HP Innovation Journal Issue 01: Winter 2015 | Page 7

TIMELINE TO PRODUCT BUSINESS
WAVES PORTFOLIO
INVESTMENT TIMELINE TO
PRODUCT PROBABILITY
OF SUCCESS PAYOFF IF
SUCCESSFUL
FUNDAMENTAL RESEARCH 1, 2, 3 10% >7 YEARS LOW HIGH
NEW BUSINESS CREATION 2, 3 30% 3-5 YEARS MEDIUM MEDIUM
TARGETED TOWARD DIVISION 1, 2 30% 3-5 YEARS MEDIUM MEDIUM
DIVISION PLAN AND/OR
COST REDUCTION 1 30% 1-2 YEARS HIGH MEDIUM
Our research portfolio of projects intersects
with the business wave approach from
HP’s Dion Weisler. As he describes it, the
first business wave is about the current
landscape. “In this wave, we move quickly
and fight continuously to improve our core
businesses, drive profits, and increase cash
flow.” Business wave two is about emerging
businesses – you can see companies
entering but no clear leader (3D print is
such an example). Business wave three is
about markets that don’t yet exist. This is
where breakthrough technology is needed.
Technology innovations are key to all three
waves, but we generally focus HP Labs
resources on waves two and three.
It’s never obvious where a great idea will
come from. As such, we don’t plan research
like a product roadmap. Instead, we establish
areas that we think have longevity, and
create checkpoints for deciding to continue
investment or shelve the idea. History has
COMMUNITY VOICE
What does
#KeepReinventing
mean to you?
shown this approach works well, from new
technology for the Indigo digital press, to new
materials for 3D print, to security innovations
for our devices.
HP Labs is chartered with taking the path
less traveled, to create and identify new
technology that opens new business
opportunities and creates options for HP that
make a difference both to our customers
and our business. Yogi Berra once said,
“Predictions are difficult, especially when
they are about the future.” I prefer Alan Kay’s
comment: “The best way to predict the future
is to invent it.”
Keith is an HP Fellow and Head
of the Print and 3D Lab at HP
Labs. His innovations have
been shipped in almost every
printer from consumer Inkjet,
office LaserJet to large Indigo
digital presses.
MARKET WATCH
Kranti Singh: “Embracing disruption
that might blur today’s organizational,
economic or cultural boundaries, but
creates opportunities for new ways
of thinking and creating brand new
economic/cultural horizons.”
Bruce Fleming: “Looking at new
opportunities through a lens without
constraints and reinventing what HP
means to customers. It’s beyond PCs
and printers.
HP’s Ecosystem and Venture Outreach team works with startups, new business
accelerators, and VCs on solutions that help drive a market expansion of our platforms,
creating a virtuous cycle of innovation for our ecosystems. HP hosts specific startups
that work on proof of concepts aligned with our business unit priorities.
Such alliances give us early access to disruptive technologies that, ideally, will be
commercialized into new products that will differentiate us in the marketplace. HP’s
value add to the startups is mentorship from our technologist and business teams and
the ability to scale their technologies into a global arena. Below is a sample of these
promising partnerships.
NEW BUSINESS ACCELERATOR: RIVER
Founded by San Francisco capital firm Rothenberg Ventures, River is
a new business accelerator investing in upstart companies looking
to make a difference in virtual reality, robotics, artificial intelligence,
nanotech, and other areas aligned with HP’s interests. The bi-annual
River program offers a $200,000 investment, office space, and
mentorship to early stage startups.
NEW BUSINESS ACCELERATOR: THE JUNCTION
Tel Aviv-based The Junction provides seed-stage startups a platform
to accelerate and advance their ventures into better products and
companies. A six-month intensive program from Genesis partners,
The Junction brings the best and brightest new Israeli companies
together with industry experts in user experience, business
development, and product marketing.
HP CONFIDENTIAL: FOR INTERNAL USE ONLY
Serge Vejvoda: “It means pushing
yourself and your team to find new ways
to tackle an existing set of problems or a
whole new set of challenges.”
Steve Simske: “Instead of thinking
where a technology’s trajectory will
take it, try to find two independent
technologies that, when combined,
take it further.”
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