WHY R&D IS MORE SUCCESSFUL WITH COLLABORATION

• By: iNEMI
• On: 08/31/2016 15:49:24
• In: iNEMI Blog

Traditionally, research and development (R&D) has been siloed, allowing one centralized group to direct the organization's innovation strategy. However, this technique can impede the success and speed of innovation for organizations. Many organizations today have discovered the hindrances of traditional R&D models and have switched to collaborating with customers, partners, suppliers, industry organizations, and even competitors. Collaboration is an impactful method to increasing the quality of innovation while driving the industry forward as a whole. Here are some of the benefits realized by organizations who utilize collaboration for R&D:

Higher Quality of Innovation

One of R&D's core goals is to create end products for consumers that are groundbreaking and better than what came before. In order to consistently innovate and reach that goal, an organization needs to master expertise. For example, assembling the right team, with the right set of skills and experiences, can increase the end quality of innovation. Collaborating with other organizations increases the pool of talent committed to solving the problem at hand. Additionally, by bringing together players at every corner of the industry, the innovation team has a more complete view of the market than a centralized R&D group would have on its own.

Higher Quantity of Innovation

Collaborative innovation can help your organization accelerate time to market. By leveraging shared development resources like labor or equipment, both research and development can be completed at a faster pace. Similarly, collaborating to solve b
road industry problems or creating industry standards can help lay the groundwork for improved development pace later on. For example, a recent iNEMI project on connector reliability tests helped to create consistent test requirements for connectors to help improve time to completion. Ultimately, collaboration can help speed your organization's R&D program to drive value faster.

Improved Financial Performance

Collaboration helps reduce the costs associated with innovation by removing research and development from its traditional silos. Working in collaboration with other members of the supply chain allows an organization to leverage shared resources to drive innovation forward. Similarly this spreads associated financial risk across multiple parties. Simultaneously, the aforementioned quality and quantity aspects of collaborative innovation can create higher top-line revenue performance.

Research and development efforts are critical to driving product direction and continued success for an organization. Collaboration provides R&D functions an edge by allowing for greater expertise and shared resources, which ultimately drive innovation and financial performance. For organizations looking to collaborate, joining an industry consortium like iNEMI can enable participation in industry projects and relationships with industry players. For more information on iNEMI, please contact us.