Flexible product development
Encyclopedia
Flexible product development is the ability to make changes in the product being developed or in how it is developed, even relatively late in development, without being too disruptive. Consequently, the later one can make changes, the more flexible the process is, the less disruptive the change is, the greater the flexibility.
Flexibility is important because the development of a new product naturally involves change from what came before it. Change can be expected in what the customer wants and how the customer might use the product, in how competitors might respond, and in the new technologies
being applied in the product or in its manufacturing
process. The more innovative a new product is, the more likely it is that the development team will have to make changes during development.
Flexible development counteracts the tendencies of many contemporary management approaches to plan a project completely at its outset and discourage change thereafter. These include Six Sigma
, which aims to drive variation out of a process; lean, which acts to drive out waste; and traditional project management and phased development systems (including the popular Stage-Gate model
), which encourage upfront planning and following the plan. Although these methodologies have strengths, their side effect is encouraging rigidity in a process that needs flexibility to be effective, especially for truly innovative products.
For more mature product categories, flexibility techniques are not only overly expensive but often unwise. Consequently, flexibility techniques must be used with discretion, for instance, only in the portions of a product likely to undergo change.
When applied to the development of software products, these methods are commonly known as agile software development
. However, agile software methods generally rely on special characteristics of the software medium, especially object technologies, which are not available to non-software products. Consequently, flexible product development draws from some of the roots of agile software development but tends to use other tools and approaches that apply beyond the software medium.
Flexible development uses several techniques to keep the cost of change low and to make decisions at the last responsible moment. These techniques include modular architectures to encapsulate change, experimentation and iteration to sample results and check them out with the customer frequently, set-based design to build and maintain options, and emergent processes that develop during a project in response to its needs.
Flexibility is important because the development of a new product naturally involves change from what came before it. Change can be expected in what the customer wants and how the customer might use the product, in how competitors might respond, and in the new technologies
Technology
Technology is the making, usage, and knowledge of tools, machines, techniques, crafts, systems or methods of organization in order to solve a problem or perform a specific function. It can also refer to the collection of such tools, machinery, and procedures. The word technology comes ;...
being applied in the product or in its manufacturing
Manufacturing
Manufacturing is the use of machines, tools and labor to produce goods for use or sale. The term may refer to a range of human activity, from handicraft to high tech, but is most commonly applied to industrial production, in which raw materials are transformed into finished goods on a large scale...
process. The more innovative a new product is, the more likely it is that the development team will have to make changes during development.
Flexible development counteracts the tendencies of many contemporary management approaches to plan a project completely at its outset and discourage change thereafter. These include Six Sigma
Six Sigma
Six Sigma is a business management strategy originally developed by Motorola, USA in 1986. , it is widely used in many sectors of industry.Six Sigma seeks to improve the quality of process outputs by identifying and removing the causes of defects and minimizing variability in manufacturing and...
, which aims to drive variation out of a process; lean, which acts to drive out waste; and traditional project management and phased development systems (including the popular Stage-Gate model
Stage-Gate model
A stage–gate model, also referred to as a phase–gate process, is a project management technique in which an initiative or project is divided into stages separated by gates. At each gate, the continuation of the process is decided by a manager or a steering committee...
), which encourage upfront planning and following the plan. Although these methodologies have strengths, their side effect is encouraging rigidity in a process that needs flexibility to be effective, especially for truly innovative products.
For more mature product categories, flexibility techniques are not only overly expensive but often unwise. Consequently, flexibility techniques must be used with discretion, for instance, only in the portions of a product likely to undergo change.
When applied to the development of software products, these methods are commonly known as agile software development
Agile software development
Agile software development is a group of software development methodologies based on iterative and incremental development, where requirements and solutions evolve through collaboration between self-organizing, cross-functional teams...
. However, agile software methods generally rely on special characteristics of the software medium, especially object technologies, which are not available to non-software products. Consequently, flexible product development draws from some of the roots of agile software development but tends to use other tools and approaches that apply beyond the software medium.
Flexible development uses several techniques to keep the cost of change low and to make decisions at the last responsible moment. These techniques include modular architectures to encapsulate change, experimentation and iteration to sample results and check them out with the customer frequently, set-based design to build and maintain options, and emergent processes that develop during a project in response to its needs.
See also
- New product developmentNew product developmentIn business and engineering, new product development is the term used to describe the complete process of bringing a new product to market. A product is a set of benefits offered for exchange and can be tangible or intangible...
- Agile software developmentAgile software developmentAgile software development is a group of software development methodologies based on iterative and incremental development, where requirements and solutions evolve through collaboration between self-organizing, cross-functional teams...
- Traditional project managementProject managementProject management is the discipline of planning, organizing, securing, and managing resources to achieve specific goals. A project is a temporary endeavor with a defined beginning and end , undertaken to meet unique goals and objectives, typically to bring about beneficial change or added value...
- Six SigmaSix SigmaSix Sigma is a business management strategy originally developed by Motorola, USA in 1986. , it is widely used in many sectors of industry.Six Sigma seeks to improve the quality of process outputs by identifying and removing the causes of defects and minimizing variability in manufacturing and...
- LeanLean manufacturingLean manufacturing, lean enterprise, or lean production, often simply, "Lean," is a production practice that considers the expenditure of resources for any goal other than the creation of value for the end customer to be wasteful, and thus a target for elimination...