Customer Reviews

Winning at New Products: Accelerating the Process from Idea to Launch, Third Edition

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

REVIEW: (Rev of 2nd edition) It is now widely accepted that innovation is a core competence that is required by nearly all organizations. As a result, many companies have been very successful at generating new innovations. However, generating innovations is just the first step and an excess of innovations in many companies has created a need for good management processes to deal with them. These are the issues addressed by this book and there may be no other place where these issues are addressed as thoroughly and well as here. The author provides a thorough review and analysis of each step of the development process from idea to commercial launch. While the book can be slow reading at times, I firmly believe the author's method of separating the process into stages and providing screening mechanisms between the stage are excellent advice. Following these methods should lead to: (1) accelerated product development, (2) increased success rate of new products, and (3) a more effective and efficient new products development process. Accordingly, the book should be especially useful to those managers responsible for portfolios of new products. If this is you, this book is highly recommended.

STRENGTHS: The book provides a very thorough review and analysis of the new product development process from innovation through to launch. The author has done a very thorough review of the research in this field and the book does an excellent job of citing other material. The book also contains an appropriate use of graphics for illustrating some points.

WEAKNESSES: While the book doesn't focus on any particular industry, its teachings are probably most applicable to more traditional product companies (e.g. P&G, DuPont). Also, (and this maybe an unfair comment for a book targeted at products) the book probably isn't that helpful for innovations in services which may be even more important in modern companies than product innovation (e.g. GE and IBM are currently pushing services). Another concern, the book is fairly "textbook like" and only those seriously interested in the subject may find it easy/enjoyable to read. Some passages seem to drag on and I often wished the author would have been more concise and not tried to so thoroughly justify every point.

WHO SHOULD READ THIS BOOK: Product development managers, new business managers, and others responsible for bringing innovations to market should read this book. Those responsible for _portfolios_ of new products/innovations may especially find this book useful.

ALSO CONSIDER: Jeffrey A Timmons - New Venture Creation; Guy Kawasaki - Rules for Revolutionaries; Peter F. Drucker - Innovation & Entrepreneurship

Bob Cooper, the author of this book, is the originator of the stage-gate approach to new product development, and is recognized as such by the federal government who registered this phrase under his company. He initially described the approach in a couple of excellent articles written in the late 1970s but this book, first written in the late 1980s and updated twice since, is really the best source for the stage-gate process. Although his writing can be dry and his tone preachy, you can't argue with the base information and the conclusions. He studied 3000 new products in hundreds of companies to identify what separates the winners from the losers in new products, and stage-gates are one of the keys, along with cross-functional teams and a clear understanding of the customer's needs. Today over 96% of companies in a recent survey use stage-gates, and the best at bringing new products to market, the organizations that are the most profitable and growing the fastest, do it well. This book lays out how to do it well. If you want to install a stage-gate process, and you need to, if your company doesn't have one, this is your best source.

New products accelerate consumerism and a truly innovative launch can re-ignite corporate balance sheets, but new product attrition is high. For every seven new product ideas floated, about four enter development, one and a half are launched and only one succeeds (25% to 45% of new products flop). Yet intrepid corporations innovate and live to recount their tales to happy shareholders. The book presents every conceivable detail of the launch process - evaluation, management, best practices, game plans and even the seemingly impossible, incorporating new ideas into corporate thinking. So, what are the shortcomings? Well, there's not enough service industry info and there is too much redundancy. Processes are listed, sub-processes are listed and sub-sub-processes, until the reader gets lost in lists and stages. Still, if you retain the energy to try, this book provides the theoretical and operational framework for launching new products. All you need is that billion dollar idea. We recommend this book to idea people in marketing, technology, R & D and sales.

The book reads like a graduate student paper, very heavy on citation of the theories in technology management, very light on original research. A typical statement in the book would be "this theory, backed by our extensive research)" proceeding to just quote the original theory. The book does not provide any eye-openers about winning in today's marketplace, but rather summarizes existing theories, like stage gate, house of quality, development funnel, etc.. It lacks the depth in any particular subject, and perhaps could be a good overview for somebody, just not sure who.

