1. Innovation Management 2012 Stefan Wuyts
Preparing for Midterm 2
Innovation Management 2012
Stefan Wuyts

2. Design Explain the relevance of product platforms in design.
Refer to product architecture, derivative products, example of Sony Walkman
What are the key advantages and disadvantages of performing focused prototype testing in the automotive industry?
Focused prototype is not comprehensive  good for first insights and consumer reactions but necessarily incomplete

3. Product Use Testing
Application, given particular scenario: would you opt for a laboratory test or a field test? Motivate.
Refer to environment, control and validity, cost
How would you organize a product use test?
Refer to user groups, degree of explanation, singularity, and/or other.
Inhouse versus others.Critical evaluation versus does it solve the need?
What is the difference between α, β, and γ testing?
Refer to who does it and objective.

4. Launch Explain the concept “Launch Cycle”
Refer to phases of prelaunch, beachhead, and early growth
Application: describe the tactical decisions you would make regarding promotion, distribution, and pricing when launching product XX.
Application question: see slides for “appropriate” launch tactics. Always motivate your choices.
How would you decide on price when launching new product X?
Marketing strategy, competition, costs, value

5. Launch management Application: which market test would you select?
Make a choice between pseudo sale, controlled sale , and full sale and motivate.
Or more theoretical: what is the difference between a simulated test market and mini marketing?
Simulated test market, direct marketing or mini marketing, rollout
Discuss both.

6. Windows Case Study
Adopting new products not only has a monetary cost for consumers, but also a psychological cost that can hinder effective diffusion of a new product. Explain using the concepts of subjective value, loss aversion, the endowment effect, and status-quo bias.
Curse of knowledge

7. Innovation across borders – Alliances and networks
Alliances are often used to access external resources. However, alliances are fraught with problems. Ability problems include: qualification problem, adverse selection problem, and adaptation problem. Motivation problems include: safeguarding problem, performance evaluation problem, and misalignment problem. Explain one ability and one motivation problem.
What are the benefits of a diverse alliance portfolio?
Real options, flexibility, positive effect on radical innovation (but at a high cost)

8. Innovation across borders - Outsourcing
Application: question whether or not a firm should outsource (part of) its NPD function
Refer to strategic considerations such as accessing external resources under technological uncertainty; but also to the cost considerations such as the cost of outsourcing when there are market imperfections (transaction-specific investments, demand and behavioral uncertainty)

9. Innovation across borders – Emerging markets
Imagine that you work at a company in a developed market. You consider moving into emerging markets, because of the great growth potential there. Describe 5 dimensions along which emerging markets differ from high-income countries.
Infrastructure, openness, political/social subsystem, cultural subsystem, regulative subsystem, product market, labor market, capital market.

10. Overarching questions
How would you organize the launch of a new product in emerging markets? …