Managing the Front End of your Innovation Process

Front End Innovation (FEI) is one of the top innovation management challenges of our times. The notion that FEI is fuzzy and uncontrollable is being replaced with the belief that it should now be managed in a systematic way to ensure that ideas are created based on informed scenarios and opportunities with relevant customer insights. However, there are a number of different methods to adapt and knowing which one to implement can be challenging for organisations. This post illustrates a snap shot of Geoff Waite’s NOIC (Needs, Opportunities, Ideas and Concepts) and SPROC (Strategy, Process, Resources, Organisation and Culture) frameworks, which are a combination of practicing (NOIC) and managing (SPROC) the front end of innovation.

How do you manage the front end of your innovation process? 

The Innovation Leader Programme

Members of the Innovation Leader Programme

 

The Innovation Leader Programme (ILP) is aimed at providing industry-based practitioners with actionable and relevant insights to build and improve innovation capabilities and performance as well as encourage and instil a framework of continuous learning for innovation within R&D, NPD and Innovation teams.

ILP Membership is far more than an ‘off-the-shelf’ subscription service, we look to build and nurture a long-term relationship with our customers. We listen to and work closely with our members to understand their innovation process and management challenges. We then develop and deliver a programme of bespoke activities aligned to their needs.

Pure Insight Overview

Annual Survey of Key Innovation Management Challenges for Members of Pure Insight’s Innovation Leader Programme

Which challenges keep customers awake at night?
 

Listed below are the top 4 of our 5 key Innovation Management challenge areas, as defined by our ILP Members, in the 2010/11 membership year.

This short publication provides interesting insights into cross company, sector and industry trends surrounding the key innovation management challenges in the year ahead.

Motivating Your People

Non-monetary Incentive and Reward Schemes

Which ones do you use?
 

Money is usually a short-term motivator although everybody needs a certain minimum to feel comfortable to cover their overheads. Promotion is a very good system to recognize performance which does not have to be associated with a huge pay rise to make impact. Telling the internal candidate they are not quite good enough and then appointing somebody from outside at the level above can be a huge error – if the employee shows they are able for 2 years in that role then that should be enough to promote them or they will walk out on you.