

Successful product managers and product development professionals link customer needs with novel and creative solutions.

Inspired By Creativity

To deliver delightful new product solutions to our customers, we must offer them creative products and services. NPD teams use several different stimuli to understand customer needs and to identify creative solutions to those consumer problems. For example, the customer journey map (downloaded a template here) is a creative tool to track customer behaviors and satisfaction throughout the product selection and purchase process. The figure below shows another example of a customer journey map.

The customer journey map is one of my favorite tools to identify new product needs. Sometimes, we can creatively solve a customer’s need by changing how we package, deliver or market a product instead of developing additional features and functions. The customer journey map helps us identify these simple, non-technical opportunities. Keeping things simple is highly valuable in NPD!

Another creativity tool I love to use with innovation teams is brainwriting. While traditional brainstorming focuses on collaborative creativity, brainwriting first utilizes individual problem-solving to address NPD questions. Brainwriting works by presenting a problem to a group of people, typically the innovation team. Each individual, quickly and by himself, records a potential idea or concept. After a short period of time (about 30 seconds), they pass their sheet of paper to the person sitting at their right.

This person then adds a new idea or builds on the first idea. After another 30 seconds, the paper is passed to the right again. This process repeats several times until perhaps a half dozen ideas are collected on each sheet of paper. At that point, the page is returned to the originator who then selects the “best” idea. These concepts are then shared and prioritized as in a traditional brainstorming session.

Creativity Tools in Practice

Please join me for the May Product Development Lunch and Learn session on 9 May 2022 at 12 pm CDT (1 pm EDT) to learn 3 Creativity Tools. These webinars are free and full of dialogue with fellow NPD professionals and product managers. REGISTER HERE.

A Division of Global NP Solutions, LLC

Study. Learn. Earn. Simple.

Market Research Tools

Posted on 03.03.22

Market research is an industry term referring to studies of customers, marketplaces, trends, and even economics. For new product practitioners and product managers, market research is a crucial step in the process of designing and developing products and services. On a macro-basis, we might think of general fads and trends as “market research” in the formal sense. At a company- or product-level, we consider customer insights to guide product development.

Watch the super-quick video summary and then read on.

Primary Forms of Market Research

Traditionally, market research is divided into two categories: qualitative and quantitative. In Qualitative Market Research, we seek opinions and beliefs that draw customer needs from an emotional perspective. In Quantitative Market Research, we gather objective data for statistical analysis, guiding pricing and sales strategies.

Qualitative Market Research

Customer insights, for brands and specific product design work, tend to be more qualitative in nature. Many companies convene lead user panels to regularly interact with and gauge product use with consumers. These panels involve groups of customers that are actively involved in using a product and they are driven to improve the product because it serves to benefit them.

For example, gathering a lead user panel to evaluate new product features is a common purpose of market research. Suppose you manufacture gardening tools. Your lead user panel consists of Master Gardeners in a semi-tropical zone, like southern Alabama and Florida. You might present different combinations of gardening tools to bundle into a spring planting kit – a handheld spade and trowel along with a sturdy pair of gloves. You will investigate reactions to the bundle from the consumer panel.

Quantitative Market Research

While qualitative market research points the product development effort in the right direction, product designers and engineers need specifications to build the product. Quantitative market research supplements the “why” of qualitative market research with a set of measures and constraints that define “what” and “how”. Examples of quantitative market research include surveys, market share, and failure rates. Often, qualitative market research uses statistics to analyze customer and market data in a detailed and objective way.

Other Market Research Tools

Market research is a very broad field with numerous tools available to the product development professional. As in all research, no single assessment provides enough data and information to draw actionable conclusions. Instead, a combination of market research and design thinking tools will help a product development team identify opportunities for ideas and concepts that will benefit their customers.

Learn More

Join me on 14 March for a free webinar on market research tools. Register here. For more information on Customer Insights, check out Chapter 2 of The Innovation ANSWER Book, 2^nd edition.

A Division of Global NP Solutions, LLC

Study. Learn. Earn. Simple.

Throw it Away

Posted on 11.11.21

When I was young, freshly out of college, I love to collect t-shirts of places I visited. I didn’t own many clothes and it was a lot of fun to choose a cute, new shirt. When I wore my t-shirts, I hoped everyone would notice that I had visited Yellowstone or Paris.

