New Report Finds Shortcomings in Product Development

A new research effort into the product development process has revealed some compelling trends with information overload. In retrospect, the move to a digitally driven process makes sense but is far from perfect. And companies still fall on a wide spectrum of approaches and efficiencies in their product development processes. Despite an abundance of alternatives, there are still some surprising trends.

A couple key discoveries:

1. The number one method for sourcing information; 62% rely on other employees to help source information. The physicality and duplicity of this method to finding information is shocking given the magnitude of digital sources available.

2. The number two method for sourcing information; 42% provide employees with multiple logins to various IT systems (42 percent). This method is more effective than physically looking for information; however, the drawbacks are many.

3. On par with the second most common method for sourcing information; 42% still rely on paper-based documentation. While this is response is disappointing, it’s understandable given the reliance on accessing historical project files which are limited to paper.

This research report further investigates the different types of information as well as the outcomes impacting the organization from difficult to find information. Ranging from incorrectly ordered parts to high numbers of change orders, it’s clear the move to digitization hasn’t started to reap it’s intended rewards.

Download a complimentary copy of this full report on IHS Markit Engineering Trends, Insights and Innovations. https://ihsmarkit.com/Info/0619/eireviewinfooverload.html