New Product Development Processes Assignment | Online Homework Help
Description
Option #2: New Product Development Processes Describe two processes: the stage-gate process of new product development and one other new product development process of your choosing. Include the following: Evaluate the pros and cons of each process. Which process would you recommend for use? Give the rationale for the process you selected. Requirements: Write a four- to six-page paper not including the title and reference pages, which are required. At least four to six scholarly or peer-reviewed references that provide information and guidance for your assignment. The CSU-Global Library (Links to an external site.) is a good place to find these sources. Outside sources include academic and research other than the textbook, course materials, or other information provided as part of the course materials. Follow the formatting outlined in the CSU-Global Guide to Writing and APA (Links to an external site.). Note: Appended tables can be used to save space.
New Product Development Processes
Baylee Soper
MGT 571 – Strategic Product Innovation
Colorado State University – Global Campus
Dr. Chad McAllister
New Product Development Processes
As we advance onward as a society, we have come to realize more and more that it is in fact our ideas, which act as a vehicle towards our goal of enhancement, that allow us to achieve true progress. The true challenge that presents itself when pondering ideas is putting yourself in the position of discovering them, which is not typically an easy task to undergo. This is why mankind has developed techniques, tactics, and processes over time to aid itself in the quest for resolving or improving the situations that we find ourselves in. In this paper we will look at two such processes.
Enter Stage-Gate
One process that society utilizes in its continuous search for ideas is Stage-Gate. According to Gorchels (2012), Stage-Gate is the brainchild of Dr. Robert Cooper. The process separates the development effort into specific time-sequenced stages that are divided by management decision gates. At each gate (or “point”) a decision is made as to whether to progress on to the next stage, request improvements, or discard a concept, which all lead to the decision process being followed through in degrees (or steps) of change. A group of people are typically separated into multifunctional teams and complete each stage before being given authorization to move forward to the next stage. Essentially, each gate acts as a type of quality control measure to ensure whether or not an idea has real validity, if it has issues, or if it should be disregarded completely. According to Leithold, Haase, & Lautenschläger (2015), the five stages of Stage-Gate are: 1) Scoping 2) Business Case 3) Development 4) Testing 5) Launch.
Enter Agile/SCRUM
According to Sommer, Hedegaard, Dukovska-Popovska, & Steger-Jensen (2015), the SCRUM model (which is a version of the Agile model) includes three repeating stages: 1) Product backlog development 2) Main sprint, 3) Daily sprints. The product backlog, which acts as a different way of presenting to a demand specification, possesses a selection of features that may or may not be a part of the final product. Initially, the product backlog evolves in connection with both external and internal stakeholders. The development process is then separated out into a number of sprints, which are high-productivity work cycles that can differ in duration from two to four weeks. Each sprint works from a sprint backlog, which chronicles the set of priority features (or product increments) to be developed in the current sprint, which are chosen due to the fact that they are high priority and they can be executed in full within the defined period of the sprint. While a sprint is in progress, the sprint backlog may not be altered or updated.
The development activities which are necessary to construct the new features or periodic improvements mentioned in the sprint backlog are broken down into a several sub-activities, each mandating no more than two days to finish. The sub-activities are notated on sticky notes on a Saum board, which is administered in a dedicated project room. Once every 24 hours, the team has a 15-minute stand-up meeting, which is known as the daily sprint. At the daily sprint, each team member briefly describes what he or she has completed since the last meeting, what he or she will have worked on by the next meeting, and what issues he or she is currently facing. After the daily sprint, team members work on discussing the problems which were brought up in the meeting and may reschedule the sub-activities to oblige themselves.
Benefits & Consequences
Stage-Gate is a comprehensive idea-to-launch system and a macroplanning process, and Agile is a microplanning project management methodology. The decisions in Stage-Gate follow an investment decision model; a go decision at a gate commits the resources for the next stage, so that resources are funneled to the best projects as their potential emerges. Stage-Gate thus provides guidance for what projects to do and then what to do within each project. (Cooper, 2016, para. 8).
According to Cooper (2016), the pros of implementing Stage-Gate include: 1) Its cross-functionality (which in this case pertains to having people collaborate from marketing, sales, and operations alongside technical personnel) 2) That it has many stages which cover the entire idea-to-launch sequence, from idea generation through creating a robust business case & the most effective market launch possible 3) It is a pathway to action, developing in distinct best practices at each stage. In this way, it’s more like a football playbook than a project management approach. Some of Stage-Gate’s cons include: 1) Since its process ends with a product launch, there is no room for customer validation or input 2) It can be very time consuming to complete.
According to Cooper (2016), the pros of implementing SCRUM include: 1) Frequent customer validation 2) Offers a swift way of producing or planning something out; while cons include: 1) Having to adhere to the sprinting schedules (even if the tasks of each sprint are not completed on time) 2) Not as comprehensive as other models are.
Selecting a Victor (Conclusion)
Based on the research and facts presented thus far, I would choose the Agile/SCRUM model over the Stage-Gate model. One reason I have made this choice is that I feel Stage-Gate lacking the customer validation/input component that Agile/SCRUM offers is too significant to ignore. Sommer, Hedegaard, Dukovska-Popovska, & Steger-Jensen (2015) also mention that Agile/SCRUM offers improved communication and coordination over Stage-Gate (which is important so that nothing crucial is missed), as well as quicker releases. It should be mentioned though that both of the last two articles cited in this paper propose blending the two models into one to achieve even greater efficiency and results. This is something I wholeheartedly support doing!
References
Gorchels, L. (2012). The Product Manager’s Handbook (4th Ed.). New York, NY: McGraw Hill.
Leithold, N., Haase, H., & Lautenschläger, A. (2015). Stage-gate® for SMEs: A qualitative study in Germany. European Journal of Innovation Management, 18(2), 130 -149. Retrieved from https://csuglobal.idm.oclc.org/login?url=https://search-proquest -com.csuglobal.idm.oclc.org/docview/1681501676?accountid=38569
Sommer, A. F., Hedegaard, C., Dukovska-Popovska, I., & Steger-Jensen, K. (2015). Improved product development performance through Agile/Stage-gate hybrids: The next-generation stage-gate process? Research Technology Management, 58(1), 34-44. Retrieved from https://csuglobal.idm.oclc.org/login?url=https://search-proquest
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Cooper, R. G. (2016). Agile-stage-gate hybrids: The next stage for product development. Research Technology Management, 59(1), 21-29. http://dx.doi.org.csuglobal.idm.oclc.org/10.1080/08956308.2016.1117317
