Group Support System for Managing the Front End ofInnovation

The front end of innovation is defined as thoseactivities that take place prior to a formal, wellstructured new product development process. Managershave identified the front end as being the greatestweakness in product innovation. The front end ofinnovation presents one of the greatest opportunitiesfor improving the overall innovation process. Thereis a clear need for practical procedures to managethese early phases of the innovation process. Thisresearch reviews the possibilities of computerizedgroup support systems in the front end and decisiontasks related to front end activities ofbusiness-to-business enterprises. Cases presentedhere focuses on the customer need assessment and newproduct idea generation. Another decision supportsystem utilized in this research is Thomas Saaty'sanalytic network process. The analytic networkprocess has been designed to systematize and controlcomplex decision problems. This book will be valuablereading for academics, researchers and professionalsof innovation management.

Autorentext

Kalle Elfvengren, D.Sc.(Tech.): Senior researcher at Lappeenranta University of Technology, Finland. His research topics include group support systems, decision analysis and creative group work methods.

Klappentext
The front end of innovation is defined as those activities that take place prior to a formal, well structured new product development process. Managers have identified the front end as being the greatest weakness in product innovation. The front end of innovation presents one of the greatest opportunities for improving the overall innovation process. There is a clear need for practical procedures to manage these early phases of the innovation process. This research reviews the possibilities of computerized group support systems in the front end and decision tasks related to front end activities of business-to-business enterprises. Cases presented here focuses on the customer need assessment and new product idea generation. Another decision support system utilized in this research is Thomas Saaty's analytic network process. The analytic network process has been designed to systematize and control complex decision problems. This book will be valuable reading for academics, researchers and professionals of innovation management.