Technology Scouting Implementation Masterclass

Inquire about in-company training.

Call 781-891-8080 for more information.

Category: Inhouse Training Tags: JayPaap, Open Innovation

Why Technology Scouting is Important — How to Derive Maximum Benefit

Procter & Gamble’s CEO, Alan G. Lafley, was renowned for declaring over ten years ago that “half the company’s ideas must come from the outside” — a radical idea at the time. Indeed, P&G became one of the foremost leaders in external technology and innovation scouting, a position which continues to pay off. Going outside can both speed up and improve technical development, free up scarce internal resources for other high-impact activities, and lead to greater innovation as well as entry into new markets.

Most firms today recognize the importance of open innovation (OI) and technology scouting — the challenge is translating the promise into profitable reality. Many begin their journey with the simple goal of filling gaps in their development skill-set, driven primarily by the need to implement approved projects in a timely way. They quickly learn that this tactical perspective, while adding value, limits the potential of external scouting. The real value comes from making OI and tech scouting an integral part of a long-term growth strategy and innovation culture.

Common implementation challenges include:

How do we set up a formal scouting program and mesh it with other development initiatives?
When do we scout – how do we gain strategic benefits beyond gap-filling?
Where do we look and how do we assess what we find?
What is success and how do we measure it?
How do we transfer technical know-how once we decide to go forward?

This interactive, practical, and example-filled workshop is designed to help those seeking maximum business impact and payback from scouting. Drawing on Dr. Paap’s deep expertise and 40+ years of experience, this highly-rated course is widely considered the definitive one on the subject. By attending you will come away with a practical guide to forming and managing a world-class scouting program. You will know how to cultivate an open culture, and how to choose and successfully integrate new technologies and opportunities.

Workshop Objective – Accelerate and Increase Scouting Return on Investment

The purpose of this two-day session is to give you proven tools and planning frameworks that you can immediately use to accelerate your development efforts and promote a more innovative product portfolio. Our goal is to help you develop the skills that will allow you and your team to effectively leverage internal technical capabilities by selectively going outside to meet strategic objectives.

12 Key Benefits

By participating, you will come away with an action plan to set up or improve your organization’s scouting program. Specifically, you will learn how to:

Implement a structured, focused approach; learn what best-in-class companies are doing
Define your scouting strategy, know when it makes the most sense to go outside
Apply insights about external technology options to stimulate ideas and speed development
Select the best technology to match your needs – both current and future
Re-purpose or divest homegrown technologies not providing a return
Anticipate and proactively use technology disruption to gain market leadership
Effectively use databases, brokers, crowdsourcing, user-based innovation, and trade shows
Expand the benefit of trade shows and customer visits through better prep for your team
Develop a comprehensive Sourcing Strategy using the Technology Sourcing Matrix
Find unexpected technology nuggets; uncover opportunities before your competition
Choose and structure the most favorable arrangement (alliance, license, acquisition, joint development, and/or spin-out)
Rapidly commercialize new ideas and go to market

8 Key Deliverables

Technology Sourcing Matrix
Competitive intelligence gathering tools
Suggested resources to tap for new technologies
Comparative best practices from leading firms, what works and what doesn’t
Comprehensive reference materials including list (with links) of intermediaries, brokers, databases and more to share with others at your organization
Guidelines for developing an implementation action plan
New network of peers and community to continue sharing ideas as well as partnership opportunities
Ongoing access to Dr. Paap for answers to your questions as you implement

Day One: Focusing Your Scouting Program

Too often firms look outside in an ad hoc fashion merely to fill a technology gap. Scouting can provide much more than gap filling, however. It offers true strategic advantage and can drive innovation in surprising new ways — if you know when to scout, and if you develop the right skills and tools. On Day One we will discuss the nature of innovation and when & how information about external technologies (scouting) can help you meet or exceed customer needs. You will learn to structure an effective program for your organization and identify 6 key areas where scouting has the most impact.

7:30-8:15 am Registration and Continental Breakfast

8:15-9:45 am The Logic of External Sourcing: How it Provides Value

The starting point of innovation – information not ideas
Sticky information – the challenges to finding information you need
Why past success can be a barrier to innovation
How scouting and crowd sourcing can help

9:45-10:00 am Refreshment break

10:00-12:00 pm Technology Scouting: What It Is and How It Works

Scouting defined – the three basic elements of scouting
Scouting and Open Innovation
Organizational considerations
Keys to effective scouting
Measuring success – how you know you are providing value

12:00-1:00 pm Luncheon

1:00-2:15 pm Knowing When to Scout, Six Key Areas of Impact

You have a gap to fill – accelerate development by leveraging skills of others
Problem solving – find innovative solutions for you or your customers using APE™
The sourcing strategy – strategically balance internal and external sourcing

2:15-2:25 pm Coffee break

2:25-3:45 pm Knowing When to Scout (continued)

