Crowdsourcing for aftermarket manufacturing
Does crowdsourcing offer benefits to the aftermarket and to aftermarket parts manufacturers? We have to first define crowdsourcing before we can answer the question. It simply is, according to Merriam-Webster, “the practice of obtaining needed services, ideas, or content by soliciting contributions from a large group of people, and especially from an online community, rather than from traditional employees or suppliers.”
I love the following example of crowdsourcing, as told through legend, which indicates the process has been utilized for a long time. Individuals competed to guess the weight of a large ox during a 1906 county fair. A cash prize awaited anyone who guessed the exact weight of the animal, and more than 800 people registered a guess. Nobody provided the correct weight, but following the event a statistician reviewed the answers and discovered something amazing. The average of all the guesses was 1 pound less than the actual weight of the ox.
The conclusion is obvious: the collective input from many individuals can generate positive results – even if the individuals do not work directly with each other.
Open-source software development has been with us for many years, so the concept is not new. What’s new is the increasing number of companies that are willing to allow non-employees to influence the design of products and processes.
Manufacturers and brand owners have discovered in recent years the power of crowdsourcing in developing new designs, tag lines and other product-related attributes. Benefits include creativity from outside the corporate walls, reduced innovation costs and results that more closely match customer and market requirements.
One of the challenges the aftermarket faces with product development is that so many products are pre-determined by the original vehicle design. Certain aftermarket products lend themselves to crowdsourcing more than others, but what about the manufacturing environment? What about processes that enable parts to move efficiently from a manufacturer to points of distribution and sale? Even if aftermarket businesses do not “own” the manufacturing environment (renting or borrowing time from the OE production lines or co-manning), there are numerous areas or processes that can be improved or re-invented, such as warehousing, packaging, logistics and supply chain, low-cost employee benefits, etc.
The independent aftermarket should pay attention to the utilization of crowdsourcing. Electric cars are being developed/designed in part by crowdsourcing. Local Motors already has produced an off-road car that was largely designed via crowdsourcing. The Marines are conducting contests for select systems for an amphibious vehicle and plan to conduct a contest for an entire vehicle in 2014.
There are multiple legal, intellectual property (IP), production, marketing and other issues that come into play, but following are some things aftermarket manufacturers should consider when debating the use of crowdsourcing:
- Mindset – Outsourcing a basic IT function can be a challenge for aftermarket companies. Crowdsourcing, to an even greater extent, will require a major shift in attitude and working environment. The threat of loss of control is real and must be addressed.
- Map It – A clear and detailed picture of how the entire process will work is imperative to ensure successes. Participants, project managers, IP attorneys, budget approvers and management must understand everyone’s role, how much information will be shared and how participants will receive follow-up communications.
- Divide to Provide – IP loss is a real threat, so manufacturers will need to develop ways to segment or segregate aspects of a project to prevent any one individual or competitor from taking advantage of the new ideas. Seek the counsel of your attorneys to ensure you take the appropriate steps to protect existing patents and trademarks or any that may be generated from the crowdsourcing effort.
- Incentivize – Some may contribute their creative ideas just to gain the satisfaction of contributing to a successful commercial venture. Others, however, may require a tangible incentive to participate. Think through this one because it is very difficult to predict results, successes and the real value of the contributions of various individuals.
- Common Process – Allowing independent individuals or companies to contribute to a new idea by definition means that disparate platforms, software and file types will be used. Thought has to be applied to how individuals will make contributions. Third party software platforms are commercially available for crowdsourcing projects, but in-house platforms can work just as well – depending on the complexity of the ideas.
Crowdsourcing may not provide a source for your company for new or improved manufacturing operations or packaging designs, but vehicles of the future may emerge from it. Competitors you have not yet envisioned may be relying on it right now to build out a new line. Aftermarket manufacturers – pay attention to this trend!
Chris Gardner is vice president, programs and member services, for the Automotive Aftermarket Suppliers Association (AASA). He is the executive director of the AASA Technology Council (ATC), which provides leadership and a forum for technology leaders from supplier companies to exchange best practices, identify leading technology trends and address technology issues in the aftermarket. The Council’s annual technology event, the ATC Fall Conference, will be held October 13-15 in Marco Island, Fla. Visit www.aasatechnology.org for details.
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