Innovative, distinct products and no “cheaper” copies of the “rich” world are essential in order to succeed at the “Base of the Pyramid” (BoP). However, this type of innovation requires more, in-depth information on the BoP and solution spaces, which are both difficult to access....

Organizations in the humanitarian sector often face problems that are hard to solve owing to their complexity and high hidden solution knowledge. We investigate two problem-solving governance mechanisms in the case of floods in Indonesia. In our study, we compare the costs and benefits of two...

While sustainability issues increasingly gain importance for new product design, they also further complicate the NPD process. In many cases it is hard to exactly measure the socio-environmental impact of new products, and sustainability targets may conflict with other ones. Innovators can aim...

Die Zahl von Online-Gemeinschaften steigt, und damit stellt sich für Unternehmen die Frage, wie man dieses Potenzial für Innovationsvorhaben optimal nutzbar machen kann. Dieser Sammelband gibt einen umfassenden und praxisorientierten Einblick in die Nutzung des Internets, speziell von...

Für die Gestaltung von Innovationsprozessen sind insbesondere die frühen Phasen von entscheidender Bedeutung. Das vorliegende Buch gibt einen umfassenden praxisorientierten Einblick in diese frühen Phasen, die auch als "fuzzy front end" bezeichnet werden. Von Ideenquellen für Innovationen...

This paper focuses on contributions of users in early phases of radical innovation projects. In a multiple case study analysis in the field of medical equipment technology, we identify characteristics of users who contribute substantially to the development of radical innovations by being their...

In order to reduce the risks of failure usually associated with NPD, leading companies such as 3M, HILTI, or Johnson&Johnson are increasingly working with so-called Lead Users. Their identification and involvement is supported by the Lead User method - a multi stage approach aiming to generate...

Prior research has shown that some patients and caregivers such as relatives are innovating in relation to their unmet medical needs. However, there is little evidence whether and how these ideas are later implemented into market-ready solutions and subsequently commercialized. We analyze cases...