Connect with the world, run innovation projects or challenges, and get real-world results with the help of an Open Innovation platform.
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Picking the proper Open Innovation platform is crucial for success.
A quick Internet search will reveal that this is a difficult choice, with so many firms competing for your business and varying solver populations among them. First, you must have a firm grasp on precisely what you hope to achieve. Here are a few inquiries to ponder:
- Just what are your end goals?
- Is Open Innovation something you’re considering both internally (across departments/departments) and externally (across borders)?
- To what extent is Open Innovation being implemented at your company? The question is whether or not this is something that employees of your company are willing to put effort into.
- In what ways might Open Innovation be implemented? Is this just something you do once a year with your vendors? Is it a startup competition? A crowdsourcing drive?
- How transparent is your company? Is it necessary to control who can see what and how much information is shared with the public?
- The question is, how much money are you prepared to put into open Innovation? For what kind of compensation strategy are you planning to plan?
- What sort of intellectual property (IP) administration will you require?
Even if you hire a general or specialized consulting firm to assist with setting up the proper innovation management, you still need an existing open innovation platform to carry out the initiative. Different platforms are better suited to different stages of the innovation lifecycle, from ideation to solution design and prototyping to commercialization.
Idea and technology sharing platforms for Open Innovation
If you want to find the “big” ideas or “next-generation” technologies, you need to be able to communicate with as many creative people as possible. Some platforms have their preexisting community of creative thinkers, while others form communities on the fly in response to specific challenges. Consider this case: A significant chain store is looking to create trendy new athletic footwear. They would need to advertise to a particular demographic, such as teenagers who live in the area and enjoy participating in sports. Using an open innovation platform, this business could either hold a contest amongst its employees to generate new ideas or reach out to the outside community for assistance. Some media handle their own think tank – for broad purposes – while others provide the means to rapidly reach a specific demographic (e.g., for the retailer’s target customers). If you’re in the market for some new tech, your best bet is to look in places where there are active tech communities that can assess your needs and match you up with the best possible solutions. One such instance is our road asphalting technology scouting operation, which took place during a downpour. As a result of this competition, we were exposed to novel approaches and experimental technologies from research institutions, academic institutions, and private citizens.
Solutions-focused open innovation platforms (problem-solving)
Following the disastrous oil spill on the Deepwater platform, BP issued a public request for proposals for plugging the well and removing the tonnes of oil from the water. There were over 123,000 responses from over 100 countries, but the massive recommendations were only particularly fruitful for a handful of ideas. Based on what we’ve learned, the following steps are essential when attempting to resolve a problem:
Dissect the complex issue into manageable chunks.
Create a well-defined test, making sure to account for all relevant constraints.
Get answers from a group of people who might have them.
Since most solvable problems are reasonably complex and require specialized knowledge and expertise, the quantity of solvers is less important than their quality. Expert problem-solvers frequently combine theoretical knowledge with hands-on experience, and they often have expertise in more than one field or are used to working in teams. In contrast to those who lack practical experience, those who do can offer solutions that take a fresh, innovative angle. And right at that second, the possibility of success in the challenge will skyrocket. Your open innovation challenge may call for the expertise of a specific solver community, such as mathematicians for algorithm development, programmers for app creation, or mechanical and materials engineers for the product of a crushable rock bolt for underground mining.
Methodologies for Commercializing Open Innovation
When it comes to Innovation, the difficulty is not always in coming up with new ideas or fixing existing problems but in figuring out how to make money off of them. It is common practice for researchers to develop new technologies that could be used in various fields. Given that this is more of a “push” scenario, the question becomes where the best opportunity is for the current state of technology. Only when obvious market applications are found the commercial value of the new material is uncertain, even though it exists and has a specification (including properties such as conductivity, strength,…). A marketplace is the ideal open innovation platform for technology transfer or commercialization, but other methods may also be helpful due to the difficulty in finding a suitable partner. Technology hubs, universities, and marketplaces all tend to advertise their wares in the hopes of finding a compatible buyer or investor. A watched pot never boils, as the saying goes. They are virtual marketplaces where sellers and buyers can connect and exchange information and goods. You can think of yourself as a retailer in that your choice of platform will depend on the goods you intend to sell. The recent startup boom is gaining significant traction in most established businesses. One reason this trend is gaining traction is that rather than actively innovating, many established companies would rather spend their money on “technology watch” to spot and acquire or co-invest in promising startups that could eventually cause a significant shift in the industry.
Conclusion
In conclusion, determining your company’s Open Innovation model and narrowing down your options will help you choose the right platform. The next step is experimenting with various platforms while keeping return on investment in mind.
