Idea Connection Systems

What Idea Connection Systems does

Idea Connection Systems (ICS), Inc. is a privately held management consulting firm founded in 1988 by Bob Rosenfeld and headquartered at 693 East Avenue, Rochester, NY. The company helps organizations improve innovation outcomes by measuring how individuals prefer to think, relate, and behave in problem-solving contexts, and then assembling teams whose profiles are matched to specific innovation tasks. Its core product is the patented Innovation Strengths Preference Indicator (ISPI), a 64-question psychological assessment with 14 scales that produces a color-coded 'Totem' graphical profile, supported by the Four Cultures Assessment and Core Motivations Indicator. ICS serves Fortune 500 enterprises (Hallmark, Raytheon, NASA, Exxon Mobil, Rolls Royce, Coca-Cola, Walmart, GM, Kraft-Heinz), U.S. government and defense agencies (U.S. DoD, U.S. Air Force, Sandia National Laboratories), educational institutions (Columbia University, Center for Creative Leadership), and communities through the Mosaic Partnerships program.

ICS generates revenue through four streams: (1) customized consulting engagements including Office of Innovation setup, coaching, teaming, and leadership development; (2) ISPI Certification programs priced at $2,500 per individual in both virtual (six 3-hour sessions) and on-site (3-day, minimum 8 participants) formats; (3) direct sales of assessment tools (ISPI, Four Cultures, CMI) and books (Making the Invisible Visible at $21, The Invisible Element) via the website; and (4) the Mosaic Partnerships and Mosaic Communities programs for diversity, equity, and inclusion. Distribution is primarily direct enterprise sales, supplemented by a global network of hundreds of ISPI Certified Practitioners who deliver the methodology in their own consulting engagements. The company holds patents on ISPI and the ISPI Totem, and has co-authored research with Sandia National Laboratories. Bob Rosenfeld remains Founder and CEO, with no disclosed institutional investors or external funding, and the firm employs 11-50 people.

Name

Idea Connection Systems

Legal name

Idea Connection Systems, Inc.

Website

https://innovating.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1988

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Idea Connection Systems is a privately held Rochester, NY-based consulting firm, founded in 1988, that provides innovation consulting, the patented ISPI assessment tool, and certification programs to Fortune 500 enterprises, U.S. government agencies, and educational institutions worldwide.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Innovation Management Consulting

NAICS

Management Consulting Services (54161), Management, Scientific, and Technical Consulting Services (5416)

SIC

Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYEDAMAHAD

Innovation & Design Thinking Programs

Education/Supplemental & Enrichment Programs (Arts, STEM, Language)/Entrepreneurship & Business Enrichment

Keywords

• Innovation consulting
• Psychological assessments
• Leadership development
• Team building
• Diversity and inclusion

Headquarters

HQ city

Rochester

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Assessment Tools Sales: Stand-alone products including ISPI assessment tool, Four Cultures assessment tool, and Core Motivations Indicator sold directly to clients. Contact-based pricing for organizational purchases.
2. Certification Programs: ISPI Certification program offered in two formats: Virtual Certification (six 3-hour sessions at $2,500 per individual) and In-person Customized Certification (3 days on-site, starts at $2,500 per individual with minimum 8 participants).
3. Books and Publications: Sale of books including 'Making the Invisible Visible' ($21 USD) and 'The Invisible Element' by Bob Rosenfeld and Gary Wilhelmi.
4. Consulting Services: Customized consulting engagements including coaching, team building, leadership development, and Mosaic Partnerships programs for organizations and communities.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Idea Connection Systems is a management consulting firm that helps organizations build innovation capacity through proprietary psychological assessment tools, leadership development programs, and team-building consulting. Its flagship offering, the Innovation Strengths Preference Indicator (ISPI), is a 64-question assessment that maps individuals' problem-solving preferences to enable optimized team formation, coaching, and culture transformation. The firm sells assessments, certification programs for practitioners, training courses, books, and customized consulting engagements to enterprises, government agencies, and communities.

