The Business Book

327

See also: Creativity and invention 72–73 ■ Profit versus cash flow 152–53 ■ Leading the market 166–69 ■ The value
chain 216–17 ■ Lean production 290–93 ■ Simplify processes 296–99 ■ Critical path analysis 328–29

DELIVERING THE GOODS

strategy involves working on all the
design processes required to launch
a new product at the same time,
rather than in a linear sequence, and
can reduce new product development
time by months or even years.

Comparing approaches
Traditionally, companies have
pushed new products through a
linear sequence of development,
where each department involved
in the design works in isolation,
completing their task before
passing the product to the next
department. In this way, the part-
made product might move between
design, engineering, and
production departments.
However, this approach can lead
to time-consuming mistakes. For
example, when new cars are being
designed, different departments
might work on various parts in
isolation and in a certain sequence.
When the various subassemblies
are finally put together at the
prototype stage, the result is often
unsatisfactory. And in order to
correct one thing—such as a

beautiful seat creating visibility

problems once in position—parts

may have to bounce back through

several departments.

The alternative approach, chosen

by time-based manufacturers, is to

use a team of people from different

departments, all working together

on a new product from the

Design

Engineering

Production

Approval

Design

Engineering

Production

New product

development

Agile software development (ASD)

Within the software industry,

changes in components and

customer demands happen

rapidly and repeatedly. This

means that developers have had

to find ever-faster and better

ways of managing projects.

In 2001, a group of software

developers met in Utah, to

discuss how this might be done,

and their conclusions form the

basis of the agile software

development approach. This

recognizes the customer as the

highest priority, and embraces

changing requirements (even at

late stages of development) in

order to give the customer the

greatest competitive advantage.

However, the founders note that

this can only be achieved when

“business people” take a flexible

and trusting approach, hold daily

face-to-face conversations with

developers, and provide all the

support they need. Coupled

with regular reflection on team

practice, these conditions will

allow self-organizing teams to

produce fast, brilliant designs.

beginning. Project managers play a

key role, since they must ensure

that the multidisciplinary team

members agree to the necessary

design trade-offs at a very early

stage in the development process.

Design integrity is achieved the first

time around without any reworking,

slashing the amount of time taken

to launch the new product.

Time-based management only

works effectively in companies that

employ flexible, multiskilled staff,

who, in turn, respects each another’s

skills and value each other’s input.

A nonlinear process means that

managers must be willing to work

with a less rigid structure, and

encourage a culture of trust.

This management approach

forms the basis of many technology

companies today, since it allows

them to respond more quickly to

changes in the market and customer

needs, while providing employees

with a more autonomous, creative,

and productive work environment. ■

In a simultaneous engineering

approach, all departments are

represented in one multidisciplinary

team, working together to solve new

problems, and saving time and money.

In a linear process of new product

development, the evolving prototype

or individual parts move separately,

back and forth, between departments.

This is time-consuming and costly.

Approval