Benchmark your New Product Development Process

The Opportunity Matrix areas include Sustainability (of the process), Customer Satisfaction, Quality, Growth/Revenue, Profitability and Speed/Flexibility.

In order to truly realize the value of this tool, the survey must be taken by all functions involved in the product development process. This includes business, marketing, technology, engineering, manufacturing, purchasing, sales and quality, and also must include support functions like finance, testing, legal, communications, product stewardship and the like. The survey can be sliced and diced to assess business units, regions or even functions. Open-ended answers provide honest, rich and valuable information that can be used in the evaluation, refining and optimization of the process.


Periodic surveys over time can be used to view progress and improvement of the organization’s new product development process. As more organizations take the survey, this tool can also be used to benchmark one’s own organization against other similar companies around the world.


 

Assessment of design for six sigma and new product development implementation

Successful implementation of Design for Six Sigma and New Product Development involves best practices in Management, Infrastructure, Teams and resources and Metrics.


In partnership with NeuraMetrics, Dr. Vinny Sastri has designed a New Product Assessment tool that enables companies to evaluate the effectiveness and long term viability of their existing product development process and identify areas for improvement. It takes into account four major factors – Management, Infrastructure, Teams/Resources and Metrics. These four factors have been established from numerous surveys and studies to be critical to the success and effectiveness of an organization’s new product development process.  Management criteria include commitment, leadership and engagement. Infrastructure takes into account the existence of a corporate-wide standardized process, use of collaborative software, effective communication between functions, continuous improvement and a market focused process. The section on resources and teams deals with resource management, team effectiveness, team empowerment and skills and training. The fourth factor Metrics assesses whether an organization has appropriate quality, financial, organic growth and process effectiveness metrics.


The Opportunity Matrix (based on industry best practices) enables an organization to identify which areas of the new product development process are working well and what specific areas need improvement

How good are you at developing new products?

What if…


Every employee, customer and /or vendor could confidentially tell management what they are really doing and why

Information could be captured with minimal disruption in the workplace in a very short cycle time

The information could be instantly processed, sorted and compared to best practices, standards or customer requirements

Dashboards & graphical displays were available and could be configured to see & compare relevant information

The information was always available, consistently displayed and easy to update

Would this enable better decisions, planning and prioritization?

Could this reduce the risk of failed programs, initiatives or decisions?

Could this help save money & customers for New Product Development?

The next few entries for this blog will discuss developming new products.  This is an essential for any manufacturer no matter what industry you are in or what product you are developing.  We hope that this helps you understand the value of assessing your process and mitigating the issues uncovered before you launch the process

Breaking Down Barriers for Improved Communication

Utiliworks Insight reveals behavioral data from the web-based surveys that are taken by an audience of executives, managers and front line personnel. A unique software engine is used to interpret and present the data, allowing utilities to:


• Evaluate performance

• Determine improvement opportunities

• Identify long-term business risks

• Understand specific performance gaps

• Recognize workforce productivity based on direct employee input

...Resulting in major cost savings and improved performance

See: http://www.utiliworks.com/

Benefits of assessing a utility using Utiliworks Insight

Our utility assessment product reveals behavioral data from the web-based surveys that are taken by an audience of executives, managers and front line personnel. A unique software engine is used to interpret and present the data, allowing utilities to Evaluate performance, Determine improvement opportunities, Identify long-term business risks, Understand specific performance gaps, and Recognize workforce productivity based on direct employee input...Resulting in major cost savings and improved performance

