Where do solutions come from?

I am working on an initiative that is looking to improve the way we engage with our key, front line users when developing IT solutions. Our key user base is highly mobile, global and has very little discretionary time. To be effective and widely adopted, the solutions we deliver need to have clear value propositions, need to be easy to use and generally not require big behavioral changes. Given the complexity created by all of these factors I think we have done a good job in identifying value add solutions that can help these users be more effective and efficient. With that being said, I do believe that there are opportunities out there that remain untapped. The reason being, in my opinion, is due to the way we engage with these key users: typically somebody has an idea for something that might be a good product and then we follow it up with a period of user research validating how that idea could be implemented. I think this approach works but we can improve on it by finding new, different and better ways to source the initial solution ideas. The way we are trying to do this is by listening to our users. Not by asking them questions about a specific product idea but by listening to them talking to each other, sharing ideas, tips and tricks and advice and asking questions of each other. From this we hope to get insight into how they work and the types of issues they face and put ourselves in a position to identify simple solutions that have the potential to help these users. Success is an active community of users openly discussing the things that they do on a daily basis and the tools and techniques they use. With this dialog should come valuable insight into how our users work and what helps and hinders them. Its exciting stuff and has the potential to provide us with a wealth of knowledge that will hopefully lead to greater value for our users. Needless to say I am excited by the challenge and look forward to blogging about what we're learning and the progress we are making. Any feedback would be great....just leave a comment.