Aberdeen Research on Profitable NPD for SMEs Validates Centric Approach to Combine Information From Multiple Sources

May 15, 2007; 05:17 AM
Centric Software, the leading provider of Product Intelligence™ applications for the extended enterprise, today announced key findings from a report entitled, “Profitable Product Development for Small to Medium Enterprises,” which was sponsored by Centric and written by leading analyst firm Aberdeen Group. The report reveals product development strategies used by companies that consistently and successfully hit new product development targets for launch dates, quality, revenue, product costs and product development costs.

The most successful companies had innovative internal capabilities for:

• Extending management of product data beyond the BOM
• Formal management of new product development with performance metrics
• Physical or virtual centralization of product data

“One of the interesting findings of this study was the emphasis on including a broader range of information, such as costs, quality, and supplier information, in the NPD process,” said Jim Brown, vice president of global product innovation and engineering at Aberdeen, and author of the report. “In addition, the report found that successful companies had a centralized approach to product data, whether stored physically in one location or aggregated virtually from multiple distributed sources.”

“Rapid global expansion has compounded the challenge of gathering current information to make the right decisions, reduce development cycles, and keep NPD programs on target,” said Chris Groves, CEO of Centric Software. “Historically, Centric Software has provided global product development teams with a different approach. Rather than creating yet another silo of product data, we believe in finding and connecting to information where it is, and uniting teams with business and technical information to improve overall business performance.”

With out-of-the-box powerful search and deep connectivity into multiple distributed sources of information, including ERP, CRM, SCM systems, office documents, as well as product data systems, Centric’s Product Intelligence (PI) applications automatically incorporate product data beyond the BOM into the development process. The search and connectivity provide time and cost saving options for data management, including bringing strategic documents under management in a central repository with revision control, or connecting to the information where it resides, creating a virtual repository and avoiding the costs and time of moving data. Online decision centers formally track performance metrics in conjunction with the aggregated product and financial information. More than just dashboards for metrics and analysis, these online decision centers incorporate comments and status information, and allow users to initiate actions directly within the system.

Centric’s off-the-shelf PI applications for ideation, new product development, process management, product portfolio management, KPI performance management, and Six Sigma and lean programs configure easily, allowing customers to map their existing business programs and processes into the applications. The ease of configuration ensures a rapid deployment, typically within months, and a rapid time-to-value. Familiar web-based interfaces ensure easy, widespread adoption. Companies interested in reading more about the strategies used to hit NPD targets can download a full copy of the report is available at: http://www.centricsoftware.com/.

To learn more about how Product Intelligence applications help companies achieve NPD targets, please visit www.centricsoftware.com, or call 888-537-2639.

About Centric Software, Inc.

With Product Intelligence solutions from Centric Software, global executives and multidisciplinary teams collect all relevant information for any product or capital program initiative, decide on the appropriate action, execute on the initiatives, and assess progress against business goals. Global enterprises, such as Bristol-Myers Squib, Watson, Coleman, Emerson, Moen, Hamilton Sundstrand, Siemens, Timex, Volvo, Iowa State University and others, use Centric's solutions to achieve top line revenue growth, direct cost reductions and insight into capital programs. Customers represent multiple industries, including aerospace, automotive, consumer goods, AEC/owner operator, life sciences, consumer electronics and universities. For further information on Centric Software, please visit: www.centricsoftware.com.