Managing Break Through Innovation at a German Car Supplier

End customers helping to generate ideas is filling the idea pipeline at the German car supplier Webasto reducing the product development risk in difficult times.
Challenged by a growing emancipation of the end consumer and fast changing customer demand, the German Automotive supplier Webasto, with its large R&D effort of around 8%, has difficulties to meet the true customer benefits with new products exactly. As a solution, Webasto introduced a methodology to include customer input more deeply in the new product development process in 2005. In cooperation with the MIT Boston, this existing approach to identify end customers (lead users) who could contribute to this user-driven development process was enriched by a concept including communities. The presentation will share first concepts, insights in the development phase, planned benefits and challenges of this community driven approach.