The reality of concurrent new product development

Many organisations have undergone change to make processes run concurrently in the design and redesign of new products, seeking improvement of their competitive position. Though there are many prescriptions available to the practitioner, few have been grounded in “what has worked best” across a range of industries. There has also been relatively little discussion of the downside to concurrency. This paper reports a study which shows that success is most closely associated with the level of usage of certain tools and techniques, all of which are within the power of the new product development manager to use. In doing so, it is shown that this gives far better chances of success than high levels of usage of technology. This has significant implications for firms’ investment policies for the future. The downside element also needs managing and is discussed, along with the highlighted importance of both project management and training.