Emerging Issues in Product Development - Term Paper Example

 EMERGING ISSUES IN PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT Introduction Companies and organizations have turned to product development as a means of staying relevant in the market. The essence of product development is to have customers get enhanced products that are capable of meeting their needs. Murad Ahmed, a senior technology journalist recently wrote an article concerning Microsoft is modifying the latest version of its software called the windows 8 (Ahmed 2014, p. 1). The story as reported by Ahmed detailed some of the reasons why Microsoft had decided to modify its latest product (Ahmed 2014, p. 1). The gist of the matter as reported by Ahmed was that customers world over were finding it difficult to use the product as it bore some sought of complications. The issue as reported in March 2014 by Ahmed seemed to have taken a number of people by surprise (Ahmed 2014, p. 1). Even though the giant software company has plans incorporate the previous features in the newly introduced product, the actions should be well thought of as appropriate. It is just under 16 months since the Windows 8 were introduced into the market (Ahmed 2014, p. 1). Pundits argued that this new development was by far the biggest thing that had ever happened in the software industry. The software product has gained a number of positive feedbacks since the time of inception. However, the company has reported that through its feedback system, a number of customers think otherwise about the product. Some think that the new software is not user friendly and, therefore, provides a challenge in its use. This has prompted the Microsoft Company to announce its intention to return earlier features in the new product. While the company, maybe by right and well within its jurisdiction to satisfy its customers there are a number of issues that can be drawn from the company’s latest move. One of the issues that remain clear is that the company may not have done its homework properly. Before introducing a product into the market, it is incumbent upon a company to carry out market survey so as to know what a majority of customers want. The case reported by Ahmed in the Times is testimony that the company did not find out from the customers what was of critical importance to them. Under normal circumstances, it is proper for the company to have the company consider the input of the customers before coming up with a new product or enhancing the product to be brought into the market (Reinertsen 2009, p. 12). Microsoft has been into the market for long and should have known better how well to modify its product so as to meet the expectations of the customer. Ahmed, the technology reporter at the Times called the dissatisfaction by customers as a ‘pain’ (Ahmed 2014, p. 1). If the case as reported by Microsoft is anything to go by, it can be verified to some extent that the company did not carry out a proper consultation with the customers and if it was done, the inputs from the customers were not incorporated into the development of the product. The product has merely been in the market for about six months and this could be pretty early to introduce changes into the product. The other software products that have been introduced in the market by the company have stayed for fairly long before instituting changes or bringing in a totally new product. Rushing to introduce the changes may not be the best option in the sense that it would potentially erase the essence of innovations and development of new products (Lichtenthaler 2011, p. 76). The product should be given more time, so that a majority of the customers can be able to interact with it before any other changes can be introduced. When the product is left as it is, more of the customers may find it appropriate to adjust and start using the product as appropriate. While the desire to change the features by introducing earlier features may be well thought and strategic, the new product should be given some little time to so that customers can also state the areas where they feel should be changed. This move can help the company to make changes only in some specific areas and not make a wholesale change in the product. If the changes are introduced as suggested, it may potentially change the whole meaning of the product as being a new outfit on the market. However, the move could be real, but only to some extent because it is important also to take precautions where necessary. While the company plans to introduce changes, it should be very thoughtful about the changes that are to be introduced and the impact it will have on the new product. The software company has a huge number of customers worldwide. Therefore, the assumption that a clique of consumers did not like the product did not mean everyone is against the product. Could be that the people who were finding it difficult did not just want to adapt to the new technology and have it embraced as appropriate. Adaptation of customers to any technological changes becomes tricky sometimes to the extent that rationality is lost in the process. Markets have diverse customers to the extent that homogeneity can at times hard to come by. It would be proper for the company to carry out a market survey and here what the customers have to say about the product. In the event that there was a general consensus among the customers that the product does not meet their expectations, the company would then have to modify the product (Ordanini et al 2011, p. 444). Inventions and technological advancement are inevitable in the present times. The more technological advancement takes center stage, the more companies are beginning to enhance product development (Creveling et al 2003, p. 45). The windows 8 in all fairness was not much of an invention, but an improvement of past versions to ensure that customers have a new product that is improved on with better features. If at all the company will revert to introducing features of an earlier version into the new one, it would break the essence of product improvement and development to a greater extent. The company should take serious precautions before instituting any changes to the new software product. Changes in the product may reduce the products rally in the market to the extent that some consumers may find the product below what they had expected. Being a market leader means always at the top of the game. Windows 8 has by far put the company at the very top of the game to the extent that other companies would ordinarily find it difficult to match the pace of the company. Though a few customers have complained about the product, a number of people continue to contend that Windows 8 is the best so far (Soper 2012, p. 8). It is therefore important to investigate the claims of a few of the customers about the pain they suffer by using the product as it is. In all fairness, someone who has used the software before would find it relatively easy to adapt to the use of the product. The problem would only arise if there were people who have never used the product and are trying to use it for the first time. The product should let the product be in the market but focus more on creating awareness about the product to ensure that there is a relative balance in trying to deal with the issue. In product development, there should be no reverse but progress. By introducing earlier features would only mean taking some steps backwards. However, introducing some new changes in the product could potentially make the product even better. The modifications could potentially make the product one of the best in the market and so, the issue should be considered critically. Conclusion Product development is not retrogressive but progressive. In improving on a new product or coming with a new one in the market, there should be a need to improve on it and not blending earlier features with new features (Khanh 2011, p. 23). Product development is key to ensuring that relative competitive advantage is maintained in the market. Software as a company should not ignore the views and issues raised by the customers, but should consider the matter as important. However, the Microsoft should not rush into making changes to the new product or introduce other features that could degrade the product. Bibliographies: Ahmed, M. (2014). Microsoft revises software to address Windows’ pain. Gadgets. The Times. Retrieved from: Barclays I., Dann Z., and Holroyd p. (2010). New Product Development. Routledge. Creveling, C. M., Slutsky, J., & Antis, D. (2003). Design for Six Sigma in technology and product development. Upper Saddle River, N.J: Prentice Hall. Khanh, P. -G. (2011).Radical innovation and open innovation: Creating new growth opportunities for business; illumination with a case study in the LED industry. Hamburg: Diplomica-Verl. Lichtenthaler, U. (2011). Open Innovation: Past Research, Current Debates, and Future Direction. Academy of Management Perspectives, February 75-93. Ordanini, A., Miceli, L., Pizzetti, M. and Parasuraman, A. (2011) Crowd-funding: transforming customers into investors through innovative service platforms. Journal of Service Management, 22 (4), 443-470. Reinertsen, D. G. (2009). The principles of product development flow: Second generation lean product development. Redondo Beach, Calif: Celeritas. Soper M. E. (2012). Easy Windows 8. Que Publishing. Read More