Observing world's auto industry as an example, the authors write about the power of product integrity and the factors necessary to achieve it product concept, the role of senior managers, organizational integrity etc. Because of the highly competitive environment, the highest priority of senior managers around the world was to develop new high quality products faster, adopting efficient and effective methods. It was crucial to maintain product integrity in the development process. According to the authors, a product is the reflection of the organization and the process of its development. The differentiating factor between the companies who are consistently successful in the development of new products and the companies who are not is product integrity.
Creating
a good organization requires a vision from the senior management, in the same
manner as engineers require a vision in creation of a product. Most of the companies
started competing on product integrity during 1980s. The process of adopting a
heavyweight management system was slow and modest in some companies. Characteristically,
to achieve product integrity, the companies progressed from strict functional
set up to lightweight system and then gradually broadened the scope of product
managers by widening their responsibilities. Thus the involvement of product managers
in all the departments of development became necessary. The smaller companies
introduced the heavyweight management system at a faster pace. This helped the
companies to achieve high competitive edge amongst the bigger companies. However
according to the author, the company's progression towards organizing a heavyweight
management system depends on its position in the market and the competitive threats
it faces. |
