Ask The Business Doctor - Faster Product Development

Question: "We need to produce more new products faster. Is there a "system" for product development that can accomplish this?" Don H., Buffalo NY

Answer:

provided by Robert Kosobucki, Insyte consultant and Product Development specialist

If you want it Better, Faster, Cheaper, then 'Lean' is the Answer for 'Faster.' Lean techniques work in the engineering office just as well as they do on the production floor. And the "system" is similar:

• Diagram a Value Stream Map of your development process to identify delays and opportunities for increasing throughput
• Use an 'Ease - Impact" analysis to prioritize improvements
• Develop a plan and hold Kaizan Events to implement changes

A few examples of Lean techniques that can be applied to product development include:

• Reduce Batch Size / WIP
  Limit the number of projects being worked on to one, two or three. Finish one before starting another.

• Manage the Constraint
  Identify and manage the critical path in the development value stream.
• Eliminate Wasted Motion
  Obtain, verify and re-verify key product requirements at start and throughout the project to avoid 're-dos.'
• Avoid Overproduction
  Design and test high-risk subsystems first instead of waiting until the end to test the entire product.

Every company is unique as to which and how the techniques are applied, but you should expect to see at least a 35% reduction in development time.

Have a question for the Business Doctor? Submit questions to kdelius@insyte-consulting.com.