article-one:
Product Development ABCs
 |
is for Assembly, could
it always be leaner? |
 |
is for Benchmarking,
from grass that looks greener |
 |
is for Customers, whom
we love and we hate |
 |
is for Deliverables,
and delaying due dates |
 |
is for the Engineers who
clean up the mess |
 |
is for Finance, who
make us do more with less |
 |
is for Gate, be it
toll, stage or phase |
 |
is for Hardware,
obsolete in mere days |
 |
is for Innovate, and
idea evolution |
 |
is for Just-In-Time
process solutions |
 |
is for Kaizen, aka
incremental improvement |
 |
is for the Lean
manufacturing movement |
 |
is for Metrics which
gauge productivity |
 |
is for Non Value Added Activities |
 |
is for Outsourcing,
"can't someone else do it?" |
 |
is for Process, sure
our people stick to it |
 |
is for Quality, which
never comes free |
 |
is for Requirements on
which no one agrees |
 |
is for Six Sigma, 3.4
parts per million |
 |
is for Taguchi's design
of experiments |
 |
is for User-Centered Design |
 |
is for Value that's
tough to define |
 |
is for Workflow
streaming through the lineup |
 |
is for Xenophiles
sourcing parts from China |
 |
is for the Y-Axis of a 4x4
matrix |
 |
is for Zero, the target
for defects |
We share reader reactions to TCP
articles on our website.
Please send any feedback to gregg@roundtable.com
article-two:
On the Web: Ironic Times
Link: http://www.ironictimes.com
The Ironic Times is an Internet newspaper
spoof that turns real, everyday news into sardonic headlines. It's kind of like SNL's
Weekend Update in web format. Is it juvenile? Somewhat. Is it sophomoric? Definitely. But
it's a quick read that'll have you smirk more than once at their weekly jibes at what the
mainstream media deems worthy of more serious news pursuits. Here's a quick sample of
their work, from the business section:
BUSINESS:
- Bayer Sold Riskier Version of Drug Overseas, Safer Version Here -
"Better lawyers" in U.S., explains company spokesperson.
- McDonald's Must Pay $10 Million For Serving Fries Containing Slight
Trace of Beef - Must also pay $50 million for serving hamburgers containing slight trace
of beef.
- Congress: Hearings Look Into Spam on Internet - Senators want to know
if penile, breast enhancement products really work.
* Thanks to Charles Atkinson of QualityWorks Associates for sending
us this link.
Know a website we
should review? Send the url to gregg@roundtable.com
— * —
article-three:
Top Ten Ways to Get Kicked Off Your
Project Team
...from the MRT satellite office in New
York, New York
| 10. |
Cough the word
"bullshi*" whenever someone says what day they'll complete a task |
9. |
Stake out a
hallway and start shaking down the technical writers for lunch money |
8. |
Refer to all
customer meetings as "conjugal visits" |
| 7. |
Insist that
your performance reviews always begin with a sensuous massage |
| 6. |
Include your
doggy bag whenever submitting meal expenses |
| 5. |
Persistently
demand to lead a benchmarking team to Hooters |
| 4. |
Model your
private parts on the stereolithographer |
| 3. |
Whenever you
meet a customer, ask them: "So why do you suckers buy this overpriced crap
anyway?" |
| 2. |
Always greet
visiting female corporate executives with dog woofing and chest bumps |
...and the No. 1 way to get kicked off
your project team |
| 1. |
Start referring
to your boss and his boss as "Uday and Qusay" |
Send
me your Top Ten List suggestions - gregg@roundtable.com
Top Ten List Archive
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click here.
article-four:
MRT NewsBriefs
- Two New Events Featuring Preston Smith and Don
Reinertsen
The co-authors of Developing Products in Half the Time are leading two upcoming new events
for MRT:AUDIOCON - "Accelerating
Product Feedback with Smart Prototypes" will be facilitated by Preston Smith on June 10, 2003 to discuss how rapid
prototyping can be used more effectively to make development efforts faster and more
successful. The low cost for this program $99 per connection, and an unlimited number of
your co-located staff can attend...More
Info
WORKSHOP - "Achieving
Lean Product Development: Techniques, Economics and Implementation" - Don Reinertsen will lead this two-day intensive workshop to
expand upon the concepts outlined in his most recent book, "Managing the Design
Factory," and show how to economically justify and implement "lean" methods
in development and engineering environments...More
Info
- Call for Papers - NPD Project Innovation Conference
A call for papers has been issued for NPD Project Innovation 03 - Leading Successful NPD
Projects & Programs, being held October 20-22 in Chicago. This program is presented by
Management Roundtable (MRT), with support from the Project Management Institute (PMI) NPD
SIG. Deadline for submission is June 15. For more information on the types of
presentations being sought, click
here
— * —
Upcoming MRT Events
  
New Additions:
AUDIO-CONFERENCE
June 10 / Your Office
Accelerating
Product Feedback with Smart Prototypes
WORKSHOP
June 15-16 / San Diego
Achieving Lean Product Development: Techniques, Economics and
Implementation
CONFERENCE
Oct 8-10 / Chicago
Fast
& Flexible Product Development
CONFERENCE
Oct 20-22 / Ft. Worth
NPD
Project Innovation '03 - Call for Papers!
— *
—
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