As Eduard explains, the key to asking – and answering – those questions lies in having a comprehensive blend of skills all working together.
“I believe true innovation isn’t just about technology, it’s about applications. At Philips Research, we have long-term research, product development and system integration in one organization.
For me, it’s important to have all these people working together on a project. Product developers can help shape the technology towards first-time-right, first-of-a-kind products from the start. And if the researchers who come up with the original ideas stay on board throughout a project, it is easier to identify what is really critical for a technology.
This makes the innovation process more efficient. Ideas get to market faster and new product platform concepts have more chance of being successful.
But it’s also important to know, understand and interpret customer and market requirements. Last year, I spent a lot of time working with new customers. Customers are interested in solutions and want a clear view on how to reach them.
I think Philips Research’s breadth of activity really helps us here. If I’m dealing with a new problem, I can often get a good idea of how the solution might look from colleagues in other areas. So I can start giving customers advice earlier. Also, I know I don’t have to ‘reinvent the wheel’ all the time, I can draw on solutions from other sectors. In fact, organizing for re-use across application fields helps reduce costs and speed up our innovation.”