Product overview

Idea Connection Systems offers a suite of innovation and human dynamics assessment tools, training programs, and consulting services. The core product is the Innovation Strengths Preference Indicator (ISPI), a 64-question psychological assessment with 14 scales that measures behavioral tendencies for problem-solving and teamwork. This is complemented by the Four Cultures Assessment Tool and Core Motivations Indicator. The company provides certification programs for practitioners, instructor-led courses (The Invisible Element Course, Innovation Leadership Training, Wright Brothers Problem Solving), and consulting services including Office of Innovation design and Coaching and Teaming. The Mosaic Partnerships and Mosaic Communities programs apply these tools for diversity and inclusion purposes. Two books by founder Bob Rosenfeld support the methodology.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• HumanGrid: Coaching and training services including personal growth, leadership development, and coaching for success
• Mosaic Communities
• Mosaic Partnerships
• Organizational Innovation
• ISPI (Innovation Strengths Preference Indicator)
• The Four Cultures Assessment
• Core Motivations Indicator (CMI)

Products and services

• Innovation Strengths Preference Indicator (ISPI) A 64-question psychological assessment with 14 scales measuring preferred behavioral tendencies for solving problems and working with others, producing patented color-coded 'totem' reports for individuals or teams. Sold to enterprises, government agencies, and certified practitioners for team formation, leadership development, and innovation outcomes.
• Four Cultures Assessment Tool

Quantifiable outcome

• 83% accuracy in forecasting team performance based on ISPI analysis
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers15 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability4 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Center for Creative LeadershipcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerStrategic collaboration with international nonprofit focused on leadership research and training. Center for Creative Leadership is listed as both a strategic collaborator and client.
• ParallaxminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerListed as a strategic collaborator. Parallax research organization focusing on organizational research.
• JouleWattminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerListed as a strategic collaborator in the energy/innovation space.
• Ewers&MineminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerStrategic collaborator listed on ICS website.
• InnovektminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerListed as a strategic collaborator focused on innovation consulting.
• Lead Peak PerformanceminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerStrategic collaborator focused on leadership and performance consulting.
• NueBridgeminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorListed as a strategic collaborator providing business transformation services.
• Bonfire ConsultingminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerListed as a strategic collaborator in consulting.
• Sandia National LaboratoriescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-authored white paper 'People Are Like Plutonium' demonstrating that human systems can be analyzed similarly to elements, atoms, and compounds. Partnership advancing the science of human dynamics in organizations.
• Topeka UnitedcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity organization for Mosaic Partner Pairs program. ICS uses ISPI to pair diverse participants for community building and racial reconciliation work in Topeka, KS. Three-year full-service contract completed, now entering licensing concept agreement for program continuation.
• InnovatingEdgeminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerISPI Certified Practitioners who talk about blending Human Intelligence (HI) with AI. Collaborative relationship in AI readiness and innovation space.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Others

• Center for Creative Leadership: Nonprofit leadership-research and executive-education provider that ICS lists as both a strategic partner and a client. Comparable in the leadership-development and innovation-culture space ICS addresses, though CCL's primary mode is research and open-enrollment programs.
• Innosight: Strategy and innovation consulting firm (founded by Clayton Christensen) focused on growth and innovation transformation. Comparable to ICS in the corporate innovation-services category, though oriented more toward strategy and growth than team-level behavioral assessment.
• IDEO: Design and innovation consultancy known for design thinking and human-centered innovation. Comparable to ICS in the broader innovation-consulting category, with a much larger brand and project-based design engagement model.

Direct peers

• SHL: Talent measurement and assessment provider serving large employers with psychometric tools for hiring, leadership, and team effectiveness. Directly comparable to ICS in the enterprise psychometric-assessment category.
• The Predictive Index: A behavior and talent assessment platform that helps companies hire, inspire, and develop teams. Closely comparable to ISPI as a behavioral assessment sold into enterprise HR and leadership teams, though significantly larger and more SaaS-platform oriented.
• Hogan Assessments: Personality assessment provider focused on workplace performance, leadership, and team dynamics. Comparable to ICS as a science-backed personality instrument sold to enterprise and government buyers for selection and development.
• The Myers-Briggs Company: Provider of the MBTI assessment and related personality tools for individuals, teams, and organizations. Direct competitor in the personality-assessment-for-team-effectiveness category ICS targets with ISPI.
• Wiley (Everything DiSC): Sells the Everything DiSC suite of workplace behavioral assessments and the Five Behaviors team offering. Comparable to ISPI as a behavioral/team-style assessment productized for organizational development and team formation use cases.

Broad incumbents

• Korn Ferry: Global organizational consulting firm offering talent assessment, leadership development, and organizational design. Comparable to ICS as a buyer of assessment-led leadership and team effectiveness services, but with vastly greater scale and a consulting-led delivery model.
• Gallup (CliftonStrengths): Operates the CliftonStrengths assessment and a broad portfolio of workplace, leadership, and engagement research products. Comparable in the strengths-based assessment space ICS occupies, but with a much larger platform and employer-research footprint.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/watch?v=f2H31p9ick4
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/idea-connection-systems

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Idea Connection Systems