Comprehensive Innovation and its Implications on New High-Tech Product Development

Nowadays, innovation represents an essential ingredient within organizations for their survival in a strong competitive marketplace. Innovations emerging from R&D projects could represent key factors for the foundation of new businesses. Various supporting programs for establishing innovative start-ups within business incubators, as well as spin-offs within uni-versities are promoted by authorities at local and national levels. Statistics have shown that only a small percentage of these initiatives (around 30%) succeed to survive more than three years. There are various causes which keep the success rate only at this level, but a major one is the lack in understanding the complex nature of innovation by the people which initiate these businesses; they are mainly focused on technological innovation (product innovation). This paper is going to give a broader perspective on innovation, seeing it as an integrated model of product innovation, marketing innovation, production process innovation and business model innovation over their life-cycles. From this enhanced view of innovation, conse-quences on new product development are further analysed.innovation, spin-off, new product development, life-cycle model

A General Approach of Quality Cost Management Suitable for Effective Implementation in Software Systems

Investments in quality are best quantified by implementing and managing quality cost systems. A review of various opinions coming from practitioners and researchers about the existent quality cost models reveals a set of drawbacks (e.g. too theoretical and too close to ideal cases; too academic, with less practical impact; too much personalized to particular business processes, with difficulties in extrapolating to other cases; not comprising all dimensions of a business system). Using concepts and tools in quality management theory and practice and algorithms of innovative problem solving, this paper formulates a novel approach to improve practical usability, comprehensiveness, flexibility and customizability of a quality cost management system (QCMS) when implementing it in a specific software application. Conclusions arising from the implementation in real industrial cases are also highlighted.Quality Costs, Performance Planning and Monitoring, Quality Management, Quality Cost Software

Enhancing SWOT Analysis with TRIZ-based Tools to Integrate Systematic Innovation in Early Task Design

AbstractSWOT analysis is the classical tool for framing the key elements towards problem design/development in various fields of activity and at various levels of interest (e.g. leadership, strategy, production process, marketing, product development, distribution, business model, operational management, etc.). Revealing the major strengths, weaknesses, threads and opportunities does not necessarily lead to an effective project formulation. Key pieces of information are usually missing in the classical SWOT analysis, like the relevance of each strength, weakness, thread and opportunity in meeting the intended vision and targets, as well as compatibility of the elements. A structured framework for setting up a comprehensive SWOT analysis is introduced in this paper. TRIZ-based tools are part of this framework for defining reliable solutions to various barriers and conflicting problems emerging from SWOT elements. This framework brings innovation in the early phase of the planning process of the envisaged system, thus minimizing the risk to define low effective areas of intervention. A case study on process improvement demonstrates the relevance of the proposed approach

A General Approach of Quality Cost Management Suitable for Effective Implementation in Software Systems

Investments in quality are best quantified by implementing and managing quality cost systems. A review of various opinions coming from practitioners and researchers about the existent quality cost models reveals a set of drawbacks (e.g. too theoretical and too close to ideal cases; too academic, with less practical impact; too much personalized to particular business processes, with difficulties in extrapolating to other cases; not comprising all dimensions of a business system). Using concepts and tools in quality management theory and practice and algorithms of innovative problem solving, this paper formulates a novel approach to improve practical usability, comprehensiveness, flexibility and customizability of a quality cost management system (QCMS) when implementing it in a specific software application. Conclusions arising from the implementation in real industrial cases are also highlighted

Systematic Integration of Innovation in Process Improvement Projects Using the Enhanced Sigma-TRIZ Algorithm and Its Effective Use by Means of a Knowledge Management Software Platform

