Usually, the people in Corporate Innovation Management have an “atoms”, not a “bits” background. So typically, we help in better understanding the opportunities and threats that Digital brings.

We also explore how the challenges that Digital poses to Corporate Innovation Management might be addressed.

For some of our clients this meant re-assessing the future mission of Basic Research, Corporate Venture Capital, Technology Scouting etc. in the Digital context. Others wanted to better understand how smart, software-upgradeable products should be managed in the innovation strategy or how IT-ecosystems should be addressed.

Typically, we also work on how the future skill set of Corporate Innovation Management should look like and how these skills should be built up.

Typically, our assignments are done in a compact project. In it, we combine research at the desktop and in the field with several well-planned workshops.

We have found that for understanding opportunities and threats immersive, “high touch” workshops are mandatory – abstract PowerPoint-based presentations will not produce the desired outcome.

In these workshops, we work with relevant examples and showcases from comparable industries and modern, Design Thinking methodology to stimulate a rich, engaged in-depth discussion.

We have found that the typical innovator lacks the creativity to think in Digital dimensions and that Corporate IT tends to focus discussions on the IT building blocks. Consequently, a part of our work is to build bridges between business / markets / products / materials and manufacturing technology on the one side and IT on the other side.

These bridges can be built by exploring future scenarios. We provide these scenarios, e.g. by looking at comparable other industries (e.g. “Food” learns from “Farming”, “Machinery” from “Elevators”) or at breaking down market projections from industrial analysts.

Using these analogies or the “back from the future” approach, we then use the existing expertise to work on customer journeys, on strategies beyond the obvious or on analyzing Digital threats.

Typically, our assignments are done in a compact project. In it, we combine research at the desktop and in the field with several well-planned workshops.

We have found that when it comes to Digital innovation, bridges between business and IT cannot be built by abstract discussions alone. People need to have a “high touch” exposure with visuals, videos, guest speakers from relevant companies etc. in order to fully grasp how the future could look like.

Typically, this work is done in in-house conferences with World Cafés or in immersive workshops, where we work with a large number of relevant examples and showcases from comparable industries and modern, Design Thinking methodology to stimulate a rich, engaged in-depth discussion.

We certainly do not claim to have a solution for the question: “How should my company conduct its Digital Transformation best?”.

We support leading companies at singular, decisive points in their Digital journey. Based on research that we conducted and validated with leading firms we have found that the Transformation has five major building blocks.

Within this framework, for instance, we help to establish a common language in the company of what Digital Transformation means. We define maturity models that help to navigate along the journey. We support in prioritizing the opportunities. Or we support in defining the best partners or new ecosystems that should be part of the transformed company.

Typically, our assignments are done in a compact project. In it, we combine research at the desktop and in the field with several well-planned workshops.

While we are aware that these workshops put a strain on the resources available we are also pounding the table for them.

Because we have found that it is hard for the people who are supposed to drive the Transformation to keep contact with a constant pressure from the day-to-day-business. So these workshops provide an opportunity to look at at the big picture, to keep sight on where the journey should go and to re-ignite energy in the Management team for the next steps ahead.