PROJECT 03 · INNOVATION SYSTEM

From good ideas to a repeatable system

Building ServiceChannel's innovation function, from executive goals to the weekly work of testing new products with customers.

EMPLOYER
ServiceChannel, a Fortive company
MY ROLE
Director of Product Innovation. Built and led the innovation function.
REACH
From the C-suite to product, engineering, and customer teams
SINCE
The same model now guides my advisory work with XOi
THE ASK

ServiceChannel had no shortage of ideas. Its leaders wanted a dependable way to choose the right ones, test them with customers, and move the winners into the product.

Innovation works best when it has a clear goal, an owner, and a way to make decisions. I built that structure around four questions every team could answer.

THE MODEL

Four questions, one system

Each layer answers one question and has a clear owner. Select a layer to see what it set.

RUNS ON OPERATIONSWeekly check-ins · product reviews · executive reviews
01 · GOAL

Set the objective at the top

  • Executive goals and buy-in for what innovation should deliver
  • KPIs that show whether it is working
  • A balance of short-term wins and long-term bets
OWNED BYThe executive team, in regular executive meetings
WHERE IT FITS

More work up front, fewer costly surprises later

Innovation didn't replace the product process. It expanded the front of it, so decisions were tested with customers before they reached the roadmap.

TYPICAL PRODUCT PROCESS
Strategy Roadmap Resource Develop Deliver Sustain
WITH INNOVATION
Strategy Innovation planning Market & problem Experiments Resource Develop Deliver Sustain
Innovation planningName an owner, write down assumptions and unknowns, gather what we already know.
Market & problemSize the market, interview key segments, and rank the biggest problems to solve.
ExperimentsTest solutions with prospective customers and design the business model before committing to build.
WHO WAS INVOLVED

Everyone who touches the product had a role

Executives set the goals. Product leaders shaped the strategy. Customer-facing teams brought the right customers into each test, so ideas were validated in the field, not just in the building.

PRIMARYExecutives
Product & engineering leadership
Product managers
SUPPORTINGSales & marketing
Customer success
Implementation, L&D, and support
OUTCOME

A system that kept running

An innovation functionA dedicated team with clear owners, connected from the C-suite to working teams.
10Discovery projects run through the model.
A shared languageFour questions any team could use to frame and defend a new idea.
A model that travelsI've since adapted it to help XOi shape its own innovation practice.

Want innovation to run like a system?

Whether you're starting a team or tuning one, let's look at what you have and what it needs.

LET'S TALK →