Measuring success of your life.

I was reading the article of the Clayton M Christensen how to measure your life.  http://hbr.org/2010/07/how-will-you-measure-your-life/ar/1 

The deviation from your values happens slowly and suddenly you realize that you are in deep shit. 

It is good time for me to recollect the book " The innovators Dialemma".  I was part of the internal innovation program at my company to generate new opportunities. And we just failed.

It all started with me joining a  idea selection team to short list six product ideas.  Then we prototyped these ideas in two months in remote location.  Everything went well till then.

To take the prototype to product was next steps.  We set up an R&D organization in europe where people will "fly in and fly out" this location every alternate week. They work remotely one week and work together next week. Was this designed to failure.  Six months we toiled like this.  We couldn't make our products into better shape.  They stayed more like the prototypes.

Then management realized that we should have it one location.  We shortlisted one location and moved the people there.  Time was running out and money was getting harder.  Then one fine morning management decide to kill the program. 

Why it failed. They are my perspectives 

1) It started smoothly.  But in productization phase company culture killed it. 

2) Used the companies sales channel.  Sales guys were excited about the new products. But couldn't sell it because it has new business model of revenue sharing.

3) Team lost focus. Lost trust in leadership and lot cultural and people issues affected.

4) Management support was lacking. Due to change in the senior management they lost intrest in this program. 

Now at the end the following are outcome.

1) Company lost millions of money and time

2) Some of best people in the company are jobless. They are  packing the bags to home countries from a foreign land with out a Job.

The mistake I did. I could feel it was going wrong. Shouldn't have brought the family to it by moving them to foreign land.  Now it is time to go back. 

But it was a great learning experience.  I should say loud next time when I sense some thing  is going wrong. Don't flow with the crowd.