Case Study: Sniffing For Clues (Natural Gas Consultant)
The Problem
An industrial instruments and sensors company had developed a novel new technology for detecting the presence of hydrogen sulfide (H2S) in the air in a wider range of concentrations than existing methods allowed. The product management team was tasked with finding out of there was a market need for such sensors and what specific applications were most attractive. After some initial investigation, they determined that the global natural gas supply chain provided an attractive potential market, but did not know where in the supply chain H2S monitoring was most needed.
Critical Issues
Technical Expertise Supply Chain Knowledge Speed
The Solution
Maven conducted an Electronic Survey of natural gas consultants and gas industry professionals including gas utilities and industrial safety experts regarding H2S leakage throughout the supply chain. The customer treated the Survey as a written interview, through which they gained insights into both the topic and the professional qualifications of the individual respondents. After further screening via Telephone Consultations, the customer hired one of the experts for an Extended Consulting engagement to assist in the development of the new product. Since Maven had pre-negotiated consulting rates and terms with the expert, they were able to get straight to work developing the new product and its market entry strategy.
“Maven delivered the right individual to help us develop an exciting new product.”
– Vice President of Product Management