Away With the Innovation Funnel Process

The traditional innovation funnel has become outdated, where one successful product requires 3,000 ideas. The process is plagued by four problems: risk-averse culture leading to rejection of new ideas, insufficient time spent on reviewing each idea, technical people presenting ideas not taking business viability considerations into account, and reviewers lacking market viability knowledge. The author recommends a diversified team that senior management trusts to pursue looking for ideas. Tasked with answering four key questions, the team should prototype, experiment, meet with potential customers, and create a final presentation and business plan before presenting the project to management.