Read on for key insights on product innovation
Organizations that develop their own products are innovating more and more. Although pressure is being created by the emergence of rapid scale-ups and changing customer needs, Pezy Group sees plenty of opportunities in the field of product innovation for these organizations.
In order to gain a better insight into which factors are decisive for innovating as efficiently and successfully as possible, we started a benchmark study in collaboration with The Blue Hour in autumn 2020.
Based on this research, we have gained a number of interesting insights. For example, where the bottlenecks in the field of product innovation lie. In this blog, we explain a number of outcomes that can also contribute to successful innovation for your organization.
Need for ever-faster product innovation and inhibition by management
First of all, it was noticed in this study that the time until the innovated products appear on the market (the so-called time-to-market) is seen as a major challenge in the next three years. More than half of all respondents (56%) indicate that faster innovation is becoming increasingly important. Organizations prefer to see products appear on the market rather yesterday than today. Originally, the accelerating new product development was seen as a short-term trend, but it now seems to have been incorporated as a requirement within the product innovation process.
Not only planning and time-to-market seem to be a challenge. Strategic choices of the organization also come to the fore. 52% of the respondents indicated that they are held back in product innovation by management choices. As an organization, it makes sense to work on a better connection between strategic plans and the product innovation department. Given the figures, there is, therefore, room for improvement. In this way, you continue to innovate successfully together.
Organizations not prepared for the government’s circular plan in 2030
The government’s vision for the circular economy has been set out in the ‘Netherlands Circular 2050’ program. The aim is to achieve a fully circular economy by 2050 at the latest. By 2030, the government wants to achieve an interim goal of 50% less use of primary raw materials (minerals, fossils, and metals).
The survey results show that 58% of the respondents are not that far yet. Organizations do consider sustainability important but indicate that they have insufficient knowledge about the objective of the government and what this means for their own organization. Respondents also indicate that it is often still far away and not yet a priority. To be a forerunner and innovator in the field of circular product development, it is therefore advisable as an organization to invest in circularity now in order to be well prepared for the plans for 2030 and 2050.
Market validation offers an opportunity to improve product innovation
Testing whether a product has value on the market is also known as market validation. Whether the market is willing to buy the innovative product is examined here. This can be a challenge for many organizations, according to the research results. Nearly 2/3 of those surveyed (64%) say this is an issue where there is money to be made. Better cooperation between sales, marketing, and innovators can ensure that product innovation can be tested in the market earlier. There are various methods and techniques for this that are not yet used sufficiently by different organizations.
The survey results also show that only a very small part (4%) of the respondents indicate that the available production capacity is a challenge for product innovation. It can therefore be concluded that for the vast majority of the respondents (96%) production capacity is currently not seen as an obstacle. For these organizations it makes sense to focus more on the market than on production techniques.
It is still possible to participate in this benchmark research
After reading this blog, are you interested in what other insights this research has to offer? Then we would like to invite you to participate in our benchmark research. After submitting your input, you will receive from us:
- Your personal benchmark report with results of your organization;
- The ability to (anonymously) compare your results with other organizations;
- Advice and analysis by one of our specialists.
More information about the study can be found by clicking the link button below.