Energize your business with breakthrough ideas
TM
Ferman Innovation
Capabilities Overview
Len Ferman
Adjunct Professor, University of North Florida
Managing Director, Ferman Innovation, LLC
What We Do for Our Clients
OUTPUT: Set of themes to focus on in brainstorming
Conduct
In depth
customer research
interviews & build
customer journey
maps
Facilitate
brainstorming &
action planning
workshops
Provide training
on managing
innovation
© copyright 2018 Len Ferman
2
About Len Ferman
Former head of ideation
Founder
Adjunct
Professor
of Innovation
Faculty
Member
Duke University
M.A. Economics
& M.B.A. in
Marketing
Senior Consultant
© copyright 2016 Len Ferman
4
Recognized Industry Thought Leader in Innovation
Recent speaking engagements:
• Total Customer Experience
Leaders Summit
(keynote speech)
• The Market Research Event
(largest research conference in US)
• World Future Trends Summit
• Front End of Innovation
• CXFusion
• Qualitative Research Consultants Association
• Marketing Research Association Corporate Researchers Conference
• Back End of Innovation
© copyright 2018 Len Ferman
4
College Text Book
and Corporate
Innovation Manual
Published in 2019
by Cognella
Presently available
on Amazon and
BarnesandNoble.com
Sneak preview can be
seen FREE on
publisher’s website:
https://titles.cognella.com/bus
iness-creativity-andinnovation-9781516541942
Business Creativity and Innovation: Perspectives and Best Practices
© Copyright 2018 Len Ferman
Edited and introduction by Len Ferman
CHAPTERS
Reading
titles,
authors,
and brief
description
1&2
Innovation
Overview
& Culture of
Innovation
3
Identifying
Customer
Needs for
Innovation
4
Generating
Ideas to Solve
for Customer
Problems
5
Evaluating Ideas
6
Designing New
Products &
Services
7
Implementing
an Overall
Process for
Innovation
8
Innovation
Profiles
The Great Disruption
by Clayton Christensen,
et al.
Overview of disruptive
innovation and the
innovator’s dilemma
with many examples
Three Steps to Better
Insights for Innovation
by Peter Mulford
Describes the
importance of customer
research to support the
innovation process
Idea Generation
by Jonas Michanek and
Andréas Breiler
Offers a list of creative
do’s and don’ts to foster
creativity within an
organization
Screening and
Development Tools
by Jonas Michanek and
Andréas Breiler
Outlines simple method
for rating ideas against
agreed upon criteria
Design Thinking and
Innovation at Ideo
By Vivek Gupta and A.
Harish
Provides a behind-thescenes look at the
process and principles of
design thinking
The Stage-Gate Idea-toLaunch System
by Robert Cooper
Overview of all the steps
of the classic Stage-Gate
process
Innovation at Apple
by Debapratim
Purkayastha and
Maseeha Syeda Qumer
A brief history of Apple,
and insights regarding
how innovation takes
place at the company
What Is The Innovation
Paradox?
by Marc Epstein & Tony
Davila
Description of the
dichotomy between
incremental and
breakthrough
innovation
Allowing Your
Customers to Navigate
by Stuart Cross
Explains why it is
essential to talk to the
right customers, in the
right places, to get input
for successful
innovation
Idea Generation Tools
by Jonas Michanek and
Andréas Breiler
Provides six specific
creative exercises that
organizations can use to
generate ideas for
innovation
The Tournament
Approach to Idea
Evaluation
by Len Ferman
Provides a process for
evaluating and selecting
the top concepts for an
organization to invest in
Why Design Thinking in
Business Needs a
Rethink
by Martin Kupp, et al.
Reveals the internal
barriers that impede
implementation of
design thinking and a
set of solutions
Institutionalizing
Innovation
by Scott Anthony, et al.
