7 Steps to Reconcile Co-Innovation and Confidentiality: How Secret Should Your Co-Innovation Transformation Be?

In an increasingly competitive, connected and globalized world, co-innovation and value co-creation have recently become the norm for all R&D projects from startups to large organizations. In fact, co-innovation is critical to the development and sustainability of organizations of all sizes and and all industries.

How do Specialized Intermediaries Facilitate Creative Crowdsourcing?

One of the most obvious benefits of crowdsourcing is its ability to stimulate creativity and accelerate innovation on a global scale. Leading companies such as Dell, Starbucks or Frito-Lay have pioneered this trend by building platforms (respectively IdeaStorm, MyStarbucksIdea and Doritos Crash The SuperBowl) that connect them to a crowd of passionate individuals. These success-stories paint a very positive picture of crowdsourcing, but the reality is that connecting with the crowd is not as easy as it seems. In this post, we will present the advantages and drawbacks of using crowdsourcing to source creative ideas, and explain how specialized intermediaries can help companies by providing crowds, platforms and experience.

Part 5: Choice Navigation: Turning Burden of Choice into an Experience

When providing a customizable product how can a firm minimize the burden of choice and maximize the customer joy resulting from the co-creation process? In part five in this series on mass customization Professor Frank Piller explains how to turn choice complexity into customer experience and loyalty.

Part 4: Robust Process Design: Fulfilling Individual Customer Needs without Compromising Performance

Offering customized products is a strain on a company's resources. What are the different ways that you can minimize the deterioration in the firm’s operations and supply chain? In part four in this series on mass customization, Frank Piller and Fabrizio Salvador explain the robust process design - whereby the firm reuses or re-combines existing organizational and value chain resources to fulfill differentiated customers’ needs.

2019-10-15T15:10:17-07:00April 30th, 2012|Categories: Enabling Factors|Tags: , , , |

Part 1: Competing in the Age of Mass Customization

The concept of "the customer is always right" is taking on a whole new meaning as the the ability to manage personalized products is starting to determine whether your company can keep up with the competition. In part one of this series, Frank Piller, a leading expert on mass customization, personalization and open innovation, discusses the goals, scope and core capabilities of mass customization.

DSM’s Innovative Power: Adapting To The Future Through Co-innovation

DSM has recently been in the news twice. One occassion due the launch of an open innovation contest that challenges designers and creative thinkers to develop high-quality sports equipment using the company’s own Arnitel® Eco material. The other occassion because the American ethanol producer POET and DSM announced a joint venture to demonstrate commercial cellulosic bio-ethanol production and license the technology by 2013. On top of this news, Deloitte and VNCI published a report on the state of the chemical industry in the Netherlands where DSM is headquartered.

2021-12-02T18:06:07-08:00February 3rd, 2012|Categories: Blog Archive|Tags: , , , |

Innovation’s Silent Killer

If they want to compete successfully in the future, companies should hold off on rapid ideation and faster commercialization until they take an unflinching look at what is truly stifling breakthrough innovation. In this article, Soren Kristensen provides insight on how honest self-reflection can free you from your biggest impediment to growth.

Co-Innovating for the Future

Realising the limitations of their own knowledge, and internal R&D capabilities, an increasingly high number of companies are currently making the decision of partnering externally to develop new technologies. Companies’ interactions with their business partners or even competitors are becoming more and more frequent.