New Product Development

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NPD Process Diagram

A few facts...

  • Products and or services are the lifeblood of all companies.
  • More, better, faster the holy grail for everyone.
  • Do you buy things in the same way your parents do?
  • Are your kids buying things in the same way you do?
  • Is your business equipped to keep up with this change?
  • Does the lifeblood of your business run like a finely tuned athlete, or like a middle aged exec with furry arteries?
  • This is not rocket science.
  • Get lean or die prematurely.

How?

We have combined Robert Coopers Stage and Gate Process with some neatly placed Project Management Tools and an Organisational Structure that allows discipline, agility, creativity and clean, timely decision making.

NPD Process Diagram

Pro’s and cons of the vanilla version of Stage and Gate

  • It is so beautifully simple
  • Requires a mature organisation structure
  • A business that follows a structured business planning process
  • Populated with skilled and competent individuals who deliver
  • Orchestrated by a confident decision making management team who look out of the window


In our experience, most organisations need a starting point. Something that allows your business to grow as you reap the rewards of your NPD success. A process that delivers more, better, faster NPD and sustainable business change.

We

  • Look at the business planning process
  • Focus on product portfolio planning
  • Delve into resource planning
  • Initiate project prioritisation
  • Create a winning combo of Stage and Gate with Project Management Tools tailored to suit your business
  • Assess current roles, responsibilities, capabilities and skill sets
  • Help you create the new structure and gap analysis
  • Take a long hard look and the behavioural change required, top down
  • Take everyone on the journey through a series of workshops, mentoring and coaching sessions
  • Get invited to the launch party!

Case Study

The Challenge...

Take an International organisation with HQ in UK operating in nine countries overseas, where growth has led to a mixture of centrally driven and local initiatives creating the following issues:

  • No common way of working
  • Different language barriers
  • Lots of versions of the same branded products around the nine countries
  • Desire to standardise but data integrity issues making this a beast of a job
  • Varying capability and skills in each location

Market forces creating the need to be able to flex manufacturing sites and take advantage of cost advantages dynamically, not a hope in hell with the existing set up.

Deliver a process that will deliver more, better, faster NPD globally, within a network that has units that have a mixture of no NPD process, very sophisticated Stage and Gate models and everything in between. Enable them to transcend boundaries, work together and make them feel like they are part of a global business that gets excited about delivering new products.

The Plan...

  • Get buy in from the top (Exec Board Sponsorship)
  • Choose four key locations and give them the power to make decisions
  • Invite all nine locations to be part of the 'Global Process' generation (four key locations have voting rights)
  • Create a multinational team of 'Super Users' who form part of the project team to deliver the change, managed and directed by Cheeky Monkey
  • Identify key software tools, strategically placed to enable the change
  • Create a standard footprint for implementation kicked off in each location by a series of audits
  • Each audit creates a specific action plan for each location (within the footprint) agreed with the local Exec Board
  • Use creative workshops as the key delivery mechanism
  • Major on behavioural change at all levels
  • Create a local team of 'Champions' responsible for local delivery and adoption
  • Agree a sustainability programme to ensure internalisation
  • Get local Exec Board sign off

The Results...

  • The ability to 'go shopping round the Group'
    One process, one language, one way of working
  • Standardisation
    Clean up of data
    Tie into business and product portfolio planning process
  • Valued second opinion for local management teams
    Skill and capability assessment
    Gap analysis
    Resource planning
    Project prioritisation
  • Got everyone fired up!
    Making product development key to everybody’s role
    Focus on behaviours (top down)
    Bringing people together
    Getting people to say the things they think and do something about them
    Create excitement over the delivery of NPD for everyone (not just R&D and marketing)
  • Added to the bottom line...
    Too early to be a fact but seriously, how can it not?

For more information and/or to discuss your NPD needs call Nina on 07837 536979

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