Managing New Products and Innovation real-life lessons from running a venture and corporate lab Vishy Poosala Founder & CTO – Geopepper.com, Head of Bell Labs – India Sept, 2008

Topics covered managing innovation within organizations; applying innovation to new products generating product roadmaps, involving customers in evolving go-to-market strategies; securing innovation With the backdrop of Geopepper case study

.. Like Fish need water Every organization needs to innovate or it will perish . Entrepreneur: You need that differentiator, especially if you are not the first. Corporations: Have to constantly fight the entrepreneurs in a garage plotting to kill your business. Fight hard against going after safe directions.

Every organization needs to innovate or it will perish .

Entrepreneur: You need that differentiator, especially if you are not the first.

Corporations: Have to constantly fight the entrepreneurs in a garage plotting to kill your business.

Fight hard against going after safe directions.

Innovation: Doing something NEW Business Product

Managing / Encouraging innovation in companies “it’s in the genes” “it can not be taught in a classroom” ? “ it can be put in a manual” “ it can be presented in this talk”

“it’s in the genes”

“it can not be taught in a classroom”

“ it can be put in a manual”

“ it can be presented in this talk”

Riding Horses to Innovation You can’t make the horse drink, but you CAN lead it to the water.

Our case study: Geopepper.com / an Alcatel-Lucent Venture from Bell Labs Geographic Messaging Service (GMS) Deliver content around where you are. Innovations: World was doing PULL. We enabled PUSH. SMS  MMS  GMS

Leading to innovation: Team 90%  Hire the right stars; 10%  Create the environment Team work Nothing big gets done individually (mostly). So learn to love your team. Write limericks? Mix them up expertise in software, mathematics, networks, human factors, cynic, optimist Don’t pigeonhole people Test lead has become our lead AJAX guru developer Passionately believe in what you are trying to do (or don’t do it) Belief that GMS could become as wide as SMS

90%  Hire the right stars; 10%  Create the environment

Team work

Nothing big gets done individually (mostly). So learn to love your team. Write limericks?

Mix them up

expertise in software, mathematics, networks, human factors, cynic, optimist

Don’t pigeonhole people

Test lead has become our lead AJAX guru developer

Passionately believe in what you are trying to do (or don’t do it)

Belief that GMS could become as wide as SMS

Leading to innovation: Environment Focus on the workspace moved from office rooms into a common lab Keep it casual, PLAY, ping pong, barbecues, treasure hunts, free food Get outside, Recognize problems Brainstorm freely Takes notes. Encourage disagreements. Walk out with a conclusion Expect and Recognize mistakes What did we get right the first time? (answer: only the team)

Focus on the workspace

moved from office rooms into a common lab

Keep it casual, PLAY,

ping pong, barbecues, treasure hunts, free food

Get outside, Recognize problems

Brainstorm freely

Takes notes. Encourage disagreements. Walk out with a conclusion

Expect and Recognize mistakes

What did we get right the first time? (answer: only the team)

Leading to innovation: Organization Create fast tracks for disruptive innovations Ventures division, tiger teams Kill all signs of hierarchy Founder just means that he got suckered in from Day 1  Stay fresh Entrepreneur bootcamps Bring in the young and the restless on open days

Create fast tracks for disruptive innovations

Ventures division, tiger teams

Kill all signs of hierarchy

Founder just means that he got suckered in from Day 1 

Stay fresh

Entrepreneur bootcamps

Bring in the young and the restless on open days

.. But stay focused on the goal Too many ideas acted upon will distract. Learn to kill ideas that don’t matter Even innovation can be mostly put on a plan and tracked Ops reviews, project plans, success metrics, tracking, CUSTOMERS Controlled Chaos

Too many ideas acted upon will distract.

Learn to kill ideas that don’t matter

Even innovation can be mostly put on a plan and tracked

Ops reviews, project plans, success metrics, tracking, CUSTOMERS

Controlled Chaos

Involve customers from Day 1

Get Real about your Customers KNOW who your customer is (like, name, address, face, issues) Observe them in real life Create use cases. Very detailed. With names of real people against it. Talk to them.

KNOW who your customer is (like, name, address, face, issues)

Observe them in real life

Create use cases. Very detailed. With names of real people against it.

Talk to them.

Customer is your partner from Day 0 In concept stage Focus groups even before the product concept is finalized Product roadmapping Have a customer or customer proxy on the team Best is if YOU are a likely customer Testing Viral, social marketing

In concept stage

Focus groups even before the product concept is finalized

Product roadmapping

Have a customer or customer proxy on the team

Best is if YOU are a likely customer

Testing

Viral, social marketing

Prototype. Junk it. Then prototype again. Ad infinitum. Launch a prototype within the first quarter to team and friends LISTEN Launch another prototype to friends of friends. They love you less. LISTEN more carefully.  Launch a public prototype. Act on EVERY customer request and feedback. But don’t always think they will tell you everything. Use your intuition.

