Ever wondered if your message is hanging out there waiting for takers? Well try communicating a different way. Jeffrey Phillips one of the best known names in innovation management has decided to take the novel route to communicating about the good and the deficient in enterprise innovation practice. We decided to serialise it as an Innovation noir.

Pulp Innovation Chapter LXXXIII: Big Impact

The results from the ethnography along with the scenario planning made a big impact on the Accipiter executives. A number of people entered the meeting as skeptics and left, if not as believers, with a different perspective. What does this triumph mean for Marlow and his innovation team? Find out in the conclusion of Pulp Innovation.

2019-10-15T15:11:20-07:00October 26th, 2012|Categories: Pulp Innovation, Serialized Book|Tags: , |

Pulp Innovation Chapter LXXXII: Shock and Awe

Marlow was well aware there was skepticism about the use of ethnography and observation as a way to suss out new product needs. He's intent to demonstrate just how valuable his team's work has been. He sets out to shock the Accipiter Executives with their approach and awe them with the results.

2019-10-15T15:11:23-07:00October 19th, 2012|Categories: Pulp Innovation, Serialized Book|Tags: , , |

Pulp Innovation Chapter LXXXI: Simple Innovation with a Big Impact

After watching the video footage of interviews with maintenance engineers, designers and installers, Marlow has identified at least three areas of potential need for further investigation. He suspects there are tools and procedures that can be created to simplify the work, or a simple redesign that could make all the difference.

2019-10-15T15:11:24-07:00October 12th, 2012|Categories: Pulp Innovation, Serialized Book|Tags: , |

Pulp Innovation Chapter LXXX: Ethnography Insights

The Accipiter innovation team conducts their first field observation and everyone is impressed with the insights gained in just a few hours. The enthusiasm builds and many are ready to start idea generation after one visit, but Marlow asks them to document everything and keep an open mind and no pre-conceived notions for the next visits.

Pulp Innovation Chapter LXXIX: The Dreaded Progress Report

Just as the Accipiter innovation team starts catching their stride, an executive requests a report on their results. Having to spend time creating reports which remind executives that it will take several months to get the project off the ground takes time and focus away from the real work, and sparks questions in even the most committed team members mind. How will Marlow proceed?

2019-10-15T15:11:27-07:00September 28th, 2012|Categories: Pulp Innovation, Serialized Book|Tags: , |

Pulp Innovation Chapter LXXVIII: Ethnographic Field Trip

Marlow prepares his team to head out into the field to observe the behavior of people using Accipiter's products as part of a larger product or service. When he receives resistance from a team member who believes in the statistical significance of surveys, he asks everyone to go into this with an open mind and the right attitude. He hopes to identify unmet or unspoken needs and identify behaviors that can lead to new opportunities.

2019-10-15T15:11:29-07:00September 21st, 2012|Categories: Pulp Innovation, Serialized Book|Tags: , , |

Pulp Innovation Chapter LXXV: Who is the Customer?

While forming a plan of action for a business to business firm, Marlowe faces the dilemma of figuring out who is the nominal customer. Do they take for granted that their intermediate customers know their markets, and respond to their needs, or do they reach out and understand the end consumers’ needs?

2019-10-15T15:11:33-07:00August 31st, 2012|Categories: Pulp Innovation, Serialized Book|Tags: , |

Pulp Innovation Chapter LXXIV: Gaining More Customer Insight

Marlowe and his team-mates sit down with an endless stack of customer satisfaction surveys and market research, however none of the documents paint the full picture they're looking for. The reports explain a lot about what existing customers think about existing products, but they don’t shed much light on their unmet needs. So the team starts to draft a proposal for ethnographic or qualitative research that will help uncover beneficial insights.

2019-10-15T15:11:34-07:00August 24th, 2012|Categories: Pulp Innovation, Serialized Book|Tags: , |

Pulp Innovation Chapter LXXIII: Opportunities & Threats

With three competing scenarios mapped out based on different market trends, Marlowe buckles down with the Accipiter team to identify the opportunities and threats among them. The next important steps towards developing new products depend on the unfolding opportunities identified in this process.

2019-10-15T15:11:35-07:00August 17th, 2012|Categories: Pulp Innovation, Serialized Book|Tags: , |

Pulp Innovation Chapter LXXI: Well Stocked for Opportunities

When the crew from Marlowe Innovation meets for lunch they review their recent projects and new clients. With more requests for innovation training, they realize that many firms are discovering that they can bring in house a lot of the work they’ve outsourced to the bigger consultancies.

2019-10-15T15:11:37-07:00August 4th, 2012|Categories: Pulp Innovation, Serialized Book|Tags: , |

Pulp Innovation Chapter LXX: What if the Scenario is Wrong?

When concerns are raised that Accipiter's scenarios might be wrong or perhaps placing too much emphasis on the wrong market, Marlow must step in to provide encouragement. The point of scenarios isn’t necessarily to be able to predict the actual future, but to identify discontinuities and anticipate them, and bring new needs or opportunities to light.

2019-10-15T15:11:39-07:00July 27th, 2012|Categories: Pulp Innovation, Serialized Book|Tags: , , |

Pulp Innovation Chapter LXIX: The Foursight Model

Scenario Planning never fails to identify one or two people who seemed promising on the surface but can’t, or won’t, extend their minds into more ambiguous situations. When Marlow and Susan discover that a member of their innovation team is uncomfortable in her position and holding the team back, they discuss how to assign the ideal role for each employee.

2019-10-15T15:11:40-07:00July 20th, 2012|Categories: Pulp Innovation, Serialized Book|Tags: , |