In the mean time, a colleague sent this to me today - it certainly resonated and is closely related to my research topic as well: Strategic Plans for Product Development:
Showing posts with label strategy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label strategy. Show all posts
New Product Development Strategic Planning
It has been a while since I posted something - summer kicked in, workload and also some time taken out to work out what my topic should be for my Exec MBA dissertation (Management Challenge in Henley Business School speak). So where are we now? Topic decided - I will elaborate more in future posts. It is a topic that is certainly of interest to the product management community and to anybody that has been involved in a merger or acquisition.
In the mean time, a colleague sent this to me today - it certainly resonated and is closely related to my research topic as well: Strategic Plans for Product Development:
In the mean time, a colleague sent this to me today - it certainly resonated and is closely related to my research topic as well: Strategic Plans for Product Development:
Naming Your New Product? Let the Battle Begin!
Every product manager knows the drill: business case approved, use cases completed, product requirements documented, then comes the dreaded "what are we going to call it".
As soon as this moment is reached in a product life cycle, suddenly everybody has an opinion. Personally I think that it is easier to pick a name for your unborn baby - at least generally there are only two people that have to agree (with a little advice thrown in from others of course, but you are under no serious obligation to comply with their wishes).
As soon as this moment is reached in a product life cycle, suddenly everybody has an opinion. Personally I think that it is easier to pick a name for your unborn baby - at least generally there are only two people that have to agree (with a little advice thrown in from others of course, but you are under no serious obligation to comply with their wishes).
Advice / instructions will be issued
by exec's in the management hierarchy, sales, marketing etc. And for
the most part this will be driven by personal bias, opinion and
nothing much else. I have yet to see a substantive or rational reason put
forward for any product name - generally the biggest ego rules. But there is light at the end of the
tunnel!
3V's are key for a Successful Customer Focused Strategy
Strategists will be aware of all the usual models: Porters 5 Forces, Ansoff’s Matrix; BCG’s Growth-Share Matrix; 7S McKinsey Model, PEST(LE) model; SWOT analysis; IDIC (Peppers & Rogers) etc. Maz Iqbal in a blog post puts forward the notion that the 3 V's of Vision, Value and Value Proposition are potentially another framework that is relevant and could be used.
He argues that having a vision is key: "The power of a Vision Statement lies in its ability to enroll a diversity of actors (Tops, Middles, Bottoms, Customers, Suppliers...) in an inspiring point of view on the future such that they co-operate in moving towards and creating that future." The point that he makes about taking the different stakeholders along with you is an important one.
He goes on to argue that values are "real - authentic" and "act both as guides and as constraints on what you will and will not do and how you will conduct yourself". They have "another advantage, they allow you to find / attract value chain partners", again having partners that share the same values is pretty fundamental.
Finally he concludes that "If you get the Value Proposition right then you will attract hordes of customers. If you actually deliver on the Value Proposition – the customer experience delivers the value proposition – then you will keep customers and they will get more customers for you through word of mouth."
It makes sense, anything to add?
(you can read the blog post here.)
He argues that having a vision is key: "The power of a Vision Statement lies in its ability to enroll a diversity of actors (Tops, Middles, Bottoms, Customers, Suppliers...) in an inspiring point of view on the future such that they co-operate in moving towards and creating that future." The point that he makes about taking the different stakeholders along with you is an important one.
He goes on to argue that values are "real - authentic" and "act both as guides and as constraints on what you will and will not do and how you will conduct yourself". They have "another advantage, they allow you to find / attract value chain partners", again having partners that share the same values is pretty fundamental.
Finally he concludes that "If you get the Value Proposition right then you will attract hordes of customers. If you actually deliver on the Value Proposition – the customer experience delivers the value proposition – then you will keep customers and they will get more customers for you through word of mouth."
It makes sense, anything to add?
(you can read the blog post here.)
Idiot! You can't disconnect your Value Proposition, Corporate Vision and Personal Freedom!
There is a powerful talk by Simon Sinek on TED that outlines his reasoning why there is a case for communicating your value proposition from the inside out: talk about what your company vision is, before you discuss the specifics of the product value proposition, and what you do.
