New Product Development

This book links the art and the science of new product development.

A steady flow of successful new products and services is the lifeline for just about every organization. Many companies stake their strategic futures on the rapid market accceptance and high-profit level of a key new product. Yet there is often a big gap between initial rosy forecasts when a new product is launched and actual sales when it confronts the reality of the marketplace. New Product Development: Managing and Forecasting for Strategic Success will help you fill that gap.

In this important new book, Robert J. Thomas:

• Provides managers with a program to anticipate the factors that influence a new product's development as well as the forecasting tools to continually assess the viability of a new product and increase the likelihood of success in the marketplace
• Offers case studies that highlight the new product efforts of such companies as Kraft, Compaq, Marriott, Kimberly Clark, Northern Telecom, Goldman Sachs & Co., and Xerox
• Examines the environmental, market, and organizational factors that can hinder or promote innovation and the development and successful introduction of new products
• Shows how to mobilize the organization to respond to the uncertainties of complex and rapidly changing markets and environments
• Brings out the importance of new product forecasting to assess market and sales opportunities
• Provide spreadsheet models to operationalize the management and forecasting focus of the book

Dr. Thomas shows how to take control of the new product development process by effectively forecasting market opportunities, estimating sales and profits, designing marketing efforts. timing the launch of new products, and tracking products after launch. He shows that managing and forecasting successful new product developments are an interactive process involving all members of the new product team. In today's turbulent business environment this book provides the foundation for developing innovative new products that will succeed in the marketplace.

• Part 1: Structuring New Product Development
1. Why New Product Development?
2. Mediating Turbulent Business Environments
3. Anticipating Market Acceptance of New Products
4. Preparing the Organization for New Product Development
• Part 2: Managing New Product Development
1. The Ongoing Process of New Product Development
2. Building a New Product Decision Support System
• Part 3: New Product Development and Forecasting
1. Estimating Market Opportunity for New Products
2. New Product Sales Forecasting
3. New Product Financial Control
• Part 4: Implementing New Product Development
1. Test Marketing New Products
2. Market Entry Decisions
3. Launching and Tracking New Product Programs

A decent book about product development from the Portable MBA series. It is a bit shallow as a Business Development book.