Front-End Innovation at AlliedSignal and Alcoa

OVERVIEW:Heightened expectations for growth from internal technology suggest a requirement to improve the productivity of the “fuzzy front-end” of the innovation process. Its description as an organizational process should mesh with that of product development, as characterized by “stage-gate” concurrent engineering. With this in mind, a “Front-End Innovation Process” (FEIP) was established, first at AlliedSignal and later at Alcoa. Both processes were designed to meet business objectives and be able to drive “game-changing,” technology-based, breakthrough opportunities. Both were based on a “fast-failure” model, derived from lean manufacturing thinking. Based on the experience at Alcoa and AlliedSignal, it is concluded that the integration of customer needs, future market directions, and technology evolution, with a formal idea generation process like FEIP, is achievable and increasingly necessary.