As I have outlined before, the reason for bringing a specific product to market and understanding exactly what the problem is that you are trying to solve is fundamental. If you cannot answer the simple question of what the problem is that you are solving, then "Houston, we have a problem".
5 Lessons for Product Practitioners from Steve Jobs
As the world reflects on the passing of Steve Jobs, it inevitably triggers some thinking about lessons learned and the legacy of learning's that he leaves behind. Here is my list of Jobs'isms, which I am sure is just one of many.- Keep it simple
- Believe in what you are doing
- Love your product
- Failure is simply another step towards success
- Release your product when it is ready - not before.
I am currently working through the implementation of a new strategy, a portfolio repositioning and a new product development kickoff (all @ the same time), these 5 key principles coupled with understanding WHY (see previous post), has been absolutely key to keeping focused on the key objectives at hand.
Gartner Magic Quadrant's: Any use to anybody on their own?
The post summer phase of the year often brings new challenges, and this year is certainly no different as we gear up to start really building new capabilities in the business. Part of that process has meant that I have had the opportunity to attend many a vendor briefing, and what has struck me is how the "Gartner Magic Quadrant's" get interpreted and used in presentations.
In 9 out of 10 times, a single view of the latest Magic Quadrant is trotted out to justify a marketing statement. If I had a penny for each time that a vendor claimed that they were now the market leader and used a MQ graphic to justify the claim ...... I should long ago be sitting very comfortably on a beach in the Bahamas with a tall cool drink in hand.
Practitioner's that are tracking the market generally will examine fairly large volumes of data in order to be able to spot a trend and draw any sort of meaningful conclusion. MQ's are not comprehensive data sets, and are simply one set of data points, they simply do not tell the whole story.
In 9 out of 10 times, a single view of the latest Magic Quadrant is trotted out to justify a marketing statement. If I had a penny for each time that a vendor claimed that they were now the market leader and used a MQ graphic to justify the claim ...... I should long ago be sitting very comfortably on a beach in the Bahamas with a tall cool drink in hand.
Practitioner's that are tracking the market generally will examine fairly large volumes of data in order to be able to spot a trend and draw any sort of meaningful conclusion. MQ's are not comprehensive data sets, and are simply one set of data points, they simply do not tell the whole story.
Scenario Planning and the process of innovation
Sometimes there comes that nagging feeling that one just has to churn out some content, but I have been resisting the temptation. In the mean time I have been trying to work out what exactly I wanted to say.
The questions that I have been working out how to phrase are these:
The questions that I have been working out how to phrase are these:
- How can one take the various processes that are used to drive innovation as a practice and apply the same principles to scenario planning and analysis?
- Which processes are best and which elements make sense to look at?
- Models and methodologies abound, as do different schools of thought. The real question is where is a good place to start?
Product Strategy and Portfolio Development need Scenario Planning
I have been thinking about innovation, and how to identify, and then prioritise potential product portfolio development options. Quite often, the choice of what needs to be done in order to rejuvenate a product portfolio or evolve it into the next generation of offerings is driven by individual personalities, or a limited leadership group, or just simply "group think" that is driven by financial decision making metrics, or the latest "pet" idea. How then can the business ensure that all angles have been covered before a decision is made?
Stakeholder Interests Have to be Balanced
One of the things that I have been trying to do is understand exactly what is required when doing due diligence on a company, whether it is well established or a startup.
Part of that evaluation is undoubtadly understanding why the organisation exists, what the problem is that it solves, and whether its value proposition resonates, but there is another dimension which is equally important - how it approaches the management of its various stakeholders.
While I was researching the topic I came across this article by Charles J. Fombrun on Forbes.com about How To Restore Your Company's Reputation which describes why some organisations have suffered because they have paid more attention to short term financial results than longer term value. The article identifies 7 key indicators that need to be addressed:
Part of that evaluation is undoubtadly understanding why the organisation exists, what the problem is that it solves, and whether its value proposition resonates, but there is another dimension which is equally important - how it approaches the management of its various stakeholders.
While I was researching the topic I came across this article by Charles J. Fombrun on Forbes.com about How To Restore Your Company's Reputation which describes why some organisations have suffered because they have paid more attention to short term financial results than longer term value. The article identifies 7 key indicators that need to be addressed:
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