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Innovating in R&D is tougher than ever.
R&D teams are working harder than ever, yet most innovations still fail. Traditional approaches often overlook the user and don’t dig deep enough into product points of difference, leading to generic solutions, costly rework cycles and missed opportunities.
Untapping Innovation offers a smarter way forward. This essential playbook, from the founders of the hugely successful Untapped Innovation, offers simple, flexible tools to help R&D teams build products that users truly love. Discover how to extract deep user insights, craft Ideal Product Models, create Minimum Viable Products and write compelling product stories that resonate with both consumers and stakeholders, to bridge the gap between innovation and market success.
During their 30+ years at Procter & Gamble then Untapped Innovation, Sally Kemkers, Suzanne Allers and Deirdre Walters have relentlessly focused on optimizing tools to help R&D innovators develop breakthrough products and stories.
Suzanne, Sally, and Deirdre are founding partners of Untapped Innovation, a global consulting and training agency helping R&D teams at companies like PepsiCo, P&G, Unilever, and Reckitt develop breakthrough products and tell product stories. The trio met at Procter & Gamble, where they built deep expertise in user psychology, product insight, and commercial strategy. Their diverse backgrounds—Suzanne's scientific PhD, Sally's consumer insight skills, and Deirdre’s experience in manufacturing and marketing—helped them bridge R&D and business functions. At P&G, Suzanne and Deirdre created the “Technical Product Story” framework, now used globally as a springboard for product communication. Since 2012 at Untapped Innovation, they continue to optimize tools for breakthrough innovation. They are also co-founders of STEM Untapped, a non-profit connecting underrepresented students with STEM mentors. Regular speakers and award winners, they’ve been featured in The Independent, Investing.com, and Business Insider.
Sally Kemkers is a seasoned R&D and product innovation leader with a rare ability to uncover deep user needs and translate them into commercially successful products. She co-founded Untapped Innovation in 2012 after a 17-year career at P&G, where she held senior R&D and Insight roles across the UK, Germany, Japan, and Dubai. Sally is also an active angel investor and supports the next generation of innovators through non-profit collaborations.
Suzanne Allers combines deep scientific expertise with a rare talent for creating compelling product stories that drive business success. With a PhD in Chemistry and a Natural Sciences degree from Cambridge, she spent 15 years at P&G and created the pioneering ‘Technical Product Story’ methodology. As co-founder of Untapped Innovation, she helps R&D teams connect science, technology, and emerging human needs. Suzanne is also a committed STEM advocate.
Deirdre Walters brings a uniquely cross-functional R&D perspective to product development. With over 15 years at P&G across R&D, Marketing, and Manufacturing, she understands how to turn technical potential into tangible market-ready success. A Chemistry graduate with a CIM Marketing Diploma, she co-founded Untapped Innovation. She also co-created the influential ‘Technical Product Story’ framework and champions inclusive innovation as a STEM charity co-founder and angel investor.
Foreword xv
Introduction xvii
Why we wrote this book xvii
Who this book is for xvii
What this book is (and isn’t) xvii
What you’ll get from it xviii
How to use this book xviii
PART 1 – THE R&D NEED FOR INNOVATION SUCCESS
Chapter 1: Why innovation is hard – and why R&D holds the key 5
The internal factors: what we can fix 6
The outside world: what we can prepare for 7
The better news: why R&D can be an engine of innovation effectiveness 8
Chapter 2: Inside R&D: challenges, pressures… and possibility 11
Root Cause 1: systems built for control, not agility 13
Root Cause 2: human factors – biases and behaviour that burn budget and timelines (a.k.a. when we get in our own way…) 14
Root Cause 3: culture – the invisible force that shapes innovation; risk, short- termism and data myopia 14
Root Cause 4: capability gaps – turning potential into progress 19
PART 2 – INTRODUCING THE CONNECTED R&D PLAYBOOK
Why a “connected” playbook; the user–product connection cycle 28 Connecting the user to the product 29
Connecting the product to the user 30
How the playbook tools fit across this cycle 31
Where to start 35
Chapter 3: The power of human- led product development 37
What is human-led product development? 37
Start by defining a target user 38
The role of a Product User Journey 39
Capturing User Needs as jobs 41
The importance of de- risking R&D to drive ROI 42
Chapter 4: The power of R&D stories for market success 45
We all tell stories 45
R&D need to be articulate at telling their stories 46
The hero’s journey 47
A platform to explore the product magic 48
A springboard to better ideas, faster 49
Filling the innovation pipeline 51
Future-facing stories 52
