More on the 3M visit

During a visit to 3M's customer innovation center, the author learned about the forward mapping process that the company uses to project technologies and their future uses. This process looks at the development and refinement of technologies well into the future and the possible products to be created or problems that can be solved. Using this process and other methodologies, 3M believes that breakthrough ideas and innovations can become much more predictable and frequent. The forward mapping capability led to the development of the first pico projector, an LCD projector about the same size as a mobile phone. However, the author also raises concerns about the company's focus on internal knowledge and insights uncoupled from customer and consumer needs, which can result in interesting but ultimately disappointing innovation.