Integrated Product Development Flashcards
What are the six elements of The Development Framework?
- Project definition (scope,bounds and objectives)
- Project organisation and staffing
- Project management and leadership (phases,tasks management and checkpoints)
- Problem solving, testing and prototyping
- Senior management review and control
- Real-time / midcourse corrections
What two areas are important for the success in new product development?
- Effectiveness (Doing the right things), e.g strategic choices, resource planning
- Efficiency (Doing things right), e.g processes, organisation
What are the three biggest challenges of the development funnel?
- Widening the mouth of the funnel
- Narrowing the neck of the funnel
- Managing the selected individual projects
What are the three different models of Development Funnels?
Model I: R&D driven, survival of the fittest. A grass roots, bubble up model in which development is driven by R&D
Model II: A few big bets. A top down model common in small, entrepreneurial start-ups, in which the firm bets on a single project
Model III: Innovative and focused. A combination of Model I and II with the screening and phases of II and the focus on big bets of I
What is the definition of a project?
A “Project” is defined as a set of tasks to achieve stated objectives, with complexity and uncertainty, where cross-functional teams are needed. A “Project” is unique and temporary
What are the three project classes (sizes), what do they mean and what is an example of a project?
A - Project large, strategic
* Strategic and/or high risk projects or new product or new application. E.g new product (Lead time over 12 months)
B - Project medium
* E.g engine exchange (Lead time under 12 months)
C - Project small
* E.g new option for product (Lead time less than six months)
What are the five project categories?
- Product development (PD)
- Product modification (PM)
- Technology and Process development (TD)
- Raw material development (RM)
- Safety and Environment (SE)
What does the waterfall model mean and what are its’ components?
The Waterfall model is a sequential model for product development that starts from idea and ends in a final product. Its components are Idea - Analysis - Design - Development - Test - Final Product
What is important to keep in mind when it comes to time and cost of projects?
The more a project progresses, the more expensive it is to perform a change
What is the viewpoint of The Stage-Gate model?
The Stage-Gate views New Product Development (NPD) as a process and any process can be redesigned to be faster and more effective
What is the game plan of the Stage-Gate model?
To break the process of moving from idea to successful product into a series of stages or phases where each stage is preceded by a gate (which is a decision point for go/kill)
What is the common format of the gates presented in the Stage-Gate model and what do they mean?
Input - Criteria - Output
* Input: Prescribed list of deliverables that the project leader must present at gate
* Criteria: A set of hurdles, criteria or questions that project is judged on
* Outputs: The decision of Go/Kill/Hold/Recycle with an approved action plan
What is a Tollgate (TG)?
A tollgate is a review of the business case and a business-like decision point where the project sponsor may stop the project
What is a Milestone (MS)?
A decision point where the progress of the project is reviewed. The decision to pass or not is made by the product itself. The outcome of the milestone serves as an input to the tollgate decision
What is the definition of AGILE?
AGILE is a method of project management (used most frequently in software development) that is characterised by the division of tasks into short phases of work and frequent reassessment and adaptation of plans
What are the four values of the Agile manifesto?
- Individuals and interactions over processes and tools
- Working software over comprehensive documentation
- Customer collaboration over contract negotiation
- Responding to change over following a plan
What are the key differences in project contra sprint planning?
Project planning:
Project managers are responsible
Centralised
Sprint planning:
The team is responsible
Decentralised
What are the two central agile principles?
- Shorten the learning cycle
- Ensure feedback (tech/client)
What are the three roles of SCRUM and what do they do?
- The product owner
Is the voice of the customer and responsible for managing the product backlog. Is also the main representative for the team - The development team
Delivers solutions (=increments). Is self-organised and cross-functional - The Scrum master
Supports the team in scrum methodology by ensuring that goals, scope and product domain are understood by the team. Also coaches the development team to improve and removes impediments
What are the four events of SCRUM and what do they include?
- Sprint planning
What is the goal of this sprint and how much can we achieve? - Daily scrum - A short daily stand-up meeting (status check)
- Sprint review - Did we meet the target? Do we need to adjust the backlog for next spring?
- Retrospective - Reflect on performance, processes and tools. How can we improve?
What are the three artefacts of SCRUM and what do they mean?
- Product backlog - Everything known to be needed to develop the product in a prioritised list
- Sprint backlog - A subset of the product backlog selected for the ongoing sprint, managed visually
- Increment - The sum of completed backlog items during a sprint, must be in usable condition and is a step towards the ultimate goal
How long should a sprint be?
1 - 4 weeks
What does a decentralised planning imply?
A shift from vertical coordination to horisontal coordination
What is set-based concurrent engineering?
Set-based means multiple projects and concurrent means at the same time. SBCE is a method for keeping expensive changes to a minimum by having multiple ongoing projects
What are the potential benefits of being set-based in product development?
- Makes it possible to include a back-up solution
- Reduces lead time
- Delays decisions to a late stage
where the best information is
available - Explores many possible designs at
the same time
What are three tools for planning in bigger organisations?
- Pulse room - Where a senior manager involves lower management to sort out questions and solve problems
- Visual planning - A board of post-it notes that illustrate progress
- Digital whiteboards - Such as “Mural” and “Miro”
What are the two important dimensions in the organisation of companies?
- Formalisation - The degree to which the firm utilises rules and procedures to structure the behaviour of employees
- Standardisation - The degree to which activities are performed in a uniform manner
In organisational theory, what are the two common PD structures and what characterises them?
- Mechanistic structure - High formalisation and standardisation. Good for operational efficiency and reliability, minimises variation (may stifle creativity)
- Organic struture - Low formalisation and standardisation. Encourages creativity and experimentation, may yield low consistency and reliability in manufacturing
What are the differences between Organic and Mechanistic structures in terms of strategy, size, technology and environment?
*Organic
Strategy: Innovation
Size: Smaller
Technology: Non-routine
Environment: Dynamic & complex
*Mechanistic
Strategy: Cost-minimisation
Size: Larger
Technology: Routine
Environment: Stable & Simple
What is the functional structure?
An organisational structure that divides the company into functions e.g manufacturing, sales
What does the term centralisation mean?
Centralisation is the degree to which decision-making authority is kept at top levels of the firm OR the degree to which activities are performed at a central location
What are the pros and cons of centralisation contra decentralisation?
- Centralisation
Pros: Low cost, consistency & efficiency
Cons: Lack of flexibility to customise, bureaucracy & delays - Decentralisation
Pros: Employee ownership, flexilitity & agility
Cons: High costs & lack of uniformity