Analysis of technology management in front end stage of innovation process

1
Analysis of technology management in front end
stage of innovation process

• Visa Friström
• T-109.5410 Technology Management in the
  Telecommunications Industry
• 3.10.2006

2
Agenda

• Background
• Objectives
• Research approach
• Case
• Theory
• Results

3
Backround

• Thesis done for LMF Ericssons RD department
• Product Management has increasingly transformed
  responsibility to System Management
• LMF Ericssons RD departments System Management
  has identified the importance of technology
  management and has started to implement it
  consciously into M-MGw development
• System Management assigned new technology manager
• Technology manager started to identify and
  implement technology management routines
• The identified management area is called TM

4
Objectives

• Analyze the current technology management model
  and identify possible development issues and
  paths in context of newest articles on technology
  management.
• Identify the most important articles concerning
  technology management
• How is technology management perceived in the
  management literature and journals?
• How does the current Ericssons model map in
  their context and what is missing? What are the
  dimensions that SMs technology management should
  focus on?
• Provide further guidelines for TMs development

5
Research approach

• Two different approaches
• TM in context of technology management
  frameworks (greater focus)
• What dimensions are missing in TM?
• Mapping of technology management routines and
  issues.
• TM in context of fuzzy front end models
• How does TMs front end elements relate to front
  end theories?

6
Case

• Product Mobile Mediagateway
• Node in mobile core network
• Bridge between different transmission
  technologies
• Environment
• Product management responsible for the commercial
  and strategic aspect (mainly situated in Sweden)
  (WHAT / WHEN)
• product strategy, roadmap etc.
• System management responsible for technical
  aspect implement what product management
  decides (HOW)
• basic operational RD activities
• Technology Management (TM) is created inside SM.
• Problem
• Product management does not really understand the
  technical aspect -gt bad decisions on roadmaps and
  other
• -gtneed for technology management

7
Case

• The main object of TM was aimed to find,
  investigate and suggest new technologies to be
  used in order to enhance the profitability of the
  current product
• TMs suggestions would serve as an input to
  Mobile MediaGateway's technology roadmap
  discussion
• Roadmap managed by product management

8
Case

• TM is made of technology manager and four
  different areas that it manages
• All of the management areas activities are in
  Fuzzy Front End (pre-project activities)
• Chosen management areas
• Research
• Segmented from Ericssons general research
• Research Mediagateways possible future
  technologies
• Participates on standardization relevant to
  Mediagateway
• Enables TM to realize different possibilities
  that technology can offer to Mediagateway
• Prototyping
• Prototypes possible future features in
  mediagateway that are not currently present in
  roadmap
• Foresighting
• Mainly implements technology foresighting through
  Technical Solution Area responsibles (TSA)
• TSAs mission is to foresight specific technology
  areas relevant for mediagateway
• There is one TSA for evey technical area
• Preliminary study
• Quick studies on different technical subject
• Supports TM and Product Management on selecting
  technologies / product features

9
Theory

• What is technology management?
• Relative concept with various interpretations
• Generally considered as
• Union between business, science and technological
  know-how
• Managing the innovation process by integrating
  business and engineering thinking
• Definition by European Institute of Technology
  Management (EITM)
• Technology management addresses the effective
  identification, selection, acquisition,
  development, exploitation and protection of
  technologies (product, process and
  infrastructural) needed to maintain and grow a
  market position and business performance in
  accordance with the companys objectives.

10
Theory

• Two important aspects in technology management
• importance of establishing and maintaining the
  linkages between technological resources and
  company objectives
• technology management requires effective
  management processes
• Technology management is concerned with how an
  organization manages all its technical
  activities, not just those which are confirmed to
  RD department.
• Usually product management plays an important
  role in technology management

11
Theory

• Innovation process
• Concepts
• Invention vs. innovation
• Types of innovation
• Incremental innovation vs. radical innovation
• Incremental innovations cover 90 of innovation
  activities (Rothwell and Gardiner)
• Innovation process divided into three subgroups
• Fuzzy Front End (FFE)
• New Product Development (NPD)
• Commercialization

12
Theory

• Innovation process

13
Theory

• Cost curve
• front end plays important role in innovation
  process due to its great impact on rest of
  innovation process

14
Theory

• Fuzzy Front End concept defines the activities
  that take place before start of NPD project
• It is mainly the area between when and idea
  and/or opportunity are first considered and when
  new product development project can be started
• Have many names pre-project activities, upfront
  activities, opening phases, front end of
  innovation.
• Fuzzy is used to describe the chaotic and
  unpredictable phases prior any product
  development
• Organizations excelling in Fuzzy Front End
  management are more likely to win the innovation
  competition
• Cooper and Kleinschmidt study only 7 of total
  NPD money spent in Fuzzy Front End.

