South-Westphalia University of Applied Sciences Campus Soest Prof. B.

Bitzer

Questionnaire Innovation Management in Industry

EU-Project

INNOPSE
Innovation Studio and Exemplary Developments for Product Service Engineering

Version 1.4 22.08.2002

INNOPSE Innovation studio and Exemplary Developments for Product Service Engineering is an RTD project in the GROWTH programme supported by the European commission. INNOPSE objectives: In general Service Engineering is not a part of conventional engineering education. This shortcoming in the academic curriculum further extends to the education in postgraduate qualification courses and training in companies. Only large organisations have the resources to introduce a systematic development process for service innovations. The experience acquired in service innovation world wide, especially from bigger companies should be made available and suitable for the needs of SMEs. This is the aim of the INNOPSE project. Purpose of this questionnaire is to gather the information and experiences of companies who have successfully realised the innovation management. The information gathered by way of this questionnaire shall serve as the research basis for evaluating whether the successful innovation management techniques adopted in large companies is transferable as a whole or transferable with needed changes / adoptions of to scale of operations to small and medium size enterprises. In this questionnaire the main focus is to analyse organisation, industry and work place layout in the innovation management. Further focus is to identify the tools and methods adopted in the framework of innovation management by the successfully innovating companies. Confidentiality Although this questionnaire requests your company name and other specific information this is only for our purposes and will not be passed on to third parties or attributed directly in any public way.

Company Data: Company name and address: Contact person (incl. email or phone):

Type of industry: Financial services IT-Technology Service generally Mechanical engineering Number of employees: Patent registrations:
<100

Automotive industry Electrical industry Telecommunication Pharmacy industry

100-250 250-500 500-1000

Construction Manufacturing Chemical industry Other

1000-1500 1500-3000 >3000

Never

Rarely

Regularly

What are the aims of innovation management in your company? (see organigram) Process evaluation Product evaluation Product service engineering No innovation management installed Which expectations do you put into an innovation management? (Please also answer this question, if you not perform innovation management.)

At which range from innovations does this questioning aim? In the following organization chart the structure is represented, on which we aligned this questionnaire. Under innovations we understand process innovations and product innovations.
Innovations

Process innovations
Production process will be optimised suitable suggestions are given to the R&D

Product innovations

Research and development (R&D) (product management) market research, analysis etc. Guidance circles / working groups Product development support by methods (e.g. WOIS/TRIZ)

Idea identification (Creativity techniques)

Intranet / Database

new product / system / product service employees (suggestions for improvement)

New product will be introduced.

process

patent registration

market

Level/Field for process innovations

Communication Idea and knowledge management.

Level/Field for product innovations

Definition: Innovation is the management procedure, which leads to the conversion of a new, useful idea from its emergence to successful practical application. Innovation can take place at products, manufacturing processes, services, in marketing, in the distribution, in the financial area, in the management, as well as in the structure and culture of an enterprise.
(Source: Arthur D. Little (Hrsg.): Management der Geschfte von Morgen, Wiesbaden 1987)

1 1.1

Basic questions Why was Innovation management introduced in your company?

1.2

State approximately the percentage of your innovation management work, relating to technical aspects of product services, from the following viewpoints fully automated system (e.g. computerised interrogation for faults and repair) % personnel based (support stuff, technicians or engineers) % What are the important issues in designing and providing the product service for these two types? fully automated systems:

personnel based:

1.3

Which requirements and needs (e.g. methodologies, tools, management structure and organisation) are necessary for a future innovation management with special reference to SME's?

1.4

Which restraints (limitations) exist for a future innovation management with special reference to SME's?

Participation details with reference to innovation management in your company? Departments How large is the division in which innovation management is implemented? (employees)
< 30 30-100 100-300 300-1000 >1000

2.1

How many departments are involved? Which departments?

2.2

Employee participation How many employees do take part? Average percentage of their job
% (man-hours)

2.3

External management consultants Were management consultants involved in the innovation management? No Yes
<10% 10-30% >30%

of the total process

3 3.1

Motivation / Achievement (rewards / employee incentive) Incentives in the area of process innovation
successfully implemented Premium pay Salary increase Coupons (e.g. meal, travel, etc. ) Other unsuccessfully implemented never implemented

Example(s):

3.2

Incentive in the area of product management

successfully implemented unsuccessfully implemented never implemented

Extension of promotion Public awards Salary increase Other

Example(s):

What staff development programs have been adopted company to enhance the innovation management process?

in

your

What measures have been adopted within your company to create a better work-environment to encourage innovation management?

