End-to-end innovation: extending the stage-gate model into a sustainable collaboration framework

Fundamental research organizations by definition focus their operations and maintain their strategic horizon rather on the left-end of the value chain. In a globalized community of increased competition and core competence paradigms, however, sustainable innovation concepts require the need for partnering and therefore an extended planning scope within the value network. Even for players acting in small segments of the network, holistic concepts for innovation through collaboration, become increasingly important in a larger context. State-owned research organizations traditionally represent the innovative strength of a nation and nowadays therefore carry the burden of bringing innovations to the market for sustaining the competitive advantage and wealth creation capabilities of the respective society. However, in fundamental research organizations, this societal expectance of initiating an innovation process from idea to market, stands in contradiction to their actual strategic focus. In order to facilitate this innovation strength, the application of end-to-end innovation concepts is needed. A planning framework for the implementation of end-to-end innovation is presented and discussed, serving to describe and understand the various processes, functions and roles involved. Evidences and experiences for the feasibility of this framework is presented based on its application in the renewable energy sector.