By Robert Phaal, Clare Farrukh and David Probert University of Cambridge

T-Plan was developed by Cambridge researchers after surveying the roadmapping practices at 2,000 UK manufacturing firms. The method focuses on bringing together tacit and explicit knowledge within an organization and distilling it into a documented high level view of that firm’s probable future. T-Plan emphasizes the linkage between the commercial perspective and the technological perspective, and divides forward looking knowledge into layers using the classic roadmapping category types of Business/Market, Product/Service, and Technology. The T-Plan process is described in a comprehensive workbook published by the Institute for Manufacturing. It provides step-by-step guidance on all the stages involved, together with a CD of supporting materials. In addition the Institute offers regular training courses on T-Plan as well as facilitated applications of the process in individual companies. To find out  more