I skipped the pitch deck.

JD Fiscus

For Jeff Voorhees, VP Technology Innovation

who doesn't need another one

Abstract

You've seen enough LinkedIn optimizers. This is how I actually think. No slides. No buzzwords. Just the process and the receipts.

Way more interesting.

Method

Gather RequirementsDivergeClusterConvergeSurvive
View Source
It gets weirder from here

the Challenge

“It's in the hardest times

we grow the most ”

TruStage needs someone to shape enterprise R&D strategy.

Accelerate discovery, validation, and application of emerging technologies. Translate strategic priorities into a research agenda that fuels innovation pipelines and de-risks technology investments.

the bottleneck

The real problem isn't finding good ideas. It's getting them through the pipeline.

Explorationgenerates plenty of promising concepts

but validation stalls without clear criteria

pilots run long without pathways to production

and 88% never reaches customers

exploration100%validation65%pilot30%production12%-35%-54%-60%

88% of R&D never reaches production.

The pipeline leaks at every stage.

The other 12% is mostly PowerPoints that became
real by accident.

Good ideas don't die in the market.

They die in committee.

step 1: Gather Requirements

This should be

easierthan it usually is.

strategic leadership

what the job sayswhat it actually means
Define enterprise R&D strategyBuild a system, not a backlog
Assess emerging technologiesSeparate signal from noise
Balanced portfolio (H1/H2/H3)Know when to ship vs. explore
Cross-functional collaborationSit in meetings where everyone nods but nothing ships

portfolio management

what the job sayswhat it actually means
Oversee R&D project executionMake research legible to business
Partner with AI, Automation teamsBridge the translation gap
Track exploration → productionFix the leaky pipeline

stakeholder management

what the job sayswhat it actually means
Lead stakeholder engagementSell research without selling
Champion R&D literacyTeach others to fish
Communicate to non-technicalMake PhDs legible to execs

pattern

Every requirement is about multiplication, not addition.

The role isn't doing research. It's building leverage.

Without losing the PhDs in the process.

constraint

Regulated industry. Insurance and financial services.

Research needs to translate into business value while navigating governance.

Translation: move fast, document everything, don't break anything that touches money.

step 2: Diverge

no bad ideas.yet.

What are all the ways to build leverage in enterprise R&D?

Generate ideas without judgment. Quantity over quality.

raw ideas (preview)

01Self-service analytics dashboards
02No-code experiment builders
03R&D literacy workshops
04Stage-gate framework
05Technology radar
06Executive research briefings
07AI governance framework
08Research mentorship pairing
09Fast-fail experiment framework
10University partnerships
11Stakeholder feedback loops
12Containerized research environments

+ 30 more ideas...

principle

Suspend judgment during divergence. Criticism kills creativity.

Save the criticism for converge. That's what it's for.

output

Now cluster by theme.

step 3: Cluster

Simple...

It's just Math.

Group 40 ideas into distinct themes.

Click each cluster to explore the ideas within.

40 ideas
click a cluster to explore
40 ideas → 6 clusters

pattern

4 of 6 clusters map to something I've already built and shipped.

The other 2 are on my list.

Usually early to whatever's coming next.

42 ideas → 6 clusters → Now the fun part: killing your darlings.

step 4: Converge

now we get

brutal.

evaluation criteria

weighted by reality

30%
25%
20%
15%
10%
Impact(30%)Feasibility(25%)Alignment(20%)Speed(15%)Risk(10%)

top selections

1.Enablement & Translation8.3

Addresses root cause of R&D-business gap

2.Tech-as-a-Service8.1

Creates compounding leverage

3.Stakeholder Architecture8.0

Enables all other initiatives

4.Pipeline Management7.6

Fixes the leaky pipeline problem

5.Horizon Scanning7.6

Maintains future-focused perspective

Enablement & Translation wins. Not because it's flashy. Because it fixes the actual problem.

Horizon Scan

What's coming next

Four technologies shaping enterprise R&D in the next 12-18 months.

H1 Core (Now)
H2 Pilot (12-18mo)
H3 Watch (18mo+)
H1 · Core

MCP

Model Context Protocol

58%

Dominant

92%

Providers

“The USB-C of AI. When your competitors adopt your stack, you won.”

TruStage relevance

Agent-to-system integration, tool orchestration

Click for forecast →
H1 · Core

WebAI

ML in the browser

72%

Surpass Cloud

10%

Mainstream

“Privacy-first AI for member-facing apps. No data leaves device.”

TruStage relevance

Underwriting previews, claims triage in-browser

Click for forecast →
H2 · Pilot

AI Security

Governance infrastructure

62%

Tools >60%

55%

AI Outage

“Prompt injection is permanent. Detection > prevention. Accept this now. You'll save yourself a quarter.”

TruStage relevance

Mandatory before production AI deployment

Click for forecast →
H3 · Watch

Agentic Commerce

Autonomous transactions

68%

Retailers

12%

Consumer

“Members' AI will shop insurance. The robots are coming for your quote flow.”

TruStage relevance

Claims automation, policy management agents

Click for forecast →

pattern

All four technologies share a common thread: AI moving from capability to infrastructure.

Opportunity

First-mover advantage in regulated AI

Risk

Compliance deadlines accelerating

Proven Pattern

This is a live Claude Code sandbox. Enter the password, then chat with Claude who knows about me and has my Research-to-Roadmap plugin installed.

How it works:

  • • E2B sandbox spins up an isolated container
  • • Claude Code CLI runs with my custom plugins
  • • /about-jd skill has my background, voice, and answers
  • • /r2r-* skills demo the Research-to-Roadmap plugin

Most R&D dies in PowerPoint. This one shipped.

~/sandbox

Sandbox Access

Enter password to connect

Connect above, then try:

Let's talk. I promise not to use the word 'synergy.'

JD Fiscus · Detroit · Still debugging