Why Assess a Utility

You can now prioritize and address identified gaps against a specific recognized set of Best Practices developed over years of experience in the Utilities industry. Correction of the weaknesses identified by the assessment will lead to improved business outcomes with “Business Intelligence that is Strategic and Actionable”. Mediation of these weaknesses will allow a utility to (a) Determine major areas for improvement and create strategic impressions that drive the development of improvement actions (b) Identify strengths that can be used for strategic advantage or cost-effective replication of successes (c) baseline against internal standards or benchmark against industry standards to characterize progress in corrective endeavors (d) perform efficient and comprehensive assessments at a fraction of consultant-based cost (e) eliminate workplace disruption (f) and realize higher reliability conclusions by getting direct input from a large base of knowledgeable respondents. The assessment that has been developed for this market was designed in partnership with UtiliWorks Inc. a Baton Rouge, LA based professional services company that helps utility clients assess, design, procure and deploy advanced metering systems. Together, our people and processes will lower your AMI project risk and create predictable outcomes in an environment of serious change. For more information about our alliance partner please visit http://www.utiliworks.com/InsightBrochure.pdf

Assessing a Utility

The next product that we will discuss is a high level Utility Profiling Tool that will aid in providing insight and strategies that will help a utility understand their operational readiness for improvement. UtiliWorks Insight allows Utilities to determine major areas for improvement and the detail of the presentation is sufficient for the development of strategic improvement concepts. This assessment will allow Utilities to understand their “Current Reality.” and create a variety of remedial activities related to processes, behaviors and most importantly, performance and improvement potential.  It is built on the NeuraMetrics Platform and uses Six Sigma and other quality principles for business process improvement.  Its comprehensive analysis is then made available to understand specific performance gaps and improvement opportunities.  This unique and quantitative insight drives understanding, benchmarking capability and targeted improvement in priority areas including Revenue recovery, Identification and Mitigation of product losses, Implementation of variable rate structures, Improved meter and billing accuracy, Reduction of labor costs, Reduction of customer complaints and errors and Enabling customers to manage consumption.   

If you would like to try our Vendor Management and Oversight Risk assessment you may go to www.neurasurvey.com and enter the Survey Code: vmosampler Once you have finished this survey (which is a sample of the actual survey) you will be able to access our analysis tool and view your results. You will also be able to view the results of others that have taken the survey and compare your results to theirs. All who enter the survey are anonymous. There is no way to trace the respondents answers. Enjoy!

An effective a vendor management and oversight process occurs when the process is assessed from several perspectives. This web based VMO assessment system not only helps to assign vendor risk, but helps to identify the institution’s possible business exposure from a faulty VMO process.
• It uncovers problems before the auditors find them
• It is a path to cost avoidance (fines)
• It lowers consulting / internal auditing costs while improving information
• It reduces risk
Ultimately, this assessment will result in not just compliance but improved business performance.All vendors are classified by function (usually major/minor), risk (low, moderate, high), and other internal criteria (price, length of project, access to data, etc). The combination of these three identifiers will determine the required participation in the RFP process, and the documentation requested for inclusion on the Approved Vendors list.To acquire data about the VMO process, respondents are asked to answer a query that is automatically scored, prioritized, analyzed and sorted to characterize the process and drive corrective action .Once the data is gathered management and problem solving teams are provided with a variety of data displays to understand and prioritize problems for corrective action.

Before we move on to other products I believe we should spend a little more time on our VMO Assessment and what it specifically does. Using this tool starts with identifying and communicating with the desired respondents. They need to know what the assessment is, why it is being conducted, and what to expect when it is complete. It is important to reinforce that their results will be confidential and they are encouraged to be candid and reflect reality, not what should be. It is easy to assess 100% of a target population, not just a small sample typical with “face to face” assessments.
A time period (perhaps 2 weeks) is defined as the “open period” during which time, the respondents can access the survey portal from any Internet Explorer connection available to them, and respond. They are allowed to respond in multiple sessions if needed (in other words, they can answer some questions, logout, and come back later to answer the remainder).
Once the open period is over, the analysis tools can be utilized by management and other problem solvers to identify strategic strengths and weaknesses, contrast performance across various demographics including locations, titles, departments, functions, etc. and finally derive concise actions to solve these problems.Using this tool starts with identifying and communicating with the desired respondents. They need to know what the assessment is, why it is being conducted, and what to expect when it is complete. It is important to reinforce that their results will be confidential and they are encouraged to be candid and reflect reality, not what should be. It is easy to assess 100% of a target population, not just a small sample typical with “face to face” assessments.
A time period (perhaps 2 weeks) is defined as the “open period” during which time, the respondents can access the survey portal from any Internet Explorer connection available to them, and respond. They are allowed to respond in multiple sessions if needed (in other words, they can answer some questions, logout, and come back later to answer the remainder).
Once the open period is over, the analysis tools can be utilized by management and other problem solvers to identify strategic strengths and weaknesses, contrast performance across various demographics including locations, titles, departments, functions, etc. and finally derive concise actions to solve these problems. In the next blog I will deliniate the features of this product.