Describe various
considerations and
alternative structures
for managing
innovation
Innovation Mindset
by Vijay Govindarajan
and Srikanth Srinivas
Describes what it takes
to be innovative with
specific examples of
how 3M manages
innovation
Driving Growth Through
Innovation
by Robert Tucker
Offers five best practices
for driving growth
through innovation
Finding the Right Job for
Your Product
by Clayton Christensen,
et al.
Describes the jobs-tobe-done approach to
gathering customer
input for innovation
Creative Connections
by Jacbo Goldenberg
and Rom Y. Schrift
Demonstrates some of
the techniques used in
Systematic Inventive
Thinking (SIT)
Leapfrogging to
Breakthroughs
(2 readings)
by Soren Kaplan
Offers a process that
enables companies to
generate breakthrough
innovations
Fast Lane Innovation
by Stuart Cross
Factors that have
contributed to Amazon’s
ability to successfully
innovate
The Corporate Culture
of How
by Deborah Perry
Piscione and David
Crawley
Reveals corporate
cultural aspects needed
to enable innovation
Less is More:
by Jacbo Goldenberg
and Rom Y. Schrift
How industry giants like
Apple and Philips
generate ideas for
innovations
Innovation Myths
by Ram Charan and AG
Lafley
Explores myths about
innovation and offers
advice on company
culture necessary for
successful innovation
Developing Innovative
Solutions Through
Internal Crowdsourcing
by Malhotra, Arvind, et
al.
Best practices for
internal crowdsourcing
Corporate
Entrepreneurship and
Innovation at Google
by Debapratim
Purkayastha and Adapa
Srinivasa Rao
Overview of innovation
at Google
6
Experienced “Intrapreneur”
Launched many profitable new products & services
Launched the Barnett Bank Visa
Travel Money Card
Developed the concept for the
Bank of America Small Business
Online Community
Started the business debit card
for Bank of America
Part of the founding team of
the AT&T Universal Card
Developed the first check image
ATM at Barnett Bank
Generated numerous
online/mobile concepts for
Bank of America
© copyright 2018 Len Ferman
7
Len Ferman – “Visual ResumeTM”
25 years of experience managing innovation at Fortune 500 companies
Barnett Bank
AT&T
Graduated
from Duke
with MBA in
Marketing
and MS in
Economics
Developed smart
card & ATM
strategy for
Barnett Bank
1988
Introduced
first check
image ATM
Managed
new
product
research
for B2C
and B2B
services
Moved to JAX
as part of the
founding team
of the AT&T
Universal Card
Led small
business (SB)
innovation –
created concept
for SB Online
Community
199
7
199
5
199
0
Bank of America
199
6
1998 - 2003
Launched Visa
TravelMoney
– world’s first
international
prepaid card
© copyright 2018 Len Ferman
Launched &
Managed
Business
Debit Card
200
4
Head of ideation
for all consumer &
SB products at
Bank of America
201
1
2013
Founded
Ferman
Innovation: a
boutique
innovation
agency
8
High energy and creative business executive
Authored Runners World article
documenting my quest to run the
mile under 5:00 at 50-years-old
http://www.runnersworld.com/masterstraining/under-500-at-50-years-old
© copyright 2018 Len Ferman
Multiple gold medalist and
former record holder at the
World Joggling Championships
(running while juggling)
9
The Idea TournamentTM process
for managing the front end of innovation
1 Explore
Customer &
Market
Exploration
Identify key customer
needs & market
opportunities
2
Ideate
Brainstorming &
Idea Generation
Generate ideas to meet
customer needs &
capitalize on market
opportunities
© copyright 2018 Len Ferman
3 Evaluate
Idea Selection &
Design
Evaluate, prioritize and
cultivate top ideas for
development
11
Qualitative Research Capabilities
 Moderating focus groups and IDIs since 1993
 25 years of experience “in front and behind the glass”
OUTPUT: Set of themes to focus on in brainstorming
 Learned from many of the best moderators in the business as
a research manager at AT&T in the late 1980s
 Disciple of Sid Furst, a founder of the Qualitative Research Consultants
Association, and a pioneer in the use of focus groups in the 1950s
 Adept in using qualitative research to inform subsequent
business decision making
 Design qualitative research to feed directly into ideation sessions and
customer journey maps
© copyright 2018 Len Ferman
11
In depth phone
interviews
In depth phone interviews at a
fraction of the cost of focus groups
conducted by an experienced moderator
Recruit
respondents
from any
location
Listen live or via
audio recordings
sent immediately
after the call
Audio clips are
embedded in report
making findings
more powerful &
actionable
Audio clip sample
This is an embedded audio clip.
