Imagine a world where you build products for End Users and during the build out, you get real-time feed back on usability? Not a new concept, but one of which i am very fond – 3M has been using direct feedback in their invention process since 1997, read on inventors… read on…

In a world of online user communities, social media, interactive blogs and other technological means for companies to elicit customer feedback, you might think that face-to-face interaction is a thing of the past. Think again.

As a company, 3M is at the forefront of a movement that appears to be gaining traction: customer innovation centers, typically located near company research facilities, that provide a forum for meeting with corporate customers and engaging them directly in the innovation process.

Read the full article:  http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/27/business/27proto.html?_r=1&partner=rss&emc=rss