Managing the product development process 261 6.1.2 Abilities Systematic selection of best projects, using information sharing and group decision making, creating idea generation and evaluation with all people involved in product development, setting decision processes based on the product development goals Careful analysis of the customer's level of sophistication and the product designers level of technical sophistication, creating collaborative roles between product design and consumer/market research, educating product designers on consumer needs and wants, educating marketing on technical possibilities and problems Finding and coordinating the resources and knowledge for product development, upgrading knowledge to make use of new technology, nurturing methods for new technologies, selection of technology with fit to present or planned future company technology, predicting costs of adoption of new technology in finances and company organisation Elimination of disharmony between R&D and marketing groups, making open communication an explicit responsibility of every employee, using joint &D/marketing task forces Reducing complexity and problems, breaking large projects into manageable stages,identifying and eliminating mild problems before they become major Management at all levels needs to have the abilities to recognise the path of the project and to coordinate the knowledge, resources and people to follow the path efficiently and effectively to product success. There is a great deal spoken about multidisciplinary, cross-functional, inter-functional, intra-functional, integrated product development, but basically product development needs to be recognised s a many-faceted process which can only be achieved by collaboration between people with different knowledge and skills. It cannot be enclosed in specialist or functional boxes such as marketing or production(Harris and McKay, 1996) Management needs to understand the meaning of company collaboration and to have the ability to put into action a multifaceted product development project based on collaboration 6.1.3 Organisation Design of product development organisation, ability to set the tone, posture nd prevailing attitudes towards product development, creating an organisa- ion to fit the needs of members and of customers, encouraging responsibility and creating multidirectional communication Cost-effective project management, selecting the method that relates to the problem, for example incremental innovation using commercial line management, technical innovation using technical management, major innovation using separate project management or a new product committee Flow management during the project, organising the timely transfer and flow of product prototypes and knowledge, encouraging the skills and knowledge6.1.2 Abilities • Systematic selection of best projects, using information sharing and group decision making, creating idea generation and evaluation with all people involved in product development, setting decision processes based on the product development goals. • Careful analysis of the customer’s level of sophistication and the product designer’s level of technical sophistication, creating collaborative roles between product design and consumer/market research, educating product designers on consumer needs and wants, educating marketing on technical possibilities and problems. • Finding and coordinating the resources and knowledge for product development, upgrading knowledge to make use of new technology, nurturing methods for new technologies, selection of technology with fit to present or planned future company technology, predicting costs of adoption of new technology in finances and company organisation. • Elimination of disharmony between R&D and marketing groups, making open communication an explicit responsibility of every employee, using joint R&D/marketing task forces. • Reducing complexity and problems, breaking large projects into manageable stages, identifying and eliminating mild problems before they become major. Management at all levels needs to have the abilities to recognise the path of the project and to coordinate the knowledge, resources and people to follow the path efficiently and effectively to product success. There is a great deal spoken about multidisciplinary, cross-functional, inter-functional, intra-functional, integrated product development, but basically product development needs to be recognised as a many-faceted process which can only be achieved by collaboration between people with different knowledge and skills. It cannot be enclosed in specialist or functional boxes such as marketing or production (Harris and McKay, 1996). Management needs to understand the meaning of company collaboration and to have the ability to put into action a multifaceted product development project based on collaboration. 6.1.3 Organisation • Design of product development organisation, ability to set the tone, posture and prevailing attitudes towards product development, creating an organisa￾tion to fit the needs of members and of customers, encouraging responsibility and creating multidirectional communication. • Cost-effective project management, selecting the method that relates to the problem, for example incremental innovation using commercial line management, technical innovation using technical management, major innovation using separate project management or a new product committee. • Flow management during the project, organising the timely transfer and flow of product prototypes and knowledge, encouraging the skills and knowledge Managing the product development process 261