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GGI RapidNews R&D Product Development eZine: Volume 7, Issue 11 - December 6, 2006
GGI RapidNews is published approximately once a month.

In This Issue

NEWS & NOTES - Seasons Greetings!

MANAGEMENT PRODUCTIVITY - "Crowdsourcing" Increases Domain Knowledge

MANAGEMENT PRODUCTIVITY - Ocean Tomo's next IP Auction slated for April 2007

BOOK REVIEW - Mind Your X'S and Y's: Satisfying the 10 Cravings of a New Generation of Consumers

UPCOMING PUBLIC SEMINAR - Mar07 R&D-Product Development Metrics Summit - Early Bird Rates

THE WISDOM iSTORE FEATURED PRODUCT - Primary Research on Product Selection, IP, and Top Corporate Metrics

THE WISDOM iSTORE NEW LISTINGS - 2 New Listings

BIENNIAL PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT SURVEY - 2004, 2002, 2000, 1998 Results

GATEWAYS TO KNOWLEDGE - A Monthly Feature

CALENDAR OF INDUSTRY EVENTS - A Monthly Feature

TELEVISION EVENTS - Alexander Haig's World Business Review

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NEWS & NOTES

The Editorial Staff and the rest of the GGI team would like to take this opportunity to wish our readers and their families a safe, healthy, and happy holiday season!

We would like to express our appreciation and say a special thank you to all readers for your continued interest and frequent feedback on our monthly pontifications in RapidNews.

Happy New Year 2007 to all!

 

MANAGEMENT PRODUCTIVITY

A New "Innovation Tool" Increases Domain Knowledge

Excerpt from the "INdata" feature of Business Week's "Inside Innovation Supplement", September 25 2006, pages 38-40, published by McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc., New York, NY, USA.

Progressive companies are turning to a new on-line phenomenon called "Crowdsourcing" to tap into a new brain pool. Buying space on digital networks including Second Life and MySpace, firms explain their trickiest business problems then shift through the responses looking for viable solutions.

For example, both Boeing and Procter & Gamble post technical problems on InnoCentive, a social network created by Eli Lilly. Individual problem solvers, including retired scientists, obsessive hobbyists, and university students, log onto to site and post solutions. If an individual solves the problem, he gets a sizable cash reward.

As an added bonus to problem solvers, Second Life  allows people to create and retain the intellectual property rights on new businesses, brands and personalities.

Effective Crowdsourcers get best results by:

1. Staying focused: clearly defined problems get clear answers.
2. Using the right filters: a wealth of ideas requires a fine filter to reveal the gems.
3. Tapping the right crowds: begin by assembling groups that have the most sophisticated knowledge about your particular products.
4. Building communities into social networks: helping members build friendships  fosters long-term relationships with the group.

The complete INdata article may be viewed on BUSINESSWEEK.COM/INNOVATE.

 

MANAGEMENT PRODUCTIVITY

Ocean Tomo's next IP Auction slated for April

IP Managers, mark your calendars! Ocean Tomo's third Intellectual Property auction will take place April 18-19, 2007 in Chicago, IL. Patents, trademarks, copyrights and domain names will be sold during this live two-day auction.

The event will also feature a newly-added "Technology Expo" component where IP Auction sellers, The Dean's List(tm) Online IP Exchange sellers, Ocean Tomo partners, and sponsoring companies will showcase their IP directly to potential buyers and investors.

Ocean Tomo reports cumulative lot prices of $23,903,000 for its sale in October 2006. Company spokesmen note that patent sales more that doubled and new categories including music copyrights and domain names performed well.

For more information on the Spring 2007 IP Auction, visit the Ocean Tomo Web site.

 

BOOK REVIEW

Mind Your X'S and Y's: Satisfying the 10 Cravings of a New Generation of Consumers, by Lisa Johnson, Free Press, 2006. Copyright by Lisa Johnson, ISBN-0743277503.

As Generation X and Y replace Baby Boomers as top consumers, businesses are adjusting the design and marketing of their products to appeal to these technology savvy customers. Mind Your X's and Y's reviews 10 consumer cravings that drive the so-called "Connected Generation." Among them are:

Shine the spotlight: offer products that provide personal recognition such as customized movie posters, license plates, and even candy printed with the customer's favorite saying.
Raise my pulse: 10 years ago, an expensive gadget or automobile was the acknowledged status symbol. Today's Connected Generation prefers first-hand experiences such as international travel, extreme sports or exotic hobbies.
Give me brand candy: everyday objects now have a sharp, innovative design. This adds to the attractiveness of a product and sends a message of quality.

