METHODOLOGY
Constant Holistic Perspective
Our methodology relies on what we refer to as Constant Holistic Perspective. This means that no key decisions are made in isolation, but always after reconsidering the market side (actors), the competitor side, and the technology side.
Key decisions are made when the knowledge necessary for reliable decision-making is acquired. We identify knowledge gaps and seek to fill them first. It is this discipline that helps to identify and mitigate risks, especially risks from erroneous assumptions.
Constant holistic perspective
Functional Hierarchy
The simple question "what does the system do?" leads us to build a hierarchy of functions and supporting functions. The WHAT related to the jobs-to-be-done. This hierarchical representation is a solution-neutral expression of functions at multiple levels that allows clear focus.
Others- Competitors
A sustainable competitive advantage cannot be secured without knowledge of what competition is doing and where it is heading. We map what competition is doing, define exactly what your product's advantage will be, and proactively assess possible responses to the new offering we are planning. What will be required of competition to catch up, how does that relate to policies, measures, capabilities?
Actors-Users-Market
An "Actor" is anyone that interacts with the product or technological system. It can be a patient, a patient's mother, a doctor, a nurse, an installer. We identify these actors, maps the scenarios that they may themselves in and for each of those scenarios explore needs. Needs can be known to actors or latent needs that they cannot articulate- we need to frame them and name them!
Technology
Technology is related to the very nature of what we seek to develop as well as enabling and emerging technologies. we need to be confident about the promise of performance of enabling technologies. Are there are directly transferable solutions from other industries, has somebody solved a similar functions in another application? Can we use technological solutions and specific designs without patent infringement risks? Can we protect our ideas, do we have patentability?
We care about the true needs.
We are obsessed about true needs. We use this term so that everyone, in our team and in our client's team, is encouraged to search beyond the surface of what is a first expressed need.
We seek the true needs of our customer, the true needs of our customer's customer, and the true needs of the different actors that engage with the system or product we are called to develop.
Key decisions & Knowledge gaps
Key decisions are decisions that can have significant impact on product design, are not trivial, and non obvious. Since they bear the greatest risk, we need to be sure that we have the knowledge to make those decisions confidently. We bring knowledge gathering as early as possible in the project, and push decisions as late as possible without jeopardizing project milestones. We define the knowledge gaps that need to be filled before a decision is made and define tasks to fill those knowledge gaps. Most important gaps relate to erroneous assumptions and we pay attention to avoid such erroneous assumptions.