The first product we would like to spotlight is our Vendor Management and Oversight Risk (VMO) assessment. VMO is an emerging need for many institutions, and, thereby, is an area of increased focus by auditors and regulatory agencies. This assessment can be used to evaluate current practices and implement the initial system, prioritize and implement needed actions, and provide ongoing monitoring to assure long term compliance and results. It recognizes the regulatory requirements, industry best practices, and the institution’s geographical differences. It offers functional insights and is an excellent opportunity to identify both strengths and weaknesses in your program and the vendors that serve your company. For more information please see: http://www.neurametrics.com/vendormgtoversight.html

NeuraMetrics is in the business of Business Intelligence. All the business intelligence that we gather is focused on helping companies drive performance improvement and better decisions and we cover a broad range of topics because we work with subject matter experts in various industries that are focused on the same task. These alliance partners work with us to create assessment products that are used as an aid in their work and our partnership is such that either we at NeuraMetrics or they may sell the end product. As a result, our product line is broad and the industries our products serve vary widely. I will dedicate the next few blog posts to describing some or our products so as to help the reader better understand what we do. This will guide our blog in a direction that appears to jump around a bit to the casual observer, but in reality we will be exploring the various uses for our methodology and hopefully the more than casual observer will begin to understand our mission. That mission is to create Web Based, On Line Survey Services (SaaS) that help organizations drive performance improvement and better decisions. Please join our Blog and comment freely about what you read here.

Successful businesses often lose the pulse of their customers and resort to guess work to make changes to facilities, products and services that are key components driving Customer Loyalty, Growth and Repeat Business. The smart companies make decisions based on continuous, organized, reliable and accurate data. Everyone knows what a Customer Satisfaction Survey is and some people know how to use the information it produces and that information should be gathered with Drip Intelligence, viewed daily, or at least weekly and analyzed using the best analysis engine you can find.

With Drip Intelligence you could, along with gathering intelligence from your customers, also gather intelligence from the Mystery Shopper Network and instantly compare what the Mystery Shoppers are saying with what your customers are saying. Very Powerful! With Drip Intelligence you may continuously keep track of and monitor your Mystery Shopper Network, continuously monitor and keep track of how customers are reacting to the business decisions you are making and be able to adjust your processes as well as the Mystery Shopper’s routine “on the fly”.

For a short discussion about Voice of the Customer in Manufacturing see: http://www.neurametrics.com/csformanufacturing.html

When investigating the use of various Business Intelligence Programs you should recognized that Customer Loyalty, more than perhaps any other single factor, is what keeps customers coming back. The "Mystery Shopper" network is a tool that many companies use. The dilemma is; do the reports from mystery shoppers really match what your customers are saying, are they relevant for your business and are they timely.

For a short discussion about Voice of the Customer in the Automobile Industry please visit http://www.neurametrics.com/csautomobilemarket.html

A Voice of the Customer program must produce diagnostic and predictive outcomes that support strategic impressions for business decisions. In short it must provide data that is really relevant to the executives in the organization; data that they feel is hard to get and is essential to have every week. Or, if your system incorporates Drip Intelligence, - every day!

