Core to the success of my work with the Futuring and Innovation Center at ACS was filling our work group with brilliant people. To achieve successful rapid program prototyping we had a system, but that system relied on input and insight from a diverse committee. Over the course of 6 years we prototyped 13 marketing programs, all of them ahead of their time, produced in under 18 months and for under $35,000. Some of them were monumental successes, and some of them never left the prototype stage, serving as valuable learning lessons.
I have had a few requests from friends to catalog the development process we used, and I have below the fold. It is nothing groundbreaking, just a modified Stage-Gate development structure modeled after the Shell Oil Game-Changer system. If you have question about the process please feel free to comment, or send an e-mail.
Spring Board Stage Gate
Innovation Development Process:
Step One. Discovery:
Gather submitted business concept descriptions in either open submission or in reference to a call for proposal on a targeted organizational challenge. Pass gate one automatically.
Step Two. Scoping:
The Futuring and Innovation Center (FIC) team gives the concept an initial review against its funding criteria: Scalability, Sustainability, Cost Basis, Defined ROI (income or exposure), Tie To Organizational Mission, Capacity for Execution. If the concept satisfies the criteria pass gate two.
Step Three. Business Case:
Once approved, the Innovation submitter is paired with a Mentor from the FIC Team. The Innovator, with the assistance of their Mentor, drafts a business plan of their concept prototype. The business plans will thoroughly overview the mission, goals, evaluation tools / metrics and resources for the prototype. The business plan is the formal application for Springboard funding. FIC Mentor will present the business plan to the FIC Team and serve as liaison to the Innovator during the funding consideration discussions. If the business plan passes the review by the FIC Team pass gate three.
Step Four: Market Research
If the business plan receives approval, the FIC will request the innovator commission a market research study to determine what demand exists for their concept. If demand can be quantified, the concept will be funded per the business plan budget and FIC approval. Pass gate four.
Step Five: Development and Testing.
Innovators whose business plan is approved receive funding and support to create a rapid prototype to prove their concept. The time frame is 18 months. Funding is based on the business plan budget with an upper limit of $25,000. The Mentor and the FIC staff work with the Innovator during prototype development to provide feedback no less frequently than each quarter. Upon completion of the rapid prototype process and period, the FIC team reviews the final outcomes. If outcomes favor national implementation out pass gate five..
Step Six: Launch:
If chosen for implementation, the FIC team works closely with the Innovator and nation leadership to identify the department best suited to deliver the program to market, and arrange a smooth transition and success of the new program.
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