article-one: According to Chinese product development legend, one day twelve animal team leaders in a company had a vicious quarrel over who would lead the next flagship project on the development calendar. Each animal insisted they knew the best method for getting to market the fastest. The board of directors was asked to decide and they designed a contest: each was given a similar development project and whoever got their product to market first would lead the company's next generation project. All the twelve animals gathered at the kickoff meeting, assembled their teams and rushed to book time in the conference room. Unknown to the other animals, the wily Rat somehow convinced the best engineer (who worked for the Ox) to work on his team on the side. Just before the Ox was to get critical time in the test lab, the Rat announced the engineer was reassigned to his project, and soon won the race. The Pig, the least competent of animals, ended up last. That is why on the project calendar, the rat's projects are first to be funded, the ox comes second and the pig was laid off. The following show the twelve animal signs of the product development zodiac, the years of birth for each sign, and a personality profile:
People born in the year of the Rat are noted for their persuasive, almost flirty nature and ability to get people to do things for them that they wouldn't do for their own mother. Resources and funding are rarely denied to the Rat. The Rat is a concerned animal, but not a worry-wart, and is highly skilled at exaggerating truth to settle a panic. While the rat can persevere through the toughest adversity, his single-minded drive to succeed can occasionally lead to highly risky and potentially unethical solutions. Still, the Rat has an uncanny ability to survive and prosper, and thus is a strong ally for the wise animal. The Rat is most compatible with the Dragon, Monkey and Ox.
(1913, 1925, 1937, 1949, 1961, 1973, 1985, 1997) People born in the year of the Ox are tolerant and quiet, preferring to carry their obvious power in a reserved manner, which is very useful during performance reviews. The Ox has a tireless work ethic and a tremendous capacity for multi-tasking, but they can be obstinate and quick to anger when disagreed with on process issues. While the Ox speaks little, when he does speak his words come with unfailing logic and a surprising eloquence that demands attention. The Ox is most compatible with the Snake, Rooster and Rat.
People born in the year of the Tiger benefit from a rare combination of sensitivity and strength. While they are the object of much respect among peers, Tigers often engage in conflict with supervisors and those in authority. Tiger people are sensitive enough to see all perspectives of a problem with equal vision, but as a result cannot make up their minds, which can result in a marginal solution that arrives too late. Tigers are notoriously skeptical, but once their trust is achieved they are fiercely loyal. The Tiger is most compatible with the Horse, Dragon and Dog.
People born in the year of the Rabbit are well-spoken, talented, driven, and above all, lucky. Rabbits are very patient animals and rarely lose their temper. The Rabbit's clever business mind makes them tough negotiators and their knack for luck always seems to make their risks pan out. However, Rabbits seldom gamble as they are conservative at heart and far too wise to even consider a foolish plan. The Rabbit is most compatible with the Sheep, Pig and Dog.
People born in the year of the Dragon always seem healthy, are filled with energy and passion, and pride themselves on their integrity and honor. Other animals are prone to admire Dragons for their honesty and powerful appearance, but at times can fear them when they seem stubborn or angry. Dragon people maintain odd work habits, follow an odd schedule, and their soft heart leaves them open to being taken advantage of. Dragons have a difficult time saying 'no.' The Dragon is most compatible with the Rat, Snake, Monkey and Rooster.
People born in the year of the Snake are wise with great depth. Snake people are very sympathetic to those in need, but at the same time can act vain, selfish and sometimes stingy. The snake tends to be a micromanager, unable to trust others when the stakes are high. While driven by an extreme distaste for failure, their calm demeanor conceals their intense passion. The Snake is most compatible with the Ox and Rooster.
People born in the year of the Horse are calm and rational about their work, but impatient and hot-blooded about everything else. They are very talented, good with their hands, and make excellent designers and craftsmen. They are always very popular with others, but are independent and rarely heed advice. While they are usually focused and diligent when working, they tend to dominate meetings and conversations with unproductive dialogue. The Horse is most compatible with the Tiger, Dog and Sheep.
People born in the year of the Sheep have a graceful air about them and are accomplished artists with a deep visual sense. Although they are timid by nature, Sheep maintain unusually strong convictions and are attracted to orthodoxy. The gentle Sheep need not worry about job security as their skills always seem to be in demand, which aids in their obsessive needs for creature comforts. The Sheep is most compatible with the Rabbit, Pig and Horse.
