CustomerMade is a conference organized by Innovation Lab in association with O’Reilly Media.

The outsourcing of key business functions – from textile production to software - to low cost labour countries is one of the key trends of the past five years. The next wave of outsourcing is starting to take place in the heart of the home market: the market itself is taking over all phases of production, from concept development and design to finished product. The phenomenon of ‘user-driven innovation’ goes beyond do-it-yourself’ing, customization, and personalization. It’s no longer a matter of choosing between models – customers are designing the very models they choose.

The new outsourcing has been dubbed CustomerMade. And CustomerMade logos are already appearing in t-shirt collars and on Lego sets, newspaper bylines and computer games – everywhere the boundaries between producers/consumers are breaking down.

Outsource to your customers
CustomerMade is a revolution from below. Customer passions are turned into profit by facilitation rather than persuation and marketing. A recent study in the Harvard Business Review shows that products based on ideas generated outside the company give the highest returns. The best ideas are not your own. Proctor & Gamble’s goal is for fifty percent of all new product ideas to come from external sources such as the future users of their products.

Innovation Lab and O’Reilly Media’s CustomerMade conference will introduce European producers and customers to a phenomenon that promises to become one of the biggest – and most ground-breaking – trends of the coming decade. Meet international CustomerMade profiles and experience innovative products, processes and services – and discover what we stand to gain and lose from the coming customer takeover.

If you have any questions about CustomerMade, please don’t hesitate to contact conference co-chairs Christian Lausten (christian [at] ilab.dk) and Nikolaj Nyholm (nikolaj [at] oreilly.com).