Is your organization exploring open innovation and external sourcing of new technologies? The most successful outcomes are achieved when companies have a structured process for identifying needs, gaps and opportunities and then finding solutions, both outside and inside the organization.

Management Roundtable's Technology Scouting Starter Kit offers an overview of industry practices and recommended action steps. Based on presentations and research conducted for its conference on Technology Sourcing (October 2008), this kit includes discussion of:

• Leading practices, processes and drivers of success
• The role and advantages of technology scouting
• Specific examples, metrics, and incentives used by companies such as P&G, Kraft, Nokia, Avery Dennison, Corning, Dow, Kimberly Clark, IBM, and more
• Trends, directions and further resources

Contents

1. Introduction/Basics
2. Getting Started: Looking for Opportunities
3. Winning Over Internal R&D
4. Places to Look
5. Evaluation and Assessment
6. Basic Screening Criteria
7. Thinking About Intellectual Property
8. Portfolio and Business Fit
9. Rapid Decision Making
10. Scoring for Value
11. Negotiating for Success
12. Useful Metrics, IP Metrics, Industry Examples
13. Rewards and Incentives
14. Key Drivers of Success
15. Moving Forward: Current Trends
16. Appendix: A) Resources and contact information