US construction company designs a new product development process
A US construction materials company wanted to improve its product development process
The Challenge
Ambitious growth targets in a competitive market
The US construction materials company was directing millions in investments for research and development across its product lines. However, it was product-driven in its approach to research and development; products were developed first, and then the market fit was determined after.
Recognizing that it needed to be more purposeful in its research and development, it wanted to align its internal stakeholders on a 5-year innovation roadmap. The construction materials company needed a B2B market research agency experienced in construction market research to lead a stakeholder engagement initiative to create an innovation roadmap.
Our Approach
Stakeholder engagement to refine the process
Werk Insight, a B2B market research company, set out to reverse the company’s approach to product development by creating an innovation roadmap that was based on market needs.
First, we conducted over 5 stakeholder interviews with multiple internal teams, from brand management to research engineers. We also audited internal briefings and research reports to better understand the existing product development strategy.
In a day-long workshop, we facilitated a group discussion with stakeholders from across disciplines and locations in the US. The workshop involved a collaborative ideal customer profile exercise, needs assessment, and a brainstorming session.
The Insight
A roadmap for product development
The insights gathered through the stakeholder interviews and workshop showed that initial product innovation was not meeting the most important needs of its customers. Instead, the company needed to increase its focus on the attributes that impacted customers’ Willingness to Pay. At the end of the engagement, the internal stakeholders agreed on a new process for collecting insights on customers’ needs. This informed a long-term direction for the company’s innovation pipeline planning.