Lecture 8: new product strategy

What is the purpose of a new product strategy

To guide how a company finds opportunities and allocates resources to build successful products

Why must new product strategy align with company strategy

Product decisions should support overall business goals and long term direction

What are the three main steps in building a new product strategy

Identify opportunities create strategic direction and assess which to pursue

What is the three act structure for strategy development

Scan and discover focus and define and choose and commit

What is the first step in finding new product opportunities

Look at external and internal sources to identify unmet needs

What are external sources of new product opportunities

Consumer trends competition regulation new technology and major world events

What is an example of an external opportunity driver

Government regulation pushing companies toward electric vehicles

What are internal sources of new product opportunities

Company resources capabilities brand and knowledge

What is a product platform

A core system or technology that allows many related products to be developed

What is a brand platform

Using the same brand identity across multiple related products

Why are platforms powerful in product strategy

They allow faster development and leverage existing strengths

What is a common mistake when identifying opportunities

Ignoring internal capabilities and chasing trends without fit

What is the Product Innovation Charter PIC

A strategic document that defines direction and boundaries for innovation

Why is the PIC important

It provides focus aligns teams and prevents wasted effort

What is a key idea about the PIC

It defines the opportunity space not a specific product

What problem does the PIC prevent

Scope creep and constant changes during development

What are the four main parts of a PIC

Background arena goals and guidelines

What is the background section of a PIC

It explains why the strategy exists and summarizes key insights

What is the arena in a PIC

The specific space where the company will compete based on capabilities and market needs

What is the dual drive framework in the PIC

Combining capability drivers with market drivers to find the best opportunity

What are market drivers in the PIC

Customer needs pain points behaviors and trends

What are capability drivers in the PIC

Company strengths such as technology brand or distribution

What is the sweet spot in product strategy

Where company capabilities match strong market needs

What is a common mistake in defining the arena

Choosing markets where the company has no competitive advantage

What are goals and objectives in a PIC

Specific measurable outcomes the product should achieve

What makes a strong goal in a PIC

Clear measurable and time bound targets

What is a weak goal example

Increase market share

What is a strong goal example

Reach a specific market share within a defined time period

What are guidelines in a PIC

Rules that shape development such as level of innovation timing and constraints

What is the role of guidelines in a PIC

They provide guardrails for decision making

What is a common mistake when creating guidelines

Making them too vague or too restrictive

What is opportunity portfolio management

Choosing which opportunities to pursue based on value and feasibility

What factors should be considered when selecting opportunities

Company capabilities competition and uncertainty

Why is resource allocation important in opportunity selection

Companies have limited resources and must prioritize

What is a key lesson from the Volvo electric vehicle example

Strategy should respond to market trends regulation and competition

What risk did Volvo take in its strategy

Committing early to a major shift toward electric vehicles

What is a key takeaway from the new product strategy process

Success comes from aligning opportunities with capabilities and clear strategic direction

What is a trap in new product strategy

Chasing every opportunity without focus

What is a memory trick for PIC structure

BAGG which stands for background arena goals and guidelines