NABCD
Updated 2026-08-22
INTRODUCTION
English translation pending.
CORE DEFINITION
NABCD is an innovation framework associated with SRI International. N stands for need, the market demand the project addresses. A stands for approach, the solution or technology proposed. B stands for benefit, the value the user receives. C stands for competition, the advantage relative to existing alternatives. D stands for delivery, the route to reaching users at scale. The framework's function is a completeness check: a technically strong project with no verified need, no quantified benefit, or no answer to competition fails commercially regardless of the quality of the approach. Each element must be evidenced rather than asserted.
SCAFFOLDING EFFECT
Reduce cognitive load
- Use need evidence: cite interviews or usage data showing the demand is real and paid for. - Use benefit quantification: express the gain in the user's units, such as time saved or cost avoided. - Use competition answer: state why someone would switch from what they use today.
Anchor fast decisions
Technical teams optimize the approach because that is what they control, and the other four elements go unexamined until commercialization, where they decide the outcome. Requiring all five as separate entries makes the missing ones visible before significant investment. Quantifying benefit in the user's units exposes the gap between what the solution does and what the user gains, which is where many projects fail. Naming the competition forces comparison against current behavior, including doing nothing, which is usually the largest alternative and the hardest to displace.
MINIMUM ACTION
In progress 0/1Practice this model in one real situation:
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Source support: Explicit
- en.wikipedia.orghttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SRI_International#Innovationsverified
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