In managing New Product Development (NPD), certain practices can enhance the efficiency and success rate of projects. Here are the verified practices:
I. Use a staged and gated NPD system: This method involves dividing the product development process into stages separated by gates. Each gate serves as a decision point where the continuation of the project is evaluated based on the achievement of specific criteria.
II. Use dedicated project members: Having a team that is dedicated solely to the project ensures focused effort and can enhance the speed and quality of development.
III. Watching for triggers that indicate a succeeding activity can begin before its predecessor is complete is not typically recommended as it can lead to overlapping tasks that may introduce errors or dependencies that have not been fully addressed.
IV. Use prototyping to set the pace: Prototyping allows for rapid iteration and testing of ideas, which can accelerate the development process and provide early insights into potential issues.
Therefore, the correct answer is D: I, II, IV.
References:
Cooper, R. G. (2008). Perspective: The Stage-Gate Idea-to-Launch Process-Update, What's New, and NexGen Systems. Journal of Product Innovation Management.
Kahn, K. B., Castellion, G., & Griffin, A. (2005). The PDMA Handbook of New Product Development. John Wiley & Sons.