Most people think innovation means new technology: a smarter algorithm, a faster processor, a sleeker interface.

But in my experience, 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝗶𝗻𝗻𝗼𝘃𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗯𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗻𝘀 𝗯𝘆 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗻𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗮𝘀𝘀𝘂𝗺𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗯𝗲𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗾𝘂𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀.

𝗥𝗲𝗾𝘂𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝗔𝗿𝗲 𝗡𝗼𝘁 𝗧𝗿𝘂𝘁𝗵

When clients come to us with a feature list, they often present it as the “requirements document.”

But what they’re really doing is proposing a solution, based on what they’ve seen, what they think is possible, or what competitors are doing.

It’s rarely the full picture.

𝗔𝘀𝗸: “𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗯𝗹𝗲𝗺 𝗔𝗿𝗲 𝗪𝗲 𝗦𝗼𝗹𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗴?”

The most transformative moments in product development happen when we stop and ask:

• Why do we think these are the right requirements?
• What pain are we really solving?
• What assumptions are we afraid to question?

This kind of thinking turns small improvements into major breakthroughs.

𝗜𝗻𝗻𝗼𝘃𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗲𝘀 𝗙𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗥𝗲𝗳𝗿𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗴

When we give ourselves permission to challenge the logic of a feature list, we open the door to:

-Simpler solutions -More valuable outcomes -Entirely new product categories

Innovation doesn’t live in the roadmap. It begins when we choose to redraw the map.

𝗕𝗟𝗘 𝗗𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗰𝗲 𝗘𝘅𝗮𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲

A client brought us a draft requirements list for a new version of a Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) device.

Users often moved between locations and needed to reconnect to computers.

Their list included:

• Manual pairing and unpairing
• Displaying the device’s MAC address
• Button-based connection management
• Screen navigation to select devices

These weren’t true requirements. They were guesses about how it had to work.

So we asked:

• What if users didn’t press buttons or read screens at all?
• What if the device could pair automatically when near a computer?

We proposed using short-range wireless proximity for automatic pairing.

The response?

“𝗧𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘄𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝗼 𝗺𝘂𝗰𝗵 𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗶𝗲𝗿. 𝗜 𝗱𝗶𝗱𝗻’𝘁 𝗸𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗽𝗼𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗯𝗹𝗲!”

The innovation came not from new features, but from 𝗿𝗲𝗳𝗿𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗯𝗹𝗲𝗺.

𝗟𝗲𝘁’𝘀 𝗕𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱 𝗦𝗺𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗿

If you lead product, strategy, or design, ask yourself:

Are we solving the right problem?

• Could we deliver 10x value by solving it differently?
• What if the requirements weren’t fixed?

Sometimes the smartest move is to ask: 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗶𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗿𝗲𝗾𝘂𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗱𝗶𝗱𝗻’𝘁 𝗲𝘅𝗶𝘀𝘁?

By @Greg Burk, Original post on Linkedin

#ProductDesign #Innovation #WolffElectronicDesign