6 6.1

Quality Assurance What kind of Quality Assurance process has been adopted in your company to support Innovation Management implementation?

6.2

How are staff errors / mistakes handled? (Multiple selections may be made)
employees foremen

Penalty Training for future avoidance Search for error-resulting processes (with their working-group) Other Example(s):

6.3

How are errors found? Reported by erring employee voluntarily Found otherwise Example(s):

6.4

What are the differences between critical- and insignificant-error handling?

7 Organisation / System / Realization of the innovation management 7.1 How are the ideas implemented? (Multiple selection may be made)
Never Rarely Generally Often Always

By management By employees From customers feedback By co-operation partners By selective research and development 7.2 Does a fixed structure exist for the innovation management? No Yes (Please furnish the innovation management line chart / structure / tasks.)
Management

Process innovations

Product innovations

(e.g.. Implementation Group task: Idea evaluation)

(e.g. R&D)

employees

Please refer to the Innovation line diagram at page No. 4 Please draw only the most important functions Further we request for a short problem description (keywords)

7.3

Do you have any regular meetings of certain working groups?

(concerns e.g. work or guidance circles as referred in line diagram on page No.4)

No Yes, every days weeks months 7.4 Methods in the development (PCI-emphasis on process innovation; PTI-emphasis on product innovation) Creativity techniques (Multiple selection may be made)
successfully used Brainstorming Method 635 Small card questioning Mind-Mapping Bionics Morphological box Attraction word analysis WOIScontradiction oriented Idea identification Other Other method(s): unsuccessful known, but not used not known PCI PTI

Use of moderators

Methods for innovation development within the area of product innovations

successfully used WOIS-contradiction Oriented Idea identification TRIZ* Other Other method(s): unsuccessful known, but not used not known

* TRIZ - TRIZ is an algorithmic approach based on a set of practical tools for inventing and solving technical problems.

7.5

Is software used as support for innovation development? (e.g. TechOptimizer based TRIZ-method) No Yes
TechOptimizer TriSolver Other Other software:

7.6

How are the ideas evaluated? (Multiple nomination possible) (PCI-emphasis in process innovation; PTI-emphasis in product innovation)
successfully used unsuccessful known, but not used not known PCI PTI

Chance risk analysis Possibility of error and Influence analysis (FMEAgerman shortcut) Cost benefit analysis

Competition analysis

Economic analysis

Business plan

7.7

Is software used in idea analysis? No Yes Example(s):

7.8

Which methods and tools do you think are particularly suitable for SME's?

7.9

In which phase of your product life cycle does the development of new products start?
Sales

Time Develop ment

Entry into the market

Growth

Market saturation

End of life

Please mark in the chart or below times scale and specify the portion in percent.

Other: (e.g. New product introduction depends on progress which was calculated before.)

8 8.1

Services Are services offered? No Yes Which services become offered? Product + Services Products (e.g. prognoses, forecasts, software production, support) We offer service products in our enterprise.

Portion of the entire product sold:

<10% 10-30% 30-50% 50-70% 70-100%

8.2

How important is innovation management for developing services? Not important Little important Sometimes important Often important Vital important

8.3

Which methods and tools do you think are particularly suitable for developing product services?

Contacts / Knowledge transfer

On Exhibitions never 1 2 3 4 5 always

Universities / Research centers By conferences To other companies (e.g. knowledge transfer between business partners)

10 Quality outcome from innovation management

never 1 2 3 4 5 always saved costs raised turnover because of new innovations market position improved

11 What do you think are the differences in innovation management for developing Traditional products and separate support services? Integrated product + services products?

12 Knowledge management 12.1 Do you use software for knowledge management ? (e.g. internet based solutions) No Yes, an existing software became adapted for the innovation management. Example(s):

Yes, commercial solutions are used. Example(s):

12.2 The utilisation of software for knowledge management is

Not useful 1 2 3 4 5 Absolutely necessary

13 Communication 13.1 The Intranet is an important component of communication in the innovation management.
that`s right 1 2 3 4 5 that`s wrong

13.2 Beside the regular communication we have further means of communication in our organisation. No Yes Company Newsletter Company-TV Other:

