Deck 4: The Product Concept and Ready-Made New Product Ideas

Question 1

The product innovation process can start with any one of the three dimensions of technology, form, and benefits and can vary in what happens second.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

Creative abrasion is a technique of encouraging creativity through conflict.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

When launched, a new product is a concept still in tentative form.

Answer 3

True

Question 4

The practice of citing the advantages of a proposed idea before addressing the shortcomings in a "positive manner" is called:

A) itemized response.
B) velvet-gloving.
C) accentuating the positive.
D) soft-soaping.

Question 5

Since creative people believe that group contributions are valuable, they are often quite impressed with group rewards.

Question 6

Teltos Inc. is seeking ways to motivate its "creative types." Which of the following ways can be considered by the firm to encourage creativity among the creatives?

A) Avoiding training programs as creatives cannot benefit from training
B) Being less tolerant of aberrations
C) Allowing free time for innovation
D) Encouraging reproductive thinking

Question 7

Google's Gmail service was one innovative product that sprang from a freetime project.

Question 8

Which of the following techniques of encouraging creativity is followed by the 3M?

A) Allowing creatives to break general rules at will
B) Giving group rewards for innovation
C) Allowing reproductive thinking
D) Allowing free time for innovation

Question 9

A product has value only as it provides some benefit to the customer that the customer sees a need for, or has a desire for.

Question 10

Lead users help identify upcoming customer needs.

Question 11

The practice of deliberately pairing a blue-sky creative person with a practical type is called:

A) competitive venturing.
B) creative abrasion.
C) dysfunctional creativity.
D) itemized response.

Question 12

A new product only really comes into being during generation of its concept statement, irrespective of its success or failure in the market.
FALSE

Question 13

Which of the following statements is true of creative people?

A) They usually follow reproductive thinking rather than productive thinking.
B) They tend to be creative throughout their lives and never become uncreative.
C) Their creativity cannot be measured.
D) They typically cannot benefit from training.

Question 14

By definition, new product teams are _____, which means a greater variety of perspectives but also potential difficulties in reaching a solution acceptable to all.

A) cross-functional
B) monopolistic
C) highly bureaucratic
D) iconoclastic

Question 15

In the context of barriers to firm creativity, strong interpersonal ties between team members tend to lead to:

A) information overload.
B) more innovative ideas.
C) weak social cohesion.
D) lack of creative abrasion.

Question 16

The closed innovation model allows for inputs to come exclusively from internal sources but not from external ones.

Question 17

People who solve problems in ways that have worked for them in the past are characterized by _____ thinking.

A) innovative
B) regressive
C) reproductive
D) stereotyped

Question 18

Cross-functional diversity often leads to information overload and can act as a barrier to firm creativity.

Question 19

Rex is the general manager of the New Way Hotel. Whenever an employee comes up to Rex with a new idea, he listens patiently, cites all of the advantages of the new idea and then addresses the negatives, but only in a constructive mode. Identify the technique being used by Rex to encourage creativity.

A) Accentuating the positive
B) Itemized response
C) Creative abrasion
D) Social cohesion

Question 20

Under an open innovation policy, firms make a strategic commitment to use available knowledge in the external environment to improve innovation performance.

Question 21

Which of the following statements is true regarding the method of user toolkits?

A) It is particularly useful when very few customers require customized products.
B) It increases the number of iterations required to fully satisfy customers.
C) It increases time required to respond to customer needs.
D) It formally turns the innovation task over, to some extent, to the users themselves.

Question 22

Which of the following can is an example of crowdsourcing?

A) A multimedia company releases a game in the market for the first time.
B) An eco-friendly apparel store, invites users to submit designs for its new range of ethnic wear on its online platform.
C) A retail firm removes most of its channel partners from its supply chain to deal directly with customers.
D) A toy making firm outsources its research and development to an external vendor to gain competitive advantage.

Question 23

Concept generation must be a(n) _____ process.

