We recently attended the Stage-Gate® Innovation Summit 2013, with this year's theme of “Driving Innovation Performance: Getting Better Results.” Not only was this a great topic that spurred some thoughtful discussions around the innovation challenge, it also supported the idea that companies can achieve exceptional long-term revenue growth and profitability by focusing on their enterprise innovation performance. There were many compelling case presentations during the summit, including topics around achievable Stage-Gate outcomes and bringing together diverse global innovation systems. However, these successes still leave room for a number of challenges to be faced by innovation leaders.
A tremendous takeaway from the event were the results of the Real-Time Benchmarking sessions, which provided a framework for the innovation challenges companies are facing today. The infographic below illustrates only some of the major challenges organizations face today when managing product innovation, and striving to drive innovation performance.
(click on graphic to zoom in/out)
Does your organization face similar challenges throughout the innovation lifecycle? A common concern we heard from a number of delegates was the need to strategically manage, plan and optimize their portfolios to produce even better results from innovation initiatives. Based on our experience and observations, product portfolio management is increasingly regarded as a critical driver of innovation performance.
What is your experience and observations for dealing with these challenges in the innovation / NPD lifecycle? Have you used portfolio management to produce better results from innovation / NPD initiatives?