Hover over the audio icon and
click play button
An experienced and insightful researcher:
“Len did an outstanding job of interviewing our clients for
our customer satisfaction program. His interview style is
professional and personable. Len created a report that
not only summarized key insights but included audio clips
to reinforce his findings.”
- Sharon Brant, Head of Market Insights,
Vantiv (2nd largest payment processing company in US)
CONTACT:
Len Ferman
Managing Director
Len@fermaninnovation.com
www.fermaninnovation.com
904.553.0075
© copyright
2018 Len Ferman
• 25 years of Fortune 100 innovation experience
• 20+ years moderating experience
• Speaker at Qualitative Research Consultants
Association Annual Meeting
• MBA & MA from Duke University
12
Customer Journey Mapping offered in
partnership with MaritzCX
What is it?
A visual representation, from a customer point of view, of the journey
a customer takes with your brand, products, services and people.
What’s the benefit?
• Identify gaps in current VoC measures
• Build a common understanding among employees regarding what the
customer goes through
• Identify opportunities and ideas to improve the customer experience
Ideation Exercise Examples
14
Creative Exercise Examples
ASSUMPTION BUSTING
DESCRIPTION
Identify and eliminate long held
assumptions and constraints that blind the
group to generate potential new ideas
HOW IT WORKS
• List all “facts”, assumptions, requirements
and “truths” about the brainstorming
theme
• For each of the listed items, pose the
question, “What would it be like if it was
not that way?”
• Ask the group to share ideas that would fit
in the new environment
Ease of
Likelihood of Potential for
implementing success
breakthrough
ideas
BENEFITS
• Eliminating long held assumptions can
open up possibilities that could not be
imagined previously
• Provides a clear process for participants
to follow without the feel of an esoteric
exercise
• Good for middle of the session after top
of mind ideas have been exhausted
EXAMPLE: The iTouch is an iPhone without
the ability to place calls
© copyright 2018 Len Ferman
15
Creative Exercise Examples
RELATED WORLDS
DESCRIPTION
Look to other “worlds” or analogous
situations to see how similar problems
solved
HOW IT WORKS
• Break group into sub-groups of 3 – 6
people
• Each group selects one related world (e.g.,
a similar industry or well known company)
• Identify attributes of how the related
world solves their primary issues
• Use the list of attributes to help generate
ideas for how the related world would
solve for our brainstorming themes
Ease of
Likelihood of Potential for
implementing success
breakthrough
ideas
BENEFITS
• Drawing on ideas from other fields is a
well documented method for generating
breakthrough ideas
• Provides a clear process for participants
to follow without the feel of an esoteric
exercise
• Good for middle of the session after top
of mind ideas have been exhausted
EXAMPLE: the cloth press for printing
patterns gave rise to the printing press
© copyright 2018 Len Ferman
16
1 – 3 Day Training Program
customized for on-site delivery
Innovating for Your
Company’s Future
A guide to innovation
with practical applications for any organization
REGISTER NOW for April 21st class
To register call UNF Division of Continuing Education:
904-620-4200
For more information contact course instructor Len Ferman:
904.553.0075 or email: Len.Ferman@unf.edu
Course Instructor:
Len Ferman
TAUGHT BY A PROVEN
INNOVATION LEADER:
“Len is passionate about innovation and
understands the important concepts
connecting market opportunities with
internal capabilities.”