A) passive
B) reactive
C) active
D) defensive

Question 24

_____ has been defined as "the use of... inflows and outflows of knowledge to accelerate internal innovation, and expand the markets for external use of innovation."

A) T-P-M linkage
B) Open innovation
C) Creative abrasion
D) Leveraged creativity

Question 25

Prior to proceeding with development of a new product, a group of technical people and intended customers will review a _____ statement to assess its potential.

A) product input
B) product potential
C) product concept
D) product process

Question 26

_____ refers to working with external partner firms to develop or obtain required technology or know-how and thereby speed up product innovation.

A) Inbound closed innovation
B) Inbound open innovation
C) Outbound closed innovation
D) Outbound open innovation

Question 27

A new product:

A) when launched is still in a tentative form.
B) if successful can be termed a concept.
C) comes into being the moment its prototype is ready.
D) comes into being the moment its potential benefits are identified.

Question 28

One of the reasons why technology-driven scientists, in most cases, actually put benefit before form and technology in the creation process is that:

A) it makes finding customer problems very easy.
B) they have some idea of need that is leading them in their efforts.
C) an idea developed into a concept using this sequence is always successful.
D) the production cycle using this sequence is much shorter.

Question 29

Which of the following would qualify as an outside source of ready-made new product concepts?

A) New products people
B) Marketing teams
C) Manufacturing teams
D) Lead users

Question 30

A product _____ statement is a claim of proposed customer value and takes the form of a verbal and/or prototype expression that describes need, form, and technology (at
Least two of these), and how the customer stands to gain (and lose).

A) charter
B) bond
C) concept
D) prototype

Question 31

The objective of a firm using open innovation is to:

A) completely outsource its R&D.
B) to reach out beyond its familiar research partners and to access R&D carried out globally.
C) allow for inputs purely from external sources by keeping the internal sources on hold for a later point in time.
D) get tolerant to some aberrations and thereby allow innovation at the cost of rule violations.

Question 32

Putting benefit last is very risky, since:

A) it is the power to do work.
B) it comprises the sequence of steps by which a service is created.
C) it comprises a solution trying to find a problem.
D) it requires an itemized response.

Question 33

Most of the ideas offered by consumers in the form of crowdsourcing would be best characterized as:

A) product improvements.
B) inventions.
C) new-to-the-world products.
D) innovations.

Question 34

One of the complicated issues a firm must manage in an open innovation policy is:

A) complete outsourcing of a company's R&D.
B) intellectual property protection.
C) top management support.
D) restrict the knowhow a company develops internally.

Question 35

A new product only really comes into being when:

A) a concept is generated.
B) the technology to create the product is acquired.
C) a prototype passes scrutiny by potential users.
D) it is successful in the market.

Question 36

In the context of obtaining product ideas, open idea solicitation is known as:

A) crowdsourcing.
B) skimming.
C) market penetration.
D) shoulder surfing.

Question 37

With reference to the three inputs required by the creation process, _____ is the source by which the form is attained.

A) design
B) potential
C) technology
D) benefit

Question 38

Which of the following inputs, in the case of a service, required by the creation process can be best described as the sequence of steps by which the service will be created?

A) Form
B) Technology
C) Benefit
D) Conceptualization

Question 39

_____ are those customers that are sought by a firm for eliciting new product ideas, since they have been associated with a significant current trend.

A) Resellers
B) Vendors
C) Inventors
D) Lead users

Question 40

Identify the correct statement with regard to end users as a source of ready-made new product concepts.

A) They are most likely to generate modest product improvements rather than new-to-the-world products.
B) A typical end-user is more likely to come up with ideas that are easily developed into real products.
C) The role of an end user is independent of the industry and does not vary across industries.
D) A customer-designed product cannot be directly transferred to manufacturing or production.

Question 41

Briefly describe the three inputs required in the creation process.

Question 42

Mention the various obstacles to idea generation and discuss each of them.

Question 43

Discuss the toolkits for user innovation methods.

Question 44

Discuss the advantages and risks of open innovation.

Question 45

Discuss the barriers to firm creativity.