A bridge to marketing 53
Closing thought 54
PART 3 – THE PRACTICAL GUIDE TO THE CONNECTED R&D PLAYBOOK
Part 3.1: Translating user insights into winning products 58
Product development pitfalls that could hold back great R&D 58
Chapter 5: Product User Journey 62
Glossary of terms 64
R&D’s role in user research 64
Human- led product development in action: understanding the user 65
The role of the Product User Journey 65
Start with why: a Bullseye approach to research for innovation 66
Observation: the starting point for every Product User Journey 68
Identifying pain points 69
Case study: the laundry hack that sparked an innovation 70
A tale from Deirdre from the frontline: BookTrust and bedtime dramas 72
Top tips 73
Chapter 6: Deeper Insights 76
Glossary of terms 78
What we mean by Deeper Insights 79
Projective techniques to get to the unarticulated 80
The Needs Map – creating a picture of our users’ needs 82
Defining the Ideal User Experience 84
Case study: uncovering the opportunities in everyday facial suncare via Deeper Insights 87
A tale from Deirdre from the frontline: humbled by an Italian shopping trip 95
Top tips 97
A final word 98
Chapter 7: Ideal Product Model 100
Glossary of terms 102
What is an Ideal Product Model Blueprint? 103
Introducing the tool: the Ideal Product Model Blueprint 104
Jobs To Be Done: what job is your product hired to do? 106
Product Attributes: translating JTBD into the user experience 109
The power of Gold Standards 111
Gold Standard Attributes: translating Gold Standards into tangible sensory cues 113
Delivery Mechanisms: translating User Needs into technical delivery requirements 115
Test Methods and Measures: evidence-based product development 120
Case study: ASICS and the undropped PE kit 122
A tale from Deirdre from the frontline: IPM enabled diplomacy to bridge R&D to manufacturing 126
Top tips 128
Chapter 8: Minimum Viable Product (MVP) and prototyping 130
Glossary of terms 132
Let go of perfect and learn what matters most: the Minimum Viable Product 133
MVPs can help at any stage of R&D 135
Attribute Hierarchy: it must be functional, trustworthy and remarkable 136
Mechanism range-finding: developing real user specifications 138
Stakeholder Scorecarding: align early, reduce risk 142
Horizon planning with an Attribute pipeline 145
Case study: using MVP thinking to drive global quality on McVitie’s Digestive biscuits 146
A tale from Sally from the frontline: beer prototypes and working men’s clubs 149
Top tips 150
Part 3.2: Stories to connect winning products back to users 152
Storytelling pitfalls that could hold back great R&D 152
Chapter 9: Technology Mode of Action 156
Glossary of terms 158
What is a Technology Mode of Action and why does it come before a great Product Story? 159
Step 1: Defining the technical problem by finding the Root Cause of the User Problem 160
Step 2: Defining the Technology Opportunity Gap 164
Step 3: Defining the unique Technology Mode of Action 165
The full Technical Mode of Action model “Cog”: powering the story 167
Case study: Good Hair Day low damage hair straighteners 168
A tale from Suzanne from the frontline: being the 4-year-old in a room of big brains 173
Top tips 174
Chapter 10: Product Story 176
Glossary of terms 178
Storytelling for R&D: four chapters that bring innovation to life 179
The four chapters of every innovation story 179
Chapter 1 – User Wish 181
Chapter 2 – Root Cause 182
Chapter 3 – Breakthrough Innovation 183
Chapter 4 – The New User Experience 184
Why the Story Arc matters 185
Case study: Tylenol EasyGlide 185
A tale from Suzanne from the frontline: when 4pm Fridays made us Product Story builders 187
Top tips 188
Chapter 11: Concept Thinking 190
Glossary of terms 192
Turning stories into concepts 192
Case study: RE-NOURISH Soup 194
A tale from Sally from the frontline: concepts by committee 197
Top tips 198
Chapter 12: Claims and Demos 200
Glossary of terms 202
Creating compelling Claims and Demos 203
Landscaping Claims and Demos 204
Crafting Claims and Demos: ideate, articulate, strengthen 206
Strengthen claims to BANISH the pain points and SHOW the benefit 207
Case study: Sensodyne Pronamel Repair – Claims and Demos that bring oral care into the self- care conversation 208
A tale from Deirdre from the frontline: R&D’s role in retail “theatre” 213
Top tips 216
PART 4 – ACTION FOR BREAKTHROUGH RESULTS
Chapter 13: Maximizing the Connected R&D Playbook 221
Connecting the tools to unleash their value 221
Bringing joy to product development 223
Innovation as a team sport: leveraging the IPM Blueprint and Product Story 223
Chapter 14: Preparing for tomorrow’s R&D 227
Product trends of the early 21st century 228
What does the future hold? 231
Chapter 15: AI as a co-pilot for the tools 235
A new creative partnership 235
The human in the loop 236
Forward- looking AI trends (next three–five years) 237
Accelerating the Connected R&D Playbook 240
Building resilience for what comes next 242
Conclusion: your call to action 245
From ideas to action: five ways to start and maintain the journey 245
Bibliography 247
Acknowledgements 249
Index 251