In an evolving, highly turbulent and uncertain socio-economic environment, organizations must consider strategies of systematic and continuous integration of innovation within their business systems, as a fundamental condition for sustainable development. Adequate methodologies are required in this respect. A mature framework for integrating innovative problem solving approaches within business process improvement methodologies is proposed in this paper. It considers a TRIZ-centred algorithm in the improvement phase of the DMAIC methodology. The new tool is called enhanced sigma-TRIZ. A case study reveals the practical application of the proposed methodology. The integration of enhanced sigma-TRIZ within a knowledge management software platform (KMSP) is further described. Specific developments to support processes of knowledge creation, knowledge storage and retrieval, knowledge transfer and knowledge application in a friendly and effective way within the KMSP are also highlighted.Process Innovation, Knowledge Management Software Platform, Innovative Problem Solving Methodology, sigma-TRIZ, DMAIC

Reconfigurability Function Deployment in Software Development

In the forthcoming highly dynamic and complex business environment high-speed and cost-effective development of software applications for targeting a precise, unique and momentary set of requirements (no more-no less) associated to a customized business case will bring sig-nificant benefits both for producers and users. This requires a life cycle change-oriented ap-proach in software development. In this respect, designing software with intrinsic evolutionary resources for reconfiguration represents the sound approach. A methodology for concurrent deployment of reconfigurability characteristics in software applications is introduced in this paper. Its potential is exemplified in a case study dealing with web-based software tools to support systematic product innovation projects.Reconfigurability, Software Development, Innovation, TRIZ, RAD

Systematic Integration of Innovation in Process Improvement Projects Using the Enhanced Sigma-TRIZ Algorithm and Its Effective Use by Means of a Knowledge Management Software Platform

In an evolving, highly turbulent and uncertain socio-economic environment, organizations must consider strategies of systematic and continuous integration of innovation within their business systems, as a fundamental condition for sustainable development. Adequate methodologies are required in this respect. A mature framework for integrating innovative problem solving approaches within business process improvement methodologies is proposed in this paper. It considers a TRIZ-centred algorithm in the improvement phase of the DMAIC methodology. The new tool is called enhanced sigma-TRIZ. A case study reveals the practical application of the proposed methodology. The integration of enhanced sigma-TRIZ within a knowledge management software platform (KMSP) is further described. Specific developments to support processes of knowledge creation, knowledge storage and retrieval, knowledge transfer and knowledge application in a friendly and effective way within the KMSP are also highlighted

Smart Deployment of Demonstrators into Successful Commercial Solutions

AbstractProduct or service concepts based on emerging technologies are usually results of research projects, be they performed by academic groups or by research departments of companies. Many times, the prototypes or demonstrators that result from such projects are supposed to evolve into commercial products or services, but – at least in the first stage - there are more focus on proving key features of a technology, or the effectiveness / efficiency / applicability of various concepts or algorithms. However, evolving into commercial products is many times at least as challenging as building the prototypes. In case of software-based projects, this means changes in architecture, a lot of code rewriting and important usability improvements. This paper introduces a software-concept product design algorithm which aims to minimize the effort required in turning a demonstrator into a commercial product. This is done by generating two functionality sets: a pure demonstrator and a pure commercial one, then generating a hybrid functionality set with the corresponding architecture, and then assessing each functionality for the demonstrator and the commercial version in terms of development and improvement effort. Through iterations, in which the original functionality sets are improved, the difference between the two perspectives will be reduced until it gets below a reasonable limit in terms of effort. The paper presents a case study in which the algorithm is applied for planning a software platform for supporting SMEs in their innovation processes

Innovation by Developing Human Resources, Ensuring the Competitiveness and Success of the Organization

AbstractIn today's highly dynamic and competitive business environment, firms are exposed to strict challenges with meeting the ever- increasing market and customer needs and expectations. In order to ensure the competiveness and success of the organization managers need to accept innovation as a key element for the organization. However a major driver for innovation is HR and for innovation to be successful managers needs to support, plan for and nurture an innovation culture. Based on these aspects the authors of this paper propose a framework for HR development for innovation, to reach the actual performance of an organization. The purpose of this framework is to offer, to all managers, a clear picture of existing HR capacity to innovate and possibilities to develop this capacity in order to improve the organization's capacity for innovation, thus increasing their chances of success in today's highly dynamic and competitive business environment