Scenario planning – position yourself for the possible future
Technology forecasting – avoid being surprised by ‘Disruptive Technologies”
Find new applications for your technology – for diversification base or sale

4:00-5:00 pm Visit &Tour – Cambridge Innovation Center

5:15-6:15 pm Beer, wine & cheese reception

Day Two: Making Technology Scouting Work

Knowing when and why to scout is just the start, you also need tools to find, assess, and act on technology trends and capabilities. Day two deals with the tools: Where to look, how to use conferences, trade shows, networks, and crowd sourcing to complement online searches. The best ways to tap into universities, government labs, entrepreneurial firms, and other places where technology is being developed and applied in new ways. How to weigh the pros & cons of internal development versus external sourcing — and if you bring in technology, what arrangement makes the most sense and how do you best structure deals. The session ends with an open discussion about specific challenges participants face and how workshop leanings can be applied.

7:30-8:15 am Continental Breakfast

8:15-10:00 am Identifying Technology Sources

Sources of information – selected Competitive Technical

Intelligence tools geared to the open innovation model

Developing a search strategy using the QAIS™ framework
Keys to finding the right technology – mistakes to avoid

10:00-10:15 am Coffee break

10:15-12:00 pm Identifying Technology Sources (continued)

Scouting at conferences – using the FISH™ framework
Strategies for using the internet and databases
Less common sources: venture capitalists and crowd sourcing
Overview of commonly used resources

12:00-1:00 pm Luncheon talk – Randall Wright, Program Manager, MIT Industrial Liaison Program

1:00-2:15 pm Managing the Transfer

Key steps in collaborative relationships

Structural options for leveraging external technology: licenses,

alliances, acquisitions, spin-offs, and contracting

The Alliance Strategy Process – a framework™ for managing external relationships
Working with universities and government labs
Managing Intellectual property – assigning value, attributing credit,

and protecting your interests

2:15-2:30 pm Coffee break

2:30-4:30 pm Organizational Challenges to External Sourcing

Promoting a culture of cooperation
Overcoming internal barriers to collaboration
Making it work back home – challenges raised by session attendees
Summary of key learnings and wrap up

Jay Paap is President of Paap Associates and is one of Management Roundtable’s most highly rated instructors. He also serves on the faculty of the Executive Program at The Sloan School (MIT), led executive workshops for the Industrial Relations Center at Caltech and Haas School, Cal Berkeley, is a Fellow of The Society of Competitive Intelligence Professionals, and a PDMA Certified New Product Development Professional. He received his Ph.D. from MIT’s Sloan School of Management with concentrations in technology management and organization design.

Dr. Paap is a much respected and sought-after speaker at workshops and conferences around the globe; he is the co-author of ‘Anticipating Disruptive Innovation’ which received the Maurice Holland award as the best practice article in Research Technology Management.

He has been active in the management of technology for almost 50 years, and has consulted with industrial and governmental organizations for over 40 years. Prior to founding Paap Associates, Jay was Partner at Data and Strategies Group, Principal at Ampersand Ventures, Director of Corporate Consulting at Venture Economics, and Associate Director of the Technology Management Group at Pugh-Roberts Associates. Before entering consulting, Jay was an officer in the US Air Force, responsible for developing and deploying advanced electronics equipment.

In 1992 he founded and ran the Commercialization Roundtable in which senior business development managers from major companies met every two or three months through 1995 to share experiences on open innovation and develop best practices concerning how major corporations can effectively commercialize new technology based concepts and businesses. Among the members of the Roundtable were AT&T, Digital, Dow, DuPont, GTE, IBM, MCC, Motorola, and Xerox.

Just a few of the rave reviews this course has received…

“Best [workshop] I’ve been to in years.”

Rich Marando
Director Technology and Innovation
Dana Corporation Structural Solutions Group

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“This is a valuable tool for corporate planning and an essential competition tool. In two days, an exceptional amount of valuable material was presented and explained.”

Len Jenkins,
VP Technology Development
Crown Technology
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“Excellent job of [providing] insights on how a technology scout can contribute.”

Tom Mildenhall
Technology Scout
Kimberly-Clark
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“Session provided key elements of tech scouting and outsourcing needed in our R&D program.”

Mike Goettel
Engineering Manager
Blount Inc.

This two-day session is recommended for those involved in technology and product innovation for growth and long-term competitiveness. It is ideal for VPs, Directors and Managers of Innovation, Scouting, Global Sourcing, Advanced Technology Development/R&D, Strategy, Marketing, and Business Development from all industries. Multidisciplinary teams are encouraged to attend together for greater traction. Whether you are new to scouting or experienced, you will receive valuable insights enabling you to achieve greater results sooner.

Attendance is limited so that Dr. Paap can provide hands-on guidance to all participants. Reserve early!

This course is available for in-company training. Call 781-891-8080 for more information.