14 Literature / Reports / innovation management.

Presentations

Interesting

links

on

15 Other companies / institutions / universities engaged in innovation management.

Appendix:
Attraction word analysis Catch the attraction words, perform a short brainstorming, then conduct a detailed analysis of what you brainstormed. Principle: Determine new solution by coincidental attraction words. The bionics become also named as "analysis of natural systems". This method analyses the pool of constructions and nature procedures regarding suggestions for independent - technical shapes. It sights and transfers the models of nature, but it does not copy them. A method used to encourage the generation of new interpretations or view points. During brainstorming, one may try to come up with unconventional and divergent ideas. Related to Brainstorming. Here words are written down to enable further development of the ideas by other participants. The Business plan of an enterprise contains the entrepreneurial concept, the market potential, the strategy, as well as capital requirements. Moreover it is of utmost importance, especially for investors, that the plan provides convincing information in terms of the profit development in coming years. A method of determining the chances and risks concerning a fixed environment. Thereby global or specific surrounding fields can be the subject of the assessment. The term Chance- risk analysis is frequently used in the literature as a synonym for the environmental analysis. Method of measuring the benefits expected from a decision, calculating the cost of the decision, then determining whether the benefits outweigh the costs. Corporations use this method in deciding whether to invest or not. A generic term for methods in order to create new ideas or procedures, e.g. brainstorming, method 635. The study and understanding of trends, phenomena, and information that are economic in nature. Highly innovative companies construct a reward system which fosters creative behaviour, including the "dual ladder" system (both managerial and technical promotions), public recognition and financial bonuses.

Bionics

Brainstorming

Brainwriting

Business plan

Chances- risk analysis

Cost-benefit analysis

Creativity techniques Economic analysis Employee incentive

FMEA (Failure Modes and Effects Analysis)

Failure Modes and Effects Analysis is a method of predicting the consequences of failures in complex systems. A number of support tools have been developed to aid in the time-consuming process of performing FMEA's. The procedure of identifying the failure characteristics of individual components and determining the effects of those failures as they propagate across the systems in which they are embedded has been mainly a manual and expensive process. Powerful workstations and modern mathematical techniques are now making it possible to automate FMEA and make it a routine and affordable part of the engineering design process. This allows higher quality products to be produced faster, cheaper and more competitively. The method is based on brainwriting and is conceived for 6 persons. Each participant develops 3 ideas on a sheet of paper. These ideas are passed onto the neighbour sitting on the right. Subsequently, each participant develops 3 new ideas, based on the approaches of his neighbour. The procedure repeats itself 5 times. A Mind Map is a graphic technique for representing ideas, using words, images, symbols and colour. The method is based on patterns found in nature and research on how humans think and use their minds. The concept can lead to an increase in the efficiency of human thinking and a reduction of the complexity of problem.. The morphologic box is an order pattern, with which the problem is divided into its components. The analysis continues with the generation of diverse proposals regarding the implementation possibilities of each component. By combining the different implementation possibilities new solutions to the problem may arise. These innovations are developed mainly in the area of research and development. That can be new products, services, or other. Product + Services Products is a system, where the physical product is in close interaction with the service provided. Service can be: - product accompanying strategies (e.g. repair maintenance) - product substituting activities (e.g. renting, pooling, providing data, providing comfort) - result oriented activities (e.g. contracting, advising, consulting, training) A PSP System should be the optimal way of answering user needs.

Method 635

Mind-Mapping

Morphologic box

Product innovation

Product + Services Products

Process innovation

Process innovations are improvements for the optimisation of the process cycles within the production. Thereby quality improvements, cost savings or a work surrounding field improvement can be achieved.

Small card questioning

The map inquiry can be used for information collection in groups with more than 5 participants. A question is formulated and visualized at a pin board. All participants answer at the same time either alone, or in two party groups, by writing the answers on small cards. Then the maps are collected and processed together. TechOptimizer is a software, which is based on the TRIZ method. It contains or accesses data bases and supports the product development. TriSolver is a lower-priced alternative software to the TechOptimizer. It is based on the TRIZ method. The TRIZ-Method was developed by Genrich Altshuller from Russia and means "theory of inventive problem solving". The concept rests upon 40 principles for optimising the decision making. TRIZ is an algorithmic approach for solving technically complex problems based on inventive principles derived from the study of more than 1.5 million patents and inventions. The Contradiction-Oriented Innovation Strategy (WOIS) is a creativity and innovation strategy, originally developed for technical problem definitions, with which new products or processes are provoked. The elements of WOIS serve the strategic oriented direction finding in ambiguous situations, the contradiction oriented decision making for multidimensional problems and the paradox oriented innovation finding for contradicting demands. The purposeful use of strategic means of orientation may allow for benefiting from under-utilised development potentials.

TechOptimizer

TriSolver TRIZ-Method

WOIS