Agile innovation methods

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Innovation terms easily explained

Agile innovation methods from innovation consulting

We from EARLY BRANDS Innovation & Technology Consultants use a variety of agile innovation and creativity methods that were selected and customized to the needs and requirements of our clients. But: What makes Lean-Startup, Business Model Canvas and Use Cases so popular? What are these terms about?

AGILITY AND LEAN STARTUP THINKING & ACTING

Currently, agility is one of the most popular keywords when we think about innovation management. Increasing speed and dynamic of our markets makes us rethink our habits: Inflexible plannings and project schedules are outdated and unrewarding. Market developments we see today, might be out-of-date tomorrow.

Today, innovation projects and new technologies need a flexible and quick development and realization. Thus, direct interactions with customers, close collaborations with employees and partners and minimum viable products + user feedback are essential: Think and act like lean, dynamic startups. Proactively and flexibly respond to fast changing customer needs. Create, develop and shape products, services and innovative business models with a step-by-step approach – adaptive and dynamic like a startup would do. Be open and responsive. Understand changes and setbacks as opportunities.

Junge Menschen arbeiten in Lean Start Up Atmosphäre und nutzen agile Innovationsmethoden

MINIMUM VIABLE PRODUCT / SOLUTION

We support leading companies to identify and realize innovative business opportunities at early stages. That means: speed and focus instead of perfection. Practice-orientation instead of planned economy. Simplicity and clarity. That is exactly what Minimum Viable Products (MVP) / Solutions are about. Explore, test and realize minimum viable products and solutions with real customers at very early stages. It enables to consider customer’s needs and requirements from the very beginning. Solutions that appeal can be further developed. Solutions that do not lead to success can be aborted prematurely. BUILD-MEASURE-LEARN from first prototype to successful innovation.

USE CASE

To understand customers’ needs and requirements, you need to put their glasses on. Use cases are concrete applications of innovation ideas in customer’s language. It is an agile, easy and highly valuable method to not only describe customers’ requirements but also the values and benefits of it – simple, quick and straight to the point. Thus, requirements and functionalities of innovations become transparent.

To embed customers in idea and innovation development at early stages, secures market relevance and innovation success. We create uses cases in our innovation consulting in many ways: from new business model development, to agile design sprints and workshops, through to derivation of unique value propositions for concept development.

BUSINESS MODEL CANVAS

How can we quickly and easily develop business models? How can we determine and further develop success factors of our innovation idea? How can we involve key stakeholders into business model development from employees, customers to tech partners? Our answer for these questions: In interactive, interdisciplinary business model work sessions. Use the business model canvas and determine key success factors of your new business idea.

We successfully apply the business model canvas in the collaboration with our partners. We use key elements from it and additionally embed specific demands and requirements. Tech companies for example, may have to think about “special ecosystem / tech partners” and “key technologies” in addition to core canvas elements like “target groups”, “channels” or “success metrics”.

KANBAN

KANBAN is a great method to organize tasks very efficiently and precisely. Like an “agile to-do-list”, KANBAN boards support cooperative and target-orientated working environments. To split up tasks and project steps into “to do”, “in-progress” and “done” in time frames of “today”, “current week” and “storage” is very valuable. Post-it notes with tasks and responsibilities can easily and agilely be juggled and shared within the team – wheter manually or digitally. In our innovation consulting, we make use of the KANBAN method for different internal fields of tasks as well as within the collaboration with our partners.

Catch the Future …!