Create a portfolio of opportunities

Businesses should aim to have a portfolio of projects that should be structured accommodate near, medium and long-term prospects and balances risk & reward against timescales & outlay.

A successful product is one that:-

Fits to your strategy

Meets the market need and satisfies customer expectation

Can be produced and delivered effectively and reliably to your customers

Opens the door to additional or future business opportunities

The best ideas often arise from a synthesis of several ideas where compromise and reality have had a chance to forge things into something achievable. Opportunities should always be evaluated using an objective process - even the golden ones. This starts with disciplined marketing and leads to what are effectively business plans. These should not only evaluate the expected financial return (based on the total cost of getting the new product to market), but also present a clear specification for what is needed and anticipates the issues of getting that new product to market.

Establishing the discipline and, if necessary guidelines and procedures, for doing this will lead to new generations of products focused on business growth.

© Procentricity Ltd 2003