After a few years, my closet was stuffed. Now, I wear many of those once-special t-shirts to the gym, where they end up sweaty and stained. The memories of the vacation are still valued, but the t-shirt is dated and worn-out. So, I take these old, worn-out shirts on vacation with me now. And, after I wear them – one last time – I throw them away. I also throw away socks with holes in the toes, faded pants, and shoes with the soles worn thin.

As a product manager or brand manager are your products like my t-shirts? Dear customers still flock with glee to select your products? Or are they second-rate, stained, and ready for the dustbin of history?

Revamp Your Product Portfolio

All product innovation professionals should be using a product portfolio management (PPM) system to manage existing and new products. PPM allows management to evaluate products based on customer value and profit. Remember that products go through a predictable life cycle, so you can monitor when sales are in decline. (Read more about the product life cycle here and in The Innovation ANSWER Book, 2^nd edition.)

Many organizations fail to recognize when a product is in decline. Yes, I know there is a small pinhole in my t-shirt, but maybe no one notices it. Unfortunately, that pinhole grows until you could stick a pencil through it. Are your products starting to show their age?

Throw Them Away

You have two choices when products age. Like my t-shirts, you can throw them away. Sometimes, this is absolutely the right decision. Products that demonstrate declining sales volumes (e.g., number of products sold or percent market share) and for which technology has outgrown, must be thrown away.

This is a tough decision for companies. Many times, we build our personal identification as a successful engineer or marketer linked to the development and sales of a product or product line. The design holds special memories, and our teammates were like family during the development project.

Yet, the old product must go – just like my whole-y, stained, t-shirts. Just like there are a dozen more t-shirts in my closet, you have many, many product concepts to replace the old one.

Revamp

A second choice for PPM is to revamp the product. This means the firm will invest R&D resources (time, money, and people) to create a next generation product. You must fully understand your customers and market before taking this step to revamp the product. Do they really want an updated product or has something else replaced it with newer, better technology?

So, my Zion National Park t-shirt is old and worn-out. So are many other T shirts from travels years and years ago. But my closet is stuffed. I have revamped my souvenirs of happy vacations and now I choose socks instead of t-shirts. (I’m not sure what I’ll do when my sock drawer is full!)

Product Decisions

All products – existing or new – require a set of decisions to continue selling, discard, or revamp. The tools of product portfolio management can help product innovation professionals make these choices. PPM presents evaluations for customer interest, business value, and technical fit. Data-driven product decisions help to eliminate emotional attachment to a fond, old idea (or t-shirt).

Join me for PPM in 100 Days starting on 7 February 2022. We only offer this deep-dive master class once a year. Contact me at info at globalnpsolutions.com for more information.

A Division of Global NP Solutions, LLC

Study. Learn. Earn. Simple.

What is Innovation?

Posted on 10.28.21

Click on the image to watch a short summary video, then read on!

Innovation is one of the most over-used buzzwords of today. I wrote about this previously in 2013! (Read Introduction to Disruptive Innovation here.) Yet, innovation – as a word – continues to be bandied about as a solution to all problems but also as a mysterious, perhaps magical, process. In this post, I hope to break down the word “innovation” to a set of practical and actionable steps that help businesses accomplish growth without all the hype.

New Way of Doing Something

Innovation encompasses a new way of successfully doing something. Note the specific use of the word “success”. If we try a new way to do something and it fails, we are learning but we have not innovated. Failing is part of the innovation process, yet it is not the end goal of innovation.

Process innovation often involves new ways of doing something. In manufacturing, we might be able to skip a step by combining forming and assembly or by using pre-printed packaging. These actions are usually considered “cost-saving”, but when we involve a new way of executing the action, it is clearly defined as a process innovation.

We also see product innovations and perhaps these are the more common goal of corporate innovation programs. New product development (NPD) is a subset of innovation in which we design and develop new product innovations. Again, the new product is helping consumers and end-users “do something in a new way,” but is focused on tangible features and product attributes.

In recent times, product innovations have begun to incorporate the changes and additions in software code. Almost all tangible products also include software in some capacity. Coding introduces changes in how a product (hardware or software) functions, and thus, can be innovative. However, we must be very careful to not confuse bug fixes as “innovative”. End-users don’t want mistakes in the product in the first place, so a bug fix is not adding value.

