The second INPROCAP webinar, held on 27 November 2025, focused on one of the most critical yet often overlooked phases of innovation procurement: needs assessment and the identification of unmet needs.
Building on the introductory session, this webinar provided participants with practical methodologies, tools, and examples to help public procurers and Big Science Organisations define their needs clearly before engaging with the market.
Why needs assessment matters
The webinar opened by highlighting a common challenge in innovation procurement: organisations often start with solutions rather than problems. This “innovation paradox” can lead to solutions that fail to deliver real value.
As presented during the session, innovation procurement should always start with an unmet need – a requirement that current products or services cannot meet adequately, or can only meet at excessive cost or risk. Clearly defining this need is essential to ensuring that innovation efforts are targeted, effective, and aligned with organisational and policy objectives.
From solutions to outcomes
Participants explored how unmet needs should be described in functional and outcome-oriented terms, rather than through prescriptive technical requirements.
For example, instead of stating “we need AI-powered software”, a need should be framed as “we need to reduce response time from 48 hours to 4 hours”. This approach leaves room for the market to propose diverse and innovative solutions while keeping the focus on the desired outcome.
Methods for identifying unmet needs
The webinar introduced a range of practical methods for identifying and validating unmet needs, including:
- Voice of the customer approaches (interviews, focus groups, workshops, surveys)
- Stakeholder mapping and inclusion
- Observation of real operational processes
A structured five-step needs identification process was presented, covering preparation, stakeholder engagement, data gathering, analysis, and prioritisation. This step-by-step approach helps organisations move from fragmented inputs to a clear and shared understanding of priorities.
Prioritising needs for procurement
Once needs are identified, prioritisation becomes essential. The webinar presented a three-dimensional prioritisation framework, assessing needs based on:
- Urgency
- Impact
- Feasibility
By combining these dimensions, public buyers can focus their procurement efforts on needs that offer the highest value and are realistically addressable through the market.
Functional vs. technical requirements
A key part of the session was dedicated to explaining the difference between functional and technical requirements.
Functional specifications describe what a solution should achieve, without prescribing how it should be built. This approach has been shown to be significantly more innovation-friendly, encouraging creativity, competition, and adaptability among suppliers. Examples from previous innovation procurement cases illustrated how functional requirements can lead to better outcomes while reducing the risk of technological lock-in.
Learning by doing: interactive exercises
The webinar concluded with interactive group exercise, where participants practised translating needs into functional procurement requirements. Working on everyday examples, participants identified must-have and nice-to-have parameters, tested their assumptions, and received expert feedback on common pitfalls such as subjective language, over-specification, or confusing features with outcomes.
What’s next in the INPROCAP training series?
This second webinar is part of the broader INPROCAP training journey, which combines webinars, hybrid events, and on-site sessions. Upcoming trainings will further explore market analysis, preliminary market consultations, and advanced innovation procurement procedures.
All training materials and recordings will be made available through the INPROCAP website and online toolbox, supporting public procurers and innovation intermediaries in applying these concepts in practice.