Underlying the cravings of 18- to 40-year olds are five essential drivers.
They are:

Experience: consumers want to test personal limits, shake up stale routines.
Transparency: the Connected Generation wants full disclosure. The "push" model of marketing no longer works.
Reinvention: the X and Y generations want what's new, better, faster, more efficient. They quickly move one if existing products don't satisfy.
Connection: cooperation is key. The most popular Internet sites, MySpace, eBay, and Craigslist, connect people.
Expression: people are looking for new ways to define and express themselves.

We recommend this book to the design and marketing professionals within your organization. Each chapter ends with workbook section with exercises to help put new ideas to work for your company.

To learn more about Mind Your X'S and Y's: Satisfying the 10 Cravings of a New Generation of Consumers, or to order the book, go to Amazon.com.

 

UPCOMING PUBLIC SEMINAR - METRICS SUMMIT Mar07 - Early Bird Rates

We are delighted to be offering our Metrics Summit again in March 2007. Many prior Metrics Summit participants were kind enough to share their written comments about the Metrics Summit so that future participants could get a better idea of what to expect. Testimonials.

Early Bird Rates will be effective through EOB Pacific Time Friday January 26, 2006. Discounts are available for individuals and company teams of three or more.

GGI's Product Development Metrics Summit will be held March 20 - 22, 2007 in Metro Boston. Please join us for a series of three seminars, focused on three major areas of importance to R&D executives and managers.

The first seminar [Measuring Product Development II (MPDDII)- March20] addresses the subjects of setting hurdle rates, assessing risk and complexity, tradeoff analysis, measuring capacity, and assessing overall financial performance. Click here to view the MPDII abstract or to download the table of contents.

The second seminar [Proactive and Predictive R&D Metrics (PPRD) - March 21) focuses on three different stages of developing early, predictive metrics that will enable manager to foresee issue on the horizon or to know that success is in front of them. Click to view the PPRD abstract or to download the table of contents.

The third seminar, a capstone, [Product Development Metrics Portfolios (PDMP) - March 22] covers the areas of metrics for R&D and product development that are not discussed in the prior two seminar days and then shifts focus. Company teams gather and working groups form around Innovator, Innovator/Extender, Balanced, And Extender R&D strategies for the purpose of developing a set of measures for the R&D organization as a whole, including the few measures that should be used by the corporation to measure R&D productivity, output, and overall performance results. Click to view the PDMP abstract or to download the table of contents.

All three seminars are geared to executives and top-level professionals that manage entire organizations, departments, and budgets. It is also of benefit to senior program management executives.

Registration is easy. If you represent a team, you can register any number of people in one transaction. Please note, however, that the site accepts only a single name for a team registration. We will contact you for the information for the remaining registrants. Once you register, leisure time activities are provided regarding transportation, meals and personal time outside of the Summit.

 

THE WISDOM iSTORE FEATURED PRODUCT

Discounted Item: Periodically, GGI's iStore features one item that we discount 40%. We just changed the item a few days ago. For the first time we are discounting our primary research report, including research on product selection, intellectual property, and top corporate metrics, that we performed in 2004 and published in 2005.

MR34h "GGI 2004 Product Development Metrics Survey Results (Hard Copy)"
Goldense Group, Inc., Needham, MA, USA
December 23, 2005  [313 pages]  $3005.00  [List Price $5008.00]

Results of the research are offered in three reports of increasingly detailed description and analysis: Research Highlights (MR31), Research Summary (MR32), and Research Results (MR34). These three separate reports provide, respectively, an executive summary, middle-management-lever, and detail level view of the survey data.

The 2004 Product Development Metrics Research Results (MR34) is a 313-page report that quantifies the most common multi-step processes and product selection tools used in North America in the product selection process. It details the management processes used in IP management and describes how respondents register, document, sell, and manage their IP inventory. The research also reports the top two metrics used in Industry RD&E, and notes the increasing use of 28 specific metrics throughout industry.

The report breaks its 202 respondent companies down into five segments and analyzes which product selection practices, IP practices, and metrics they use. The segments include: Public vs. Private Companies; Smaller vs. Larger Companies; Process vs. Repetitive/Discrete vs. Job Shop Companies; Higher vs. Lower Technology Companies; and Companies with More vs. Fewer Employees.

GGI's Feature Item changes approximately every other month and is always offered at 40% discount. To order this material, please go to GGI's Featured Item.

 

THE WISDOM iSTORE NEW LISTINGS - 1 Technical Paper & 1 Seminar Coursebook

Two new items have been added to The Wisdom iStore since we last wrote. Please click on the item number for a more detailed description and ordering information.

