One of the things that comes up in tech transfer and in IT all the time is whether something is a good idea or whether it is truly innovative. A podcast I listen to is called "Killer Innovations" from Phil McKinney, and his podcast focuses on an innovation process he has developed over the years. One of the steps in the process he uses involves asking a lot of tough questions about the idea on the table. He has created a set of questions that he uses at HP, and I think the same thing can be done for IT. If an idea does not seem to hold up under the questions, then obviously it needs more work. With a little brainstorming, I came up with these questions.
- What user complaint or obstacle does this idea address?
- What are the obvious benefits to users who adopt this idea?
- What pain that users don't know about will this idea address?
- What benefits does this option offer over other solutions?
- What changes will this solution require in user behavior to be considered successful?
- What impact does this solution have on other systems?
- How will this solution increase revenue or decrease costs?
- What organizational goal is this solution going to help accomplish?
These are just a few when you are trying to examine innovative ideas for internal IT services. Thinking about your ideas with these questions will help you understand the real benefits and issues that may face your solution. If you think about these things before you start talking to others in your organization about the idea, you will have the answers to questions that they are likely to ask.