Capturing the Value of Synchronized Innovation

Coordinating new product development efforts with other companies in your industry can provide substantial benefits — but can be challenging.

BY JASON P. DAVIS

For more than 30 years, Intel Corporation and Microsoft Corporation, two technology powerhouses, have closely synchronized many product development and launch activities in one of the most widely recognized corporate alliances. The early success of their collaboration set market expectations for a flow of coordinated semiconductor and software products. In some rapidly growing industries such as mobile telecommunications, such synchronization is more extensive, permeating the product development moves of dozens of young companies at once. ...