15
Theory

• Effort / budget spent on Front End activities
• Not enough according to experts

16
Theory

• Stage-gate by Robert Cooper

Fuzzy Front End
/ Product Concept
17
Theory

• Fuzzy Front End divided into operative and
  strategic level

(Poskela et al)
18
Theory

• TMs position in innovation process

19
Theory

• Operative and strategic level integration
  mechanisms

(Poskela et al)
20
Theory

• Removing Fuzziness from Front End (some ideas)
• Identify activities that are pre-project
  activities
• Systemize and create management processes
• e.g. some gate approach such as stage-gate
• Level of control should depend on type of
  innovation
• incremental -gt more control
• radical -gt less control (more creativity)
• Collaborative culture that enoguraes knowledge
  creating, inovation and creativity
• Systemized idea capture and handling
• e.g. idea bank
• Early involvement of business champion
• Integrate business thinking into research
• Early customer involvement!
• Methods
• Voice of customer
• Camping out with customer
• Lead user method
• Rapid prototypes workshops

21
Background Theory

• Innovators dilemma
• How to prepare for future disruptive
  technologies?
• e.g. Technology Foresighting
• Problem of dualism
• Weak signals
• companies that exist in changing business
  environments need to be attentive to weak
  signals
• When a new technology threat or opportunity
  appears on the horizon the information of it is
  first very vague but progressively evolves into
  more precise information.
• weak signal is a factor for change hardly
  perceptible at present, but which will constitute
  a strong trend in the future

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Theory Technology management

• Three levels of technology management
• Corporate
• e.g. How many RD centers? Hw to gain access to
  technology?
• Business (strategic)
• e.g RD portfolio management
• Operational
• e.g. project selection and evaluation

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Theory Technology management

• Gregorys model for technology management (ISAEP)
• Served as basis for many technology management
  frameworks and definitions
• Identification
• identify technologies that are not currently part
  of technology base of company but that could have
  an impact on current and future business.
• Selection
• selection is about choosing between various
  different technologies those that should be
  supported by the organization (e.g. by using
  portfolio methods, expert judgments, pilot
  studies etc.).
• Acquisition
• acquisition is concerned about access to needed
  technologies and their integration into the
  organization. This includes activities such as
  RD, licensing, joint venture and organizational
  learning
• Exploitation
• exploitation is about systematic conversion of
  technologies into marketable product or
  realization of their value though sale, license
  or joint venture
• Protection
• protection is about recognizing and protecting
  the commercial advantage which control of key
  technologies can offer.

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Theory Technology management

• R. Phaals technology management framework

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Theory Technology management

• Evolved from Gregrorys model
• Indentified three business processes (Strategy,
  Innovation, and Operations) where the ISAEP
  processes work
• Aim of technology management according to the
  framework
• Manage the balance betwen market pull and
  technlogy push
• Manage the relation between technical and
  commercial perspective
• especially the communication between them
• Integration on technology management processes
  (ISAEP) and core business processes
• The aim of efficient technology management is to
  ensure that technological issues are integrated
  appropriately into the business processes.
• The importance of establishing and maintaining
  the linkages between technological resources and
  company objectives and that technology management
  requires effective management processes
• R. Phaal identifies technology roadmapping as one
  the most important tools for technology
  management.
• Bridges the gap between technical and commercial
  aspect

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Theory Technology management

• Roadmap - efficient tool for technology
  management
• Betters communication between commercial and
  technical sides
• Contributes to integration of business and
  technology and to the definition of technology
  strategy

27
Theory Technology management

• Levin et al study on technology management
  routines
• Technology managers in various companies
  identified the following routines as vital for
  technology management

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Theory Technology management

• 24 Critical Technology Management Issues by Scott
  et al (2000)