People born in the year of the Monkey are the wildcard geniuses of the group. The Monkey is the most clever, flexible and skilled of all animals, and regularly solves problems that others can't even understand. There is little that Monkeys are not capable of mastering, but they are sometimes hindered by their agreeable personality, never wanting to disappoint anyone. While good natured and happy-go-lucky, the Monkey is prone to mischief. Monkey people are firm in their beliefs, but always yield to new logic due to their intense desire for knowledge. The Monkey is most compatible with the Dragon and Rat.
People born in the year of the Rooster are deep thinkers, but rather eccentric and have less than great interpersonal skills. Roosters always think they are right about everything, but the fact that they are almost always proven correct does little to satisfy them. The Rooster swings from extreme state to extreme state, rarely stopping in the calmer middle ground, and this can greatly affect their decision-making and judgement. Typically a loner, a Rooster's skills are best utilized when given the room to operate with little outside interference. The Rooster is most compatible with the Ox, Snake and Dragon.
People born in the year of the Dog are loyal, honest, and trustworthy to a fault. They pay little attention to financial matters and implications, but are excellent at keeping secrets. At times cold and distant, the Dog can undo his positive traits by being quick with criticisms that aren't typically constructive. The Dog is a natural leader, but not all will follow willingly. The Dog is most compatible with the Horse, Tiger and Rabbit.
People born in the year of the Pig are noble and strong, but not particularly motivated. Pigs are slow to action, which may explain their overuse of shortcuts and the sloppiness of their efforts. Gregarious and jovial, the Pig makes a great friend and companion, but a less than desirable team member. This is unfortunate as the Pig is an adroit student that always seems well informed and of unusually high intelligence. The Pig is most compatible with the Rabbit and Sheep.
article-two: This month we feature two sites sponsored by independent consulting firms. Most consultant-sponsored sites offer only marginal content value to browsers of their information, typically focusing on their fee-based services (and rightly so, of course), but we have chosen the following for their tremendously comprehensive contributions to the NPD community. Both sites represent herculean efforts to categorize and index the vast amount of information and resources available to product developers. There is such a variety of material on these sites, just about anyone should find something of value here. 1 - GATEWAYS TO KNOWLEDGE Link: http://www.goldensegroupinc.com/gateway/index.shtml GTK is produced by Goldense Group, Inc. (GGI), and serves as a portal and directory to many of the services and information resources available to product developers. GTK maintains several databases of lists and links to upcoming conferences and seminars, numerous bibliographies and links to periodicals and books, links to many types of services, professional associations, technology providers and much, much more. 2 - PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT FORUM Link: http://www.npd-solutions.com/pdforum.html PDF is produced by DRM Associates, and, like GTK, is an impressive digital collection of NPD intelligence. While the site contains its own directories of links to other resources, it's core value is that it acts like a mini-encyclopedia of NPD process knowledge. PDF houses hundreds of articles, a very comprehensive glossary of product development vocabulary, and excellent overviews of innumerable tools and techniques. Know a website we should review? Send the url to gregg@roundtable.com
article-three:
Send me your Top Ten List suggestions - gregg@roundtable.com Interested in
sponsoring this newsletter? article-four: New VIP Series for Product Development Executives Building on the success of last Fall's NPD Executive Series, MRT is offering a new "VIP Series" featuring an all-access pass to 3 or more Management Roundtable conferences. Passes can be shared amongst any group from the same company and can add up to a savings of over 35% off regular fees. VIP Series participants also benefit from special access to experts, conference faculty and other resources. This is a great way to spread the knowledge of best practices in product development throughout your organization. [More Info] Now Online: Sample Chapter from the
New Book: As part of our upcoming conference on product development risk, we've posted a sample chapter of the soon to be published book by Preston Smith and Guy Merritt, "Proactive Risk Management: Controlling Uncertainty in Product Development." Preston is a featured keynote speaker at the conference while Guy will be delivering a case study from his experience at Tellabs. The sample chapter is entitled "What is risk and how is it managed?", and can be read online. [Read Sample Chapter] Upcoming MRT Events
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The Year
of the Rat 
The Year of the Tiger 
The Year of the Rabbit (1915, 1927, 1939, 1951, 1963, 1975, 1987, 1999)
The Year of the Dragon 
The Year of the Snake 
The Year of the Horse 
The Year of the Sheep 
The Year of the Monkey 
The Year of the Rooster 
The Year of the Dog 
The Year of the Pig 