Dan Connor, Strategic Business
Development Manager, 3M
Speaking
Program
45 – 90 minute
“corporate
infotainment” program
on business innovation
that will entertain,
inform and energize
your audience.
Optional 60 – 120
minute add on
workshop to allow
participants to practice
innovation techniques.
© copyright 2018 Len Ferman
18
Innovation Workshop References
Dan Connor, Strategic Business
Development Managers, 3M
Jason Burrell, SVP; Senior Product Manager,
Bank of America:
“Len is passionate about innovation and
understands the important concepts connecting
market opportunities with internal capabilities.”
“Len has an extensive knowledge around
innovation principles, process, and execution. Len
has the energy and stamina of most young college
students. I would always enjoy observing Len as he
conducted ideation sessions.
Chuck Andrews, SVP, Payments Network
Executive, Bank of America:
Len is a skilled practitioner of innovation and is a
very good creative thinker. I’ve witnessed
firsthand Len’s ability to engage various business
lines in innovation exercises and drive them to
successful outcomes. I recommend Len without
reservation.”
Marta Villanueva, President,
Villanueva Qualitative, Inc.:
“Len has a unique gift in making complex
innovation concepts simple and actionable. Len
beautifully leverages his expertise on the front
end of the innovation process to design sessions
which will lead to solutions for clients.”
Professor Gregory J. McGiffney,
Fresno Pacific University:
“Mr. Ferman has developed an Ideation
process in business that allows for
development of strategies that can facilitate
organizational improvement.”
Mary Ferrell, Director of Senior Services,
City of Jacksonville:
“Len conducted an outstanding ideation session for
us. In addition his leadership in organizing the
event and conducting background research made
the event extremely successful. We are making
immediate use of the top ideas.”
19
© copyright 2018 Len Ferman
Qualitative Research References
“Len Ferman was in the Market Research
OUTPUT:
Set of themes
to focus
on inInc.
brainstorming
Department
at Barnett
Banks,
in the mid-90’s.
I ran the Bank’s electronic delivery programs and
was trying to get customers to use ATMs for
deposits and not just withdrawals. I asked Len to
do some focus groups with customers to help us
understand their reluctance. He did a great job.
His demeanor with the group was relaxed and he
was able to extract actionable information from
participants. I have great respect for Len’s skills in
leading focus groups.”
Cathy Corby Iannuzzelli
President, Corby & Company, Inc.
“Len Ferman conducted structured interviews with
several key business leaders in the Jacksonville
area to obtain information regarding a new
program we are developing together. The report
Len provided summarizing the data he collected
was phenomenal. I found the information to be
insightful, useful, highly detailed, and organized. I
would recommend his work to anyone wanting to
gain a better understanding of their market or
potential customers.”
Tim Giles
Director, University of North Florida
Continuing Education
20
Qualitative Research References
“I had the opportunity to observe Len in action
OUTPUT:
Set of themes
to focus
in brainstorming
facilitating
focus groups
foron
Barnett
Bank. Len did
a fantastic job managing the sessions each day
and throughout the entire project. He was
particularly adept at exploring the customers’
underlying feelings and motivations.
“I truly believe that you amplify your capability as
you understand the research process, critical
questions and the outcome desired.
In sum, I highly recommend Len not only as a
moderator, but also as a research expert.”
Len had a unique style and process when it came
to presenting the data to the internal client, it was
always clear, concise and no fluff.
Bernardo Martinez,
Head Marketing and Products Executive
Banco del Progreso
I would strongly recommend Len to any company
conducting focus groups and looking for a strong
moderator that is also easy to work with.”
Former SVP,
Consumer & SB Credit Card Executive,
Bank of America
Jeffrey H. Nykerk, MA - Marketing
Internet & Marketing Consultant
21
Thank You For Your Time
Len Ferman
Adjunct Professor of Innovation
University of North Florida
Len.Ferman@unf.edu
AND
Managing Director, Ferman Innovation, LLC
www.fermaninnovation.com
Len@Fermaninnovation.com
904.553.0075