Cooper does a great job presenting the value of his "stage gate" system for developing and launching new products while minimizing risk of failure. A bit academic, but useful advice for all product managers in any industry.

The person who first described the "stage-gate" process presents an excellent and in-depth discussion of the product development process and how companies are successful with new products. Each stage and gate are expanded with excellent detail and clear presentation. I found it to be an excellent reference and an accompanying text for a class I am teaching in engineering management.

The author is obviously a big believer in the "tell the reader what you are going to teach them, tell them in more detail and then tell them what you've told them".

If you are a numbers and figures person that wants to see proof and likes the same information reiterated, then you will love this book. It references many studies and uses a lot of graphs to support their theories.

If, on the other hand, you a big-picture person and you prefer information in a story format then this book is going to be a long, tedious book to read and you will likely start skimming very early in the book.

The book introduces the Stage-Gate process by its author. The Stage-Gate is a process for disciplined innovation used to move ideas to commercial products. The process basically divides the new product process into five main stages: Scoping, Building Business Case, Development, Testing and Validation, and Launch. Before each Stage there is a Gate that opens the door for more investment and commitment. The process seems common sense at first but the research and studies behind it flesh it out with invaluable tips and checklists that build your confidence to adopt them in your own domain. The book is full of diagrams, tables and charts that help you understand important studies and concepts.

On the downside, I found little details on the Gates, the focus is primarily on the Stages. I also think the book is little bit lengthy for the amount of wisdom embedded, I found many of the concepts repeated throughout, some might consider this a plus as it helps emphasizing the concepts. I also think that some of the the studies should have been moved to an appendix to make the reading flow smoother. . Finally, the book could have been structured differently; for example, chapter 12 (Product Innovation and Technology Strategy) and chapter 8 (Portfolio Management) could have been (at least partially) moved earlier in the book.

Overall, I think the book is a great value, I found it useful as my first product management reading, it is easy to read and follow.The book is a recommended reading by the Product Management Association.

Dr. Cooper has provided an excellent and easy to understand process for guiding organizations from ideation to launch of successful new products. Although many of the steps are intuitive, the framework suggests that if the checklist for each of the five gates is followed, an organization can fill that it has done its homework and can proceed confidently in making go-no go decisions. I am using this text in my graduates school courses at Mercy College and in lectures for student seminars organized by the Direct Marketing Association. A great read for everyone in new product development roles.

Robert Cooper developed the stage-gate methodology for new product development in the 1980's. It has had a profound effect on most large firms and many smaller firms. This structured approach to managing the inherently risky and complex cross-functional process of new product introduction has become a staple of MBA programs. Five stages and approval gates are used to manage the funnel from idea generation/discovery to project scoping to business case to development to testing/validation to launch/post-launch review.

The third edition text outlines the basic structure. It provides best practices and practical advice for each stage. The author emphasizes the importance of speed and ways to use the stage-gate approach to deliver timely results, addressing the common criticism that the stage-gate process is inherently inflexible and slow. The 6 F's approach includes flexibility, fuzzy gates, fluidity, focus, facilitation and forever green. The basic risks of an overly rigid gate system are addressed, perhaps over-addressed. There is no in-depth treatment or review of alternate approaches to new product development that make time to market the primary focus.

A significant amount of survey research is presented to define product introduction pitfalls and critical success factors. None of this is surprising, but the many lists provide a framework for product management practitioners to evaluate the effectiveness of their processes.

The book provides several useful decision-making frameworks, including marketing/technology success factors, new to company/market, risks through time, risk/reward grids, gate decisions, and portfolio reviews.

Overall, this is the best new product intro text available. It is addressed to marketing oriented product managers in large corporations, but is useful for anyone playing a role in a new product introduction process.

The author promotes a high investment approach to new product development, best fitting a Fortune 200 firm. There are 5 stages, 5 gates, 6 F's, 7 goals, 8 points, 8 key factors and 15 critical success factors. Professor Cooper does not believe in shortcuts.

Start with the stage-gate basics in chapter 5. Digest the other chapters as the need arises.