The focus of any Voice of the Customer Program is to generate strategic and actionable business intelligence that can be used to better your organization.

For a short discussion on Voice of the Customer for the retail market you may go to http://www.neurametrics.com/csretailmarket.html

The timeliness of the information gathered is as important as gathering the information. I have been told by people that oversee Voice of the Customer programs that the information they receive is always too late to fix the problem. This tells us that these people recognize the need to continuously analyze the information and make adjustments on the fly.

Drip Intelligence should be a part of a cost effective web based Voice of the Customer Program that your customers use to tell you, in quantative and behavioral terms, exactly what is driving their buying behavior, while providing enormous insight into your organization and continuously prioritizing areas for improvement.

You can survive (even thrive) in a recession if you can react quickly to changes in customer needs, perceptions, and behaviors regarding your facilities, products, and services. These are the key components driving Customer Loyalty, Growth and Repeat Business and being able to react quickly will give you a huge advantage to stay viable and stand out against the competition. In any economy, it's very important to get ongoing feedback from your customers.

Don't wait to do an annual survey to find out which key indicators are affecting
your business this month or this quarter. In this kind of economy, it's more important to be getting a constant flow of customer feedback.

For a short Power Point Presentation please see: http://www.neurametrics.com/images/NeuraTool_for_Customer_Satisfaction_2009.pdf

The key is “real time”. You must continuously gather the information and instantly aggregate it into reports that are both strategic and actionable. You should be able to monitor your customers continuously and instantly watch how they are reacting to business decisions being made.

For other capabilities associated with a Voice of the Customer Platform see: http://www.neurametrics.com/products/generalapplications.html

The Voice of the Customer program you utilize needs to be able to roll the information gathered from customers into true business intelligence capable of providing on-line real time insight into your organization while instantly and automatically prioritizing areas for improvement.

To actually try a Voice of the Customer survey and see your results go to http://www.neurametrics.com/customersatisfaction.html

The closer you are to your customers, the more likely they are to turn to you when they need the products or services you offer. They need to know you are someone who cares about their needs and they need to know that you value what they think. Most of all they need to see you as someone they have a relationship with and… Drip Intelligence fosters that relationship.

The Drip Intelligence methodology is not new. It has been used by NeuraMetrics for several years integral to Business Process Improvement Programs in processes (needing to be monitored) where there is a collection of activities designed to produce a specific output. It has been used in areas such as Benchmarking, Compliance, and Supply Chain Risk.

There is a new idiom that is being integrated into this landscape and it can make all the difference in terms of how quickly you can react to changes in your customer’s behaviors. The term is Drip Intelligence and it was discussed in "Experiencing the Economic Rollercoaster?" an article by Eric Groves.

There are just a few rules to follow when you decide to survey your customers. It has been determined that for the best results the survey respondents should be:

Independent – people that have no ties to your organization and either are interested in helping you stay in business because they like your company or have a problem with your company and for various reasons would like to make you aware of that problem.

Diverse – people of both genders, all age groups, all/any ethnic groups, any religious persuasion, any sexual orientation etc.

Decentralized – people that are not restricted by location, job function, status, industry, etc.

…and you should have an effective method for aggregating the information.

You can survive (even thrive in) a recession if you can react quickly to changes in customer needs, perceptions, and behaviors regarding your facilities, products, and services. These are the key components driving Customer Loyalty, Growth and Repeat Business and being able to react quickly will give you a huge advantage to stay viable and stand out against the competition. In any economy, it's very important to get ongoing feedback from your customers.

One of the areas in all of the verticals that NeuraMetrics serves is Customer Satisfaction. This is more appropriately called Voice of the Customer because the process only creates customer satisfaction after the company listens to the Voice of the Customer. The question is: how do we REALLY listen to our customers and what do we do with the information? We at NeuraMetrics feel there are variations in not only how the information is collected but also how it is used. The information must be really relevant to the executives in the organization and for best results it must be collected and displayed/analyzed in real time.