Long-Term R&D Strategy and Planning

Kent M. Young, Terry L. Rosenstiel & Pam Henderson

OVERVIEW: The rapid pace of change makes the future increasingly difficult to predict. Companies are under stress as they seek to make investments that protect against disruption and create new opportunities. This stress is magnified for R&D, which allocates resources to longer-term technology platforms supporting future business growth. R&D must invest in platforms that extend beyond the time frames for which businesses scout insights on where markets, customers, and competitors are going. This article focuses on the state of R&D planning in longer-term time frames where insights are limited. We present the study results and provide a scorecard for evaluating the maturity of a strategy function.