An overwhelming majority of R&D innovations do not see the light of day. There are so many reasons and in our experience, chief of all, is most companies' blindspot: the part of a project where traditionally the least time and expense is exhausted…
The beginning!
Starting an R&D project right is crucial for its success.
Should you NOT to be using our scouting services or our software, then this is the next best thing we can offer: A guide combining two approaches we put to use:
In this guide, we’re opening up Pandora’s box to give you some practical exercises that will supercharge & backflip-ninja-kick all of your project’s potential issues into dust!
What to do: Transform your specific challenge into functional requirements that describe what needs to be accomplished, not how.
How to do it:
Example Transformation:
Specific: "Create a longer-lasting phone battery"
↓
Less specific: "Store more energy in the same space"
↓
Functional: "Maintain device operation for desired duration"
↓
Core function: "Ensure continuous energy availability for portable devices"
Initial Problem Transformation:
Prompt: "I'm working on [your specific challenge]. Help me transform this into functional requirements by:
1. Removing all references to specific technologies or solutions
2. Expressing it as 'Jobs to be Done'
3. Making it industry-agnostic
4. Identifying the core function being performed
For each version, explain why it's more functional than the last."
Function Validation:
Prompt: "For this functional requirement: [your functional statement]
1. In what other contexts is this same function needed?
2. What industries face similar functional challenges?
3. How does nature accomplish this function?
4. What might make this statement still too solution-specific?"
Warning Signs:
What to do: Create a visual map of all existing solutions to your functional challenge, across all industries and nature.
Broad Solution Search:
Prompt: "For the function [your function]:
1. Generate examples of how this function is achieved in:
- Nature (biological systems)
- Traditional practices across cultures
- Different industrial sectors
- Emerging technologies
2. For each example, explain the core mechanism without technical jargon"
Pattern Recognition:
Prompt: "Analyze these solutions to [your function]:
[List your found solutions]
1. Identify common principles across solutions
2. Highlight unique approaches
3. Suggest potential hybrid approaches
4. Identify which aspects are truly essential vs implementation-specific"
What to do: Challenge all assumptions about why specific solutions are needed.
Assumption Identification:
Prompt: "For our project [describe project], help identify hidden assumptions by:
1. Listing potential assumptions about:
- User needs
- Technical feasibility
- Market conditions
- Resource requirements
2. For each assumption, explain:
- Why we might believe this
- What evidence we'd need to verify it
- Potential alternative perspectives"
Assumption Challenge:
Prompt: "Play devil's advocate for these assumptions:
[List your assumptions]
For each one:
1. Provide three scenarios where it might not hold true
2. Suggest alternative interpretations
3. Identify minimum evidence needed for validation
4. Propose simple tests to verify or disprove"
What to do: Map required resources against available ones, focusing on functions rather than specific implementations.
Resource Identification:
Prompt: "For a project involving [your functional requirement], create a comprehensive list of:
1. Required capabilities (not specific technologies)
2. Essential resources
3. Typical timeline milestones
4. Often-overlooked requirements
Then categorize each as:
- Must have
- Should have
- Could have
- Won't have this time"
Resource Gap Analysis:
Prompt: "For these required capabilities:
[List your capabilities]
1. Suggest multiple ways to achieve each
2. Identify non-obvious alternatives
3. List potential external sources
4. Propose creative resource combinations"
What to do: Break down your challenge into core functional requirements and assess feasibility of different approaches.
Technical Component Analysis:
Prompt: "For the function [your function]:
1. Break it down into sub-functions
2. For each sub-function:
- List proven approaches
- Identify emerging technologies
- Suggest non-obvious alternatives
- Rate implementation complexity
3. Identify dependencies between components"
Risk Assessment:
Prompt: "For each technical approach identified:
1. What could go wrong?
2. What's the minimum viable test?
3. What's unknown but crucial?
4. What similar challenges have others faced?"
What to do: Assess how different approaches to your functional requirements might scale.
Scaling Challenges:
Prompt: "For [your functional solution]:
1. What happens when we scale:
- 10x
- 100x
- 1000x
2. At each scale, consider:
- Resource requirements
- System bottlenecks
- New challenges that emerge
- Potential solutions"
Scale-up Strategy:
Prompt: "Given these scaling challenges:
[List challenges]
1. Suggest gradual scaling steps
2. Identify critical transition points
3. Propose risk mitigation strategies
4. List required capabilities at each stage"
What to do: Identify multiple fundamentally different approaches to delivering required functions.
Path Generation:
Prompt: "For achieving [your function]:
1. Generate 10 completely different approaches
2. For each approach:
- Explain core mechanism
- List key advantages
- Identify main challenges
- Suggest hybrid possibilities"
Path Analysis:
Prompt: "Compare these approaches:
[List approaches]
1. Identify common success factors
2. Suggest potential combinations
3. Rate each for:
- Technical feasibility
- Resource requirements
- Scaling potential
- Implementation speed"
Remember that this process is iterative. Use these checks and AI prompts to:
Note: AI tools should complement, not replace, human expertise and judgment. Use these prompts as starting points for exploration and validation of your thinking.
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