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Peripheral Vision by Dr. Ken Huskins
Peripheral vision is a combination of ‘seeing the forest through the trees’ and
of ‘thinking outside the box’. It allows you to better understand both the possibilities
and the challenges of bringing truly valuable and unique products and/or services to market
that benefits your business. Just as importantly, peripheral vision will help as an ‘early
warning system’ to allow you to increase your chances of creating winning roadmaps
for product and services innovation. Critical peripheral vision elements include (1) technology
trends analysis, (2) market trends analysis, (3) competitive (i.e. MORE than competitor)
analysis, and (4) geo-political-economics environmental scanning and scenario building.
Embedding Peripheral Vision in Your Product Innovation Process
Always keep in mind that the biggest dangers are the ones you don’t see coming. When
you think you know everything of substance about your technology, market, and product definition,
remind yourself that you likely need to ask additional questions that will help you validate
or adjust your assumptions.
Early in the concept testing and scoping stage of product innovation, embed ‘homework’ activities
that encourage the surfacing of answers to questions such as:
- Competitive Analysis
- Where are your products/services relative to competitors:
- Your relative strengths (or weaknesses)?
- Which of your products need replacement or enhancement?
- Where will your competitor’s products be in 1-3 years?
- Market Analysis
- Where is the market going?
- Trend analysis
- Market forecasts
- Industry studies
- What new products will be needed? Why? And, will the economic buyer remain the same?
- Are technologies used (or likely to be introduced in the near future) in adjacent industries
able to supplant your current technologies?
- What social, economic, and political factors may bring threats and/or opportunities?
Implementing such in-depth process governance is truly worth the effort and is critical
to maturing along your path to product innovation excellence.
How to Learn More:
- Attend Dr. Robert Cooper’s NEW executive seminar Anatomy of an Advanced
Stage-Gate System on June 10-11, 2008 in Philadelphia, PA. Call Valerie Sather for more information
+1-905-304-8797 ext. 236.
- Engage our Strategic Advisory and Transformation Consulting Services. Call Michael
Booker for more information +1-905-304-8797 ext. 228.
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