1.Strategic planning for technology
products 2.New Product Project Selection 3.Organiz
ational Learning about technology 4.Technology
Core Competencies 5.Cycle Time Reduction 6.Creatin
g a Conducive Culture 7.Coordination and
Management of NPD teams 8.Technology Trends and
Paradigm Shifts 9.Involvement of Marketing
Groups 10Customer Supplier Involvement 11.Senior
Managers Involvement in Technology 12.Soft
Skills for Technical Personnel
13.Organization Structure for RD 14.Alliances/Par
tnerships Between Technology Companies 15.Within-C
ompany Technology Diffusion and Transfer 16.Using
High-Tech for Competitive Advantage 17.Involvement
of Manufacturing in NPD 18.Globalization of
Product Development Processes 19.Resource
Allocations to High-Tech Activities 20.Establishin
g a Technology Vision 21.Productivity of
Product Development Activities 22.Rewarding and
Educating Technical Personnel 23.Project
Continuance/Discontinuance 24.Oversight of
High-Tech Activities
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Results - conclusions

• Strengts in TM
• Acknowledged importance of technology management
• Identified importance of front end stage in
  direction of technology development
• TMs objective to find, study and suggest
  technologies for Mobile Mediagateways roadmap
  discussion is the same idealogy as in ISAEP and
  FFE processes.
• Use of technology roadmapping as long term
  planning
• Chosen elements and the objective of TM is very
  much managing technology from technical
  perspective, but not necessary technology
  management as perceived in literature.

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Results - conclusions

• Weaknesses in TM (1/2)
• TM has misunderstood the concept of technology
  management to some extent business/commercial
  aspect lacking
• Integration of strategic level and operative
  level of Fuzzy Front End not working
• Communication between Product management and TM
  not effective..TM unaware of all product
  managements activities
• Product management (commercial aspect) not enough
  capable in technical matters and thereby is
  unable make balanced decisions

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Results - conclusions

• Weaknesses in TM (2/2)
• Technology management routines and issues are
  present in M-MGws innovation process but not
  identified and managed as whole
• Technology management importance as managing the
  balance between technology push and market pull,
  and integrating and managing ISAEP processes not
  acknowledged and understood
• Fuzzy Front End really Fuzzy no gate management
  or other methods

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Results - conclusion

• Future development direction of TM is suggested
  to be
• implementing the full aspect of technology
  management as integrator of commercial and
  technological sides
• and serve through TMs technological expertise,
  and knowledge on commercial aspect to guide the
  factors that control Mediagateways eventual
  direction.
• This happens by
• Creating better interfaces and relations with
• Product Management and other commercially valid
  units inside Ericsson
• Market (customers) .
• Managing technology roadmap to input product and
  technology direction
• Creating technology strategy linked to business
  strategy
• Identify and mangage activities in ISAEP
  processes

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Results -suggestions

• Fuzzy front-end
• Start applying a systemized and controlled
  approach to front end since product development
  is about incremental innovation
• Direct market involvement in the technical side
• Early prototyping with customers
• Lead user method considered
• Direct contact to sales and marketing unit
• Include business thinking in research and manage
  the level of control
• Study whether Fuzzy Front End would need more
  effort and money
• Currently little over 7 of budget goes to Fuzzy
  Front End

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Results - suggestions

• Technology management
• Identify and manage means of communication
  between commercial and technical sides
• Identify market pull in order to manage the
  balance between market pull and technology push
• Identify technology management activities and
  manage them in ISAEP processes
• Involvement and input to project selection (last
  phase before NPD)
• Centrepiece of technology management
• Create own technology roadmap for long term
  planning
• Include foresighting in long term roadmapping
  (TSA)
• Create technology strategy and link it to
  business strategy
• Understand product strategy (e.g. What is
  platforms defining technology)

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Questions?
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Results -suggestions

• Lead user method (Von Hippel)
• 1.
• Laying the foundation by identifying the target
  market and the type and level of innovations
  desired by key stakeholders within the company
• 2.
• Determining technology trends by inquiring from
  the experts from the field that they are
  exploring
• 3.
• Identifying lead users by networking process to
  identify and learn from users at the leading edge
  of the target market and related markets.
• Group member collect information that helps them
  to identify especially promising innovation and
  ideas that might contribute to the development of
  breakthrough products. Teams already become
  forming preliminary product ideas and to assess
  the business potential of theses concepts.
• 4.
• Developing the breakthroughs by developing the
  preliminary concepts toward completion. The team
  hosts a workshop with several lead users, a
  half-dozen in-house marketing and technical
  people, and the lead user team itself.