The Fuzzy Front End of Innovation

The fuzzy front end of innovation is the time when opportunities abound and clarity is lacking. Make the wrong decisions in this phase and all is lost! So, HOW do you make the best decisions when nothing is clear and everything is possible? You need a system and a process to manage the fuzzy front end of innovation.

The first step in managing the fuzzy front end of innovation is to recognize the fuzzy front end of innovation as a step in new product development.

The second step is to define the fuzzy front end of innovation. PDMA defines the fuzzy front end as follows.

The messy "getting started" period of product development, when the product concept is still very fuzzy. Preceding the more formal product development process, it generally consists of three tasks:

            strategic planning,
            concept generation, and,
            especially, pre-technical evaluation.

These activities are often chaotic, unpredictable, and unstructured. In comparison, the subsequent new product development process is typically structured, predictable, and formal, with prescribed sets of activities, questions to be answered, and decisions to be made. (See Chapter 6 of The PDMA HandBook 2nd Edition.) [Emphasis and formatting added.]

A third step is to define what pre-technical evaluation means. For me, that means building a technology landscape or technology map in order to IDENTIFY, MEASURE, VISUALIZE and PRESENT the technical trends. By combining marketing research with technology trends it is possible to develop very robust scenarios from which secure, accurate decisions can be made. The fuzzy front end is not guesswork and intuition, it is a process just like new product development.

An ETI Report from Emerging Tech INSIGHTS is an ideal starting point for the technology evaluation! Check our reports in our Green Tech tab and in the BioTech/Other tab. Alternatively, we can provide custom consulting that is specifically tailored to your need. Please select the Contact Us tab to arrange a discussion.

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