Who is assigned responsibility for approving new product development?

Who manages the product development process?

Does your organization measure product development cycle times?

Is the development cycle time taken from the first activity of development to stable supply of the product in volume to the customer?

Does your organization have a cross-functional development team?

Does your organization typically develop products by:

• Small steps?

• Complete new product introductions?

New product introductions (complete product or product enhancements) are benchmarked for assessment of first to market innovation.

Product change opportunities entail looking outside the organization's own environment and:

• Taking advantage of unexpected markets.

• Changes within the market structure.

• Changes bought about by social change.

• Technological changes.

New product development includes consideration of total costs such as:

• Quality issues.

• Failures in the field.

• Late deliveries at introduction stages.

• Instability of product design after launch.

• Effects on market goodwill.

Determination to be 'first to market' requires a broad vision from the board of directors and throughout the organization about where the business is now and where it is going.

Determination to be 'first to market' requires an overall structure and style that is responsive to product change opportunities and able to exploit them.

Product development includes cross-functional integration and vendor participation if required, at least during critical design stages.

There is assigned product management responsibility linking the functions of:

• Design.

• Supply feasibility/procurement.

• Manufacturability.

• Engineering change management.

• Data cleansing/management.

• Field testing.

• After...