Social and Political Innovations

Some innovations cause us to do something in a new way because society expects it or because government regulations restrict the old way of doing something. As an example, the US Government restricted the sale of incandescent light bulbs a few years ago. Consumers were certainly not clamoring for a new way to light their homes, especially since incandescent light bulbs are cheaper than alternatives. Yet a change in government policy forced to change in behavior; this defines a “political innovation”. Such innovations may not add value to either the consumer or producer but are necessary for the business to sustain itself.

Adoption of New Technology

Many process and product innovations result from the adoption of new technology. Advances in technology allow producers to manufacture goods in more cost-effective ways and to add features to products. Technology allows processes to become more efficient, so that manufacturers can make products with fewer quality defects and at increased rates. Technology has served to stimulate innovation significantly.

For instance, computer-controlled manufacturing processes allow assembly lines to move at a quicker pace. Technology, such as lasers and cameras, can evaluate quality of products during manufacturing without the cost of destructive testing. Increased resource utilization by managing the supply chain and distribution with technical innovations also result in cost-savings shared between consumers and manufacturers.

Application of New Knowledge

Finally, innovation involves the application of knowledge to new situations as well as the growth of knowledge. When we apply a solution from one domain to another, by transferring knowledge, the result is innovation.

One of my favorite examples of innovation from new knowledge is Velcro. Legend has it that the inventor studied lizards and other critters that creep and crawl in vertical surfaces. Transferring knowledge of how their little feet are able to “stick” to these surfaces allowed him to conceive a new way to attach two items together. What knowledge are you holding that contained a product or process?

Defining Innovation

Innovation is a new way of doing something by application of technology or knowledge to improve a process or product in such a way that it adds value for both the end-user and the producer. Innovation is a new way of doing something but that “something” doesn’t have to be radical or unique. Transferring our knowledge and experience between and among industries often leads to a new way of doing something.

Do you want to learn an effective process for design of innovation? Join me, starting on 1 December, for the by-request Creativity Master Class. Register here.

A Division of Global NP Solutions, LLC

Study. Learn. Earn. Simple.

Creative Perspectives

Posted on 10.06.21

Many of us don’t believe we are creative. After early elementary school, we have learned there are rules, and we spend a lot of time complying with those rules. Not only are there rules about spelling and arithmetic, but there are societal “rules” about the clothes we wear and things we say. All these rules serve to stamp out creativity.

Yet, we need creative solutions to the many challenging problems we face in business today. Creativity is not just painting a new scene or writing a novel; creativity is finding unique alternatives and expressions to address real-world discomforts. For product innovation professionals, we must find creative solutions to customer and end-user problems that deliver value to them and profit to our firms.

Creative Solutions

In new product development (NPD), the first place to start to identify a creative solution is to understand the problem. Very often, we assume that we know what challenges and difficulties our customers face. And, very often, we are wrong.

Understanding customer problems means we need to spend time with them and to follow their actions. Design Thinking offers several tools and a methodology to build empathy with customers and end users. The methodology is reflected in the simple, two-step process shown in the figure. (Read about Design Thinking in Chapter 2 of The Innovation ANSWER Book, 2^nd edition.) Empathy means we understand their thoughts and feelings as much as we understand the technical points of their problems.

An Example

To find creative and empathetic product solutions, we have to fully identify with the customer and end-user. Most people working in NPD are in the prime of their life, maybe 30 to 50 years old. Suppose you are designing and developing products for the elderly. How can you build empathy for their problems?

Using Design Thinking tools, product innovation professionals observe the customer. You can spend time with your grandma or an elderly neighbor and watch as they prepared dinner. Are jars difficult to open for someone with arthritis? Does she have trouble reading small print on the recipe? Can she safely lift a heavy pan from the oven?

Once you have some clues to the real problem from observation, you can begin to develop creative solutions. You can test your prototypes under simulated conditions to quickly evaluate concepts to move forward while eliminating the less – then – promising ideas.

For the elderly person, you can wear gloves or tape your fingers to mimic arthritis. Put on a scratched-up pair of sunglasses and try to read the recipe yourself. Simulate the relative “heaviness” of a pan with a 40-lb. bag of sand. Your own frustrations will translate to better product solutions for this customer!