Launch a prototype within the first quarter to team and friends

LISTEN

Launch another prototype to friends of friends.

They love you less. LISTEN more carefully. 

Launch a public prototype.

Act on EVERY customer request and feedback.

But don’t always think they will tell you everything. Use your intuition.

A-B-Cs of Product Roadmapping A: Can’t drive the car without it B: Would consider paying for that A/C C: Will take it if it’s free

A: Can’t drive the car without it

B: Would consider paying for that A/C

C: Will take it if it’s free

Roadmap: Keep it simple. Feature release, Quarterly release, Major bug fixes, etc etc. Do Quarterly releases. At least after your first release. AVOID feature creep. Everything takes at least twice longer than you think. Document it. Paste it on the wall. Don’t miss the obvious and the low hanging fruit in the market

Feature release, Quarterly release, Major bug fixes, etc etc.

Do Quarterly releases. At least after your first release.

AVOID feature creep. Everything takes at least twice longer than you think.

Document it. Paste it on the wall.

Don’t miss the obvious and the low hanging fruit in the market

New product introduction: Pick up Geoffrey Moore’s first book 

Securing innovation Don’t talk too much. Do it. [it’s very hard to shut up when you know a secret!] File for a provisional patent as early as you can [$100] File for all worthy patents. Even if only for defensive purposes. Don’t innovate just for the sake of innovation or patents. FOCUS on business and customer needs

Don’t talk too much. Do it. [it’s very hard to shut up when you know a secret!]

File for a provisional patent as early as you can [$100]

File for all worthy patents. Even if only for defensive purposes.

Don’t innovate just for the sake of innovation or patents. FOCUS on business and customer needs

Case Study of an Internal Venture T0: Idea for a sensor-based disaster detection and geographic alerting system (!) 2: Idea for a geographic alerting system [Be realistic and Start simple. Simple is already too much]. Technical challenges and solutions identified. 4: Idea and biz case for a geographic mobile marketing application . Venture is funded. 5: Recruited the core team . Identify remote partners. Move to a lab. 6: First prototype . Mad dash to lab at night to reboot a PC. Demo kinda works. 8: Idea changes to Social networking 10: First social networking app Alpha launch. 60 users. They get it but not really 12: Professional graphics , re-architeted system, launch to the world. 14: Idea broadens to platform 16: Launch 2 award winning apps with REAL customers 18: Keeping it THAT innovative and dynamic will be an even bigger challenge next

T0: Idea for a sensor-based disaster detection and geographic alerting system (!)

2: Idea for a geographic alerting system [Be realistic and Start simple. Simple is already too much]. Technical challenges and solutions identified.

4: Idea and biz case for a geographic mobile marketing application . Venture is funded.

5: Recruited the core team . Identify remote partners. Move to a lab.

6: First prototype . Mad dash to lab at night to reboot a PC. Demo kinda works.

8: Idea changes to Social networking

10: First social networking app Alpha launch. 60 users. They get it but not really

12: Professional graphics , re-architeted system, launch to the world.

14: Idea broadens to platform

16: Launch 2 award winning apps with REAL customers

18: Keeping it THAT innovative and dynamic will be an even bigger challenge next

Lessons Great team . Rather, great individuals who grew into a great team. Office room to Lab had huge impact on communications First idea usually sucks in retrospect. Change . Recognize when you are drinking too much of your own kool-aid and listen to bad news Patent everything, but build too Prototype from Day 1 Involve customers from Day 0 Have FUN creating something NEW and NEVER ignore your gut feeling.

Great team . Rather, great individuals who grew into a great team.

Office room to Lab had huge impact on communications

First idea usually sucks in retrospect. Change .

Recognize when you are drinking too much of your own kool-aid and listen to bad news

Patent everything, but build too

Prototype from Day 1

Involve customers from Day 0

Have FUN creating something NEW and NEVER ignore your gut feeling.

Recommended reading Inside Steve’s Brain The art of innovation Crossing the chasm Calvin & Hobbes Innovator’s dilemma and solution Iving Stone’s bio of Michelangelo Patent it Yourself (NOLO) and Patent Pending in 24 hrs

Inside Steve’s Brain

The art of innovation

Crossing the chasm

Calvin & Hobbes

Innovator’s dilemma and solution

Iving Stone’s bio of Michelangelo

Patent it Yourself (NOLO) and Patent Pending in 24 hrs