Innovation strategy

Create a R&D Strategy built for success with this guide and free template

Strategic Planning Guide for Research and Development Leaders

Effective R&D strategic planning connects your enterprise strategy to specific initiatives for your function. Done well, your research and development strategic plan should provide a clear roadmap to deliver on your business goals. Effective R&D strategic planning connects your enterprise strategy to specific initiatives for your function. Done well, your research and development strategic plan should provide a clear roadmap to deliver on your business goals

About the Mandala Research And Development Strategic Plan Template​

Mandala R&D Strategy Template helps R&D leaders define the roadmap for executing the key actions required to meet R&D strategic goals in alignment with the enterprise business model and goals. R&D Leaders can leverage this template to create and communicate a clear action plan that states where the research and development currently is, where it needs to be, how to get there and how to measure progress.

Webinar 7 Key Trends That Will Impact Your Strategic Planning​

Executive leaders cannot predict the future, but they must build a future-fit organization that can withstand disruption. This complimentary webinar will enable R&D executives to better spot trends and disruptions so they can shape a more effective R&D strategy.

Overview​

The processes and tools R&D leaders use to manage transformational innovation inadvertently institutionalize incrementalism and homogeneity in the innovation portfolio. Fast-emerging technologies and shifting competition demand new approaches to ideation, opportunity selection and decision making.

R&D leaders find themselves in a new era characterized by rapidly emerging new technologies, transformative shifts in customer needs and competitive boundaries, and even new business model considerations for some organizations. While leaders can access more information than ever to help make decisions about how and where to innovate, they also face considerable uncertainty and risk in selecting the right path forward. R&D executives can increase the value of their innovation pipeline by embracing uncertainty and adopting alternative currencies of opportunity value, focusing on disruptive ideas and applying principles of portfolio thinking in opportunity prioritization decisions

.Use this R&D strategic planning guide to:

  • Build a clear, measurable R&D strategic plan aligned to your organizational goals
  • Combat 7 costly planning mistakes to develop a robust and agile strategy for your R&D department
  • Capture and communicate your R&D strategy to stakeholders with a simple and visually impactful one-page template (exclusive feature)
Key Findings ​

  • Despite the best intentions, common R&D processes for managing transformational innovation favor incremental opportunities over disruptive but uncertain ideas.
  • An inability to accurately measure the value of transformational innovation causes stakeholders to prioritize certainty over potential return, leading to more conservative investment decisions.
  • The use of tools such as balanced scorecards results in a selection of homogenous projects, jeopardizing future growth and competiveness.
  • Evaluating transformational projects in isolation without portfolio fit considerations fails to account for the additive value derived from project interdependencies or diversity.

• R&D organizations that outperform their competitors prioritize pursuit of disruption in their idea-surfacing approaches, shift decision frameworks for transformational opportunities and derive value from project diversity in their transformational portfolios.

Design Compelling Careers in R&D

Attract, engage and retain top R&D talent in an environment transformed by disruption. Ninety-six percent of surveyed R&D leaders say attracting and retaining technical R&D talent is a top challenge to solve for the overall performance of their department. The last several years have altered how work is done and caused employees to reconsider their relationship with their work. To create compelling R&D career pathways, R&D leaders should Craft career plans that blend personal objectives with organizational objectives. Build a diverse portfolio of experiences to expand employee expertise. Facilitate career growth that celebrates nontraditional, nonlinear career  Download the Mandala report on Designing Compelling Careers in R&D Around Purpose, Experiences and Omnidirectional Growth to discover how to attract and retain top R&D talent