Revolutionizing Product Development: Quantum Leaps in Speed, Efficiency, and Quality [Hardcover]

Steven C. Wheelwright (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 15, 1992

A company's capability to conceive and design quality prototypes, and bring a product to market quicker than its competitors is increasingly the focal point of competition, according to the authors of this book. At the core of a successful new product launch is management's ability to integrate the marketing, manufacturing, and design functions for problem solving and fast action, particularly during the critical design-build-test cycles of prototype creation. Companies that consistently "design it right the first time" have a formidable edge in the crucial race to market.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Warren L. Batts Chairman and CEO, Premark International, Inc. Captures and clarifies the nuances of the product development process. Their abundant use of real world examples, with ample charts and tables of realistic data, provides an all encompassing perspective. Whether we're seeking incrementals, platforms, or breakthroughs, we can reshape our approaches to be far more effective in our diverse businesses by using the insights provided by their work. -- Review

About the Author

Steven C. Wheelwright is the Class of 1949 Professor of Business Administration at the Harvard Business School.

Wheelwright and Clark are co-authors with Robert H. Hayes of the best-selling Dynamic Manufacturing (Free Press, 1988).

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 364 pages
• Publisher: Free Press (June 15, 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0029055156
• ISBN-13: 978-0029055151
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 6.4 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #219,136 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #75 in Books > Business & Investing > Marketing & Sales > Marketing > Product Management

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

24 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent book on product development, December 1, 1999

By 

J. Groen "Jerry Groen" (GURNEE, ILLINOIS USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Revolutionizing Product Development: Quantum Leaps in Speed, Efficiency, and Quality (Hardcover)

This book, written in 1992, started a whole revolution in looking at the management of product development. Concepts like: the funnel to focus the organization on the right projects, an aggregate project plan, and the best two pages on project management that I have ever read are in this book. If you are planning to change your new product processes, this book is a necessity. Steven Wheelwright is a genius and you can read his brillance in this book.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Master piece, but nothing is perfect, March 20, 2002

By 

Adán López Miranda (Manchester United Kingdom) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Revolutionizing Product Development: Quantum Leaps in Speed, Efficiency, and Quality (Hardcover)

Excellent book, it describes the management principles for the whole new product development (NPD) process. The graphical frameworks provide a valuable synthesis of knowledge. The practical examples are the right complement to their conceptual postulates. The book is highly advisable for all actors involved in the NPD process. However, it must be a "compulsory" reading for general managers and executives within manufacturing plants, because of its strategic orientation.
Specially delicious are the chapters about aggregate project plans (Ch. 4) and Structuring the Development funnel (Ch.5). They contain the basic principles to halt those managers that want to tackle all the projects with the same limited resources.
The only gap in the book is the unclear link between the "pre-project" stages of the development (Development goals and objectives, and Aggregate project plan), and the project management phase. The authors fail to clearly establish where the project leader and teams joint into the development. More specifically, project definition is missed on exhibit 2-11.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Yesterday's News, January 20, 2009

By 

Fiasco "Fiasco" (Toronto, Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Revolutionizing Product Development: Quantum Leaps in Speed, Efficiency, and Quality (Hardcover)

I did not find much value in this book, aside from the chapter on teams. I think this book is valued because it was one of the first books written on the subject of new product development (NPD). But the theories and insights are out of date. Instead, read Dr. Cooper's Winning at New Products, New Products Management by Crawford, and the PDMA Handbook.