Learning Creativity

It seems somewhat odd that actually need to “learn creativity”. Society force fits uniformity and often discourages creative interpretation. Yet, as product innovation professionals, we need to approach problems from new perspectives and with open viewpoints. Especially if the customers’ needs are far from our experiences and background, we need to apply Design Thinking tools to build empathy. We really need to understand the thoughts and feelings of the end-user.

Do you want to learn to be more creative? Join our creativity master class starting on 1 December. Register Here.

A Division of Global NP Solutions, LLC

Study. Learn. Earn. Simple.

About Me

I am inspired by writing, speaking, and coaching. I tackle life with an infusion of rigor, zeal, and faith. It brings me joy to help you build innovation leaders. Teresa Jurgens-Kowal is an experienced innovation professional with a passion for lifelong learning with a PhD in Chemical Engineering and an MBA in Computer and Information Decision Making. My credentials include PE (State of Louisiana), NPDP, PMP®, and CPEM, and I am a DiSC® certified facilitator. Contact me at [email protected] or area code 281 + phone 787-3979 for more information on coaching for entrepreneurs and innovators.

This was first published on the blog at www.Simple-PDH.com. Follow me on Twitter @globalnpd.

Lessons for a Young Innovator

Posted on 09.29.21

Recently I was the keynote speaker for the Chemical Engineering Graduate Student Symposium at University of Washington (go huskies!). I am so honored that my alumni university asked me to share my career journey with smart and ambitious students. Of course, I wondered “What on earth can I talk about?” since my usual presentations are more technical and geared toward product, project, and engineering managers

So, I decided to present what I wish I could have told my younger self knowing what I know today. I also realized that my own career has had (so far) three periods of time that roughly correlate with what I wish I had known earlier. I’ll share these three items with you and I hope that you can apply these to your creative endeavors.

Be Expectant

Being expectant means to be ready for surprises. It means everything will not stay as it is today. In my early career, I thought every job was stable and routines would not change. Of course this was a naïve view of jobs and careers.

Product innovation managers also must be expectant. Fads, trends, markets, and technologies change constantly. Effective new product development (NPD) requires expecting changes. Successful NPD means you plan for changes in advance and can introduce product solutions that solve customer problems when they occur. Expectancy means planning to deliver value for your customers and your firm regardless of market turmoil.

Be Open

In my mid-career, I was completely taken off-guard by corporate politics. I had no idea that peak engineering and managerial performance mattered little to folks centered on personal ego and greed. A hard lesson, but it taught me to be open to new possibilities and to think broadly about alternatives.

As product innovation professionals, we always need open minds. I love Carol Dweck’s book on mindsets – she teaches us that if we think we can, we can. The concepts of fixed and growth mindsets help us to recognize barriers and opportunities.

This positive and open mindset helps us recognize true problems facing customers. We can then develop the best set of features and attributes through co-creation. It is not enough to put a band-aid on a product and hope for the best. Nor is it our job as innovators to simply add features whether or not our paying customers need or want these functions. Being open to all possibilities makes us more creative and better problem solvers.

Be Bold

In a master mind group on Design Thinking a few years ago, I asked participants to select values that meant the most to them personally and for their work life. I commented that I wasn’t even sure what “bold” as a value meant. A friend and very smart colleague in ITs said, “You are bold. You just did a triathlon.” Okay, I’m a nerd, and the triathlon was a big goal for me, stretching me to uncomfortable physical limits (literally). And in Full disclosure, it was a sprint triathlon – a baby step for true athletes.

As product innovation professionals, we must be bold. We must take calculated risks in the design and development of new products and services. We have to ask tough questions of our customers, suppliers, and partners. And to be bold, we must be expectant and open.

Be Expectant, Be Open, Be Bold

As a chemical engineer, I agree that society categorizes me as a nerd. I certainly do have some nerdy habits and traits. But engineers are also excellent at trouble-shooting and problem-solving. We are creative in that sense. We can build the solutions needed for successful product innovation.

How can you be expectant, open, and bold? I encourage you to amp up your creativity, to tap into new possibilities, view the world from new perspectives, and to try new things on a journey of a lifelong learning. Your first step is to join me in the Special Creativity Workshop on Friday, 1 October 2021 from 10 am to 12 pm CDT. Register here.

Also be sure to stop by and say “hi” at my booth! Global NP Solutions is sponsoring the PDMA Annual Conference in Baltimore on 13-16 November.

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