Many companies, particularly start-ups, encounter challenges in achieving the eventual commercialization success due to the insufficient Product Development Management (PDM) competencies within their teams. Key issues contributing to these includes:
1. Disorganization: Companies facing difficulties in organize tasks, allocate resources efficiently and setting clear timelines. This can lead to missed deadlines, cost overruns and overall project chaos.
2. Poor Communication: Lack of PDM experiences within the team can result in miscommunication, misunderstandings and lack of alignment among the team members. This holds particularly true in the medtech space since the project lead will be required to effectively communicate with diverse departmental personnel.
3. Risk Management Issues: Effective PDM includes identifying and mitigating risks. Without great exposure, companies may encounter unexpected challenges that can disrupt the whole project progress.
4. Resource Mismanagement: Proper PDM will be needed to prevent inefficient use of resources. Teams may be overworked, or resources may be underutilized; with both ways impacting the project timeline and increasing the costs.
CURRENT PRACTISES
While Product Development Management (PDM) plays a crucial role in preventing key issues and increasing a company's chance of success, many start-ups, in particular, are reluctant to invest resources in its implementation. Some companies even resort to hiring inexperienced part-time personnel to handle these project management activities. These individuals often juggle multiple significant roles within the company such as R&D, operations, quality assurance, processes or marketing. They basically do not have the focus and potentially the time to manage the PDM job scope. This reluctance can potentially be due to the misconception that PDM merely involves overseeing simple tasks such as GANTT charts, project plans and budgeting - a perception that is fundamentally incorrect.
PDM IN SUCCESSFUL COMPANIES
In summary, the absence of effective Product Development Management (PDM) can results in a range of issues, including disorganization, communication breakdowns, increased risks and resource mismanagement. Addressing these challenges through the implementation of PDM practices is so crucial for companies to enhance their overall efficiency, meet project objectives and ensure commercialization success. Hence, companies from various sectors, including the oil and gas, information technology, construction and prominent players in the medtech industry, are appointing experienced full-time Product Development Management (PDM) professionals to oversee their respective projects. In return, their success rates in these projects have yielded higher success rates compared to other companies.