T64  "Linked Metrics Portfolio(tm) Method...8 Teams Measuring 3 Strategies: The Set of Metrics Need to Manage R&D and Product Development," Copyright 2006 Goldense Group Inc., Needham, Massachusetts, USA, ISBN 1-932468-74-9 September 21, 2006 [67 pages]. $201.00 Hard Copy.

Providing a solid baseline of metric portfolios and related ideas that can be applied to many companies, Technical Paper 64 contains the results of GGI's Product Development Metrics Portfolio seminar held in September 2006. Eight teams of people across different companies attending the seminar self-assembled either as a "company team" or "based on their company or division R&D and Product Development strategy" to apply the Linked Metrics Portfolio(tm) Method and created 8 unique metrics portfolios suitable for measuring R&D.

The Table of Contents of this document is depicted below:

TOPIC                                                                                           PAGE                        

Linked Metrics Portfolio(tm) Logic                                                      3
Linked Metrics Portfolio(tm) Method                                                 11

Team #1: Innovator - Mixed Team - Semicon                                    20
Team #2: Innovator - Mixed Team - Parma                                       24
Team #3: Innovator/Extender - Company Team - Power                   28
Team #4: Innovator/Extender - Mixed Team - Computer                  32
Team #5: Innovator/Extender - Mixed Team - Software                    36
Team #6: Innovator/Extender - Mixed Team - Software                    40
Team #7: Innovator/Extender - Mixed Team - Publishing                   44
Team #8: Balanced - Mixed Team - Elec/Mech & Materials              48

Brainstorming                                                                                  53-67

For more information or to order any GGI products, please go to The Wisdom iStore. T64 is specifically located in The Wisdom iStore Technical Papers section.

 

S9 "R&D - Product Development Innovation Coursebook," Copyright 2006 Goldense Group, Inc., Needham, Massachusetts, USA, ISBN 1-932468-45-5, November 15, 2006 [415 pages].  $640.00 S9h Hard Copy, $800.00 S9c Corporate Electronic License, $1200 S9sc Supply Chain Electronic License.

This 415 page Coursebook aims to cover the range of topics around the subject of innovation that are of interest to persons responsible for directing and managing innovation at the corporate and business-results levels. This is the material that underlies GGI's 2-Day R&D-Product Development Innovation Summit that was first offered to the public on November 15-16, 2006, in London, England. This is a data-intensive document that is consistent with GGI's industry reputation in the quantitative aspects of product development and innovation.

The first section of the R&D Innovation Summit Coursebook contains industry benchmark information about: product selection, pipeline yield rates from ideation to commercialization, relative innovativeness of tools and techniques used by today's product developers, top management short list of practices that fuels R&D productivity, and an inventory of "all generally available" tools in the marketplace today.

The second section contains more in-depth information about four major innovation-enablers: Lead user Analysis, Six Hats, Triz, and Semantic Processing.

The third section contains information areas that are part of an overall innovation environment including measurement, and reward/recognition processes and mechanisms. The Summary highlights the contributions of five prominent books in the field of innovation that are used by corporations. The Conclusion indicates the places in product development processes where the use of innovation tools may have the best impact, along with positioning innovation strategically, and within technical and product management functions.

For more information, please go to The Wisdom iStore. S9 is specifically located in The Wisdom iStore Seminar Coursebook section.

 

BIENNIAL METRICS SURVEY RESULTS

2004 Product Development Metrics Survey - Product Selection, IP Management, and Top Corporate Metrics:  The Summary Report (MR32h) and Highlights Report (MR31h) for GGI's 2004 Biennial Product Development Metrics Survey are now available for purchase by the public through GGI's Wisdom iStore.  These reports are completely based on primary research performed by GGI researchers.  The research includes 202 respondent companies.  There was a 5% response rate.

McKinsey & Company, Texas Instruments, Rockwell, Kimberly Clark, JDS Uniphase, Shure, Curtiss Wright Flight Systems and Datacard are representative of companies that purchase market research from GGI.

The 2004 Survey focused on the following five areas of product selection and IP management:
Product Selection Process
Product Selection Tools
IP Management Process
IP Management Tools
Top Corporate Metrics Used in Industry RD&E

We have already shared many results with GGI RapidNews readers since we began this line of business in 1998.  2004 Survey results ran in six RN issues, RN V5I11 - RN V6I5, which may be found in the RN archives, along with results from prior years.

Some additional complimentary information about the survey is available:
Marketing Brochure
Descriptive Brochure
Detailed Description of Research Topic Areas

The three commercial versions of the survey results that we currently offer for public purchase are:

1. 2004 SURVEY HIGHLIGHTS: A text-only report (75 pages), including the full text of all the results and analysis of the survey population analyzed as a whole, and
2. 2004 SURVEY SUMMARY: A report of composite results, where the survey respondents are analyzed as a whole (149 pages, includes a full set of graphed answers for every survey question).
3. 2004 SURVEY RESULTS:  A report of composite results, where the survey respondents are analyzed as a whole AND five different cross-sections of the survey data contrasting Public vs Private, High Tech vs Low Tech, Big vs Small Revenues, Large Number of Employees vs Few Employees, and Process vs Repetitive, vs Discrete vs Job Shop (313 pages, includes a full set of graphed answers for survey questions).

Individual sections of the research reports, as well as logical combinations of sections are also available.  All reports are available in printed or electronic versions.

These reports are available in the Market Research section of GGI's Wisdom iStore.

2002, 2000, 1998 Product Development Metrics Survey:  The Summary and Highlights Reports for GGI's prior Biennial Product Development Metrics Surveys are also available for purchase by the public through GGI's Wisdom iStore.  These reports are completely based on primary research performed by GGI researchers.  Information about the purpose and focus of prior surveys may be found in our biennial survey archives.

 

GATEWAYS TO KNOWLEDGE

GTK-Gateways To Knowledge is a DIRECTORY OF THOUSANDS OF LINKS to providers of engineering, purchasing, and manufacturing technologies and services.  If you hit the right subjects, it is more useful than a search engine! The "main entrance" to GTK can be found at:

http://www.goldensegroupinc.com/gateway/index.shtml

For those of you that do not want to go through the main entrance above, some of the Gateways that we believe you will find useful or entertaining are highlighted below.

Technology Providers
Service Providers
Professional & Trade Associations
Government Services
Travel

 

CALENDAR OF INDUSTRY EVENTS

GGI's Calendar of Industry Events contains an up-to-date listing of links to Conferences, Seminars, Distance Learning Centers, Colleges & Universities, Executive Education, and Corporate-Sponsored Universities.   The calendar has just been updated with 60 upcoming conferences and seminars throughout 2006.  The categories we follow are:
Seminars
Distance Learning Centers
Colleges & Universities
Executive Education
Corporate-Sponsored Universities

The categories of conferences, seminars, and distance learning are further organized into the following subject areas:
Strategic, Knowledge & General Management
Marketing & Sales - Mechanical, Electro-Mechanical, Electrical, & Electronic
Marketing & Sales - Pharmaceutical, Biotechnology, & Life Sciences
Product Development - Mechanical, Electro-Mechanical, Electrical, & Electronic
Product Development - Pharmaceutical, Biotechnology, & Life Sciences
Manufacturing & Automation - Mechanical, Electro-Mechanical, Electrical, & Electronic
Manufacturing & Automation - Pharmaceutical, Biotechnology, & Life Sciences
Software, Internet & IT
Project Management
Metrics

If you are looking for a conference or other learning opportunity, check out the Calendar.  This free service for our readers is front and center on GGI's Home Page.  Or, go directly to the Calendar of Industry Events MEGA Gateway.

 

TELEVISION EVENTS

Alexander Haig's World Business Review: Brad Goldense has made several appearances on Alexander Haig's World Business Review. Streaming video is available for all shows, which aired on August 4, September 29 and December 15, 2002 and on May 20, 2003. See below for details.

May 20, 2003 Broadcast of September 29th In-Studio with Alexander Haig (22.5 minutes): Streaming video for this segment is available on GGI's web site.

December 15, 2002 In-Studio with Alexander Haig (7.5 minutes) on CNBC paid programming: Streaming video for this segment is available on GGI's web site.

September 29, 2002 In-Studio with Alexander Haig (22.5 minutes): Streaming video for this segment (as well as the entire 30-minute show) is available on GGI's web site.

August 4, 2002 On-Location at GGI (3.5 minutes): This On-Location field report is available in streaming video on GGI's web site.

The web page includes links to download a streaming video player, if you do not currently have one installed on your computer.

For more information on any of Brad's appearances on television, go to:

http://www.goldensegroupinc.com/ggi-goldense-product-development-tv-television-broadcast.shtml.

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GGI RapidNews is an e-mail publication from Goldense Group, Inc (GGI). Its subject matter includes survey findings, company news, book and article reviews, key industry conferences and R&D information of interest to clients and associates. Please send communications to rn(at)goldensegroupinc.com. Thank you.