Huge disappointment. Chapter 1, page 1 starts with "Those
companies that succeed at new product dvelopment are the future
Mercks, HPs, 3Ms, and Microsofts; those companies that fail to excel
at developing new products will invariably disappear or be gobbed up
by the winners. .....". Despite this quite promising catch
phrase you will not find a single word on how the above mentioned
companies develope new products.

Things actually get worse. What you
will find in this book are random generated case studies on various
portfolio models the authors encountered in the few firms willing to
meet them - no theoretical framework is given on portfolio management,
criteria to be included and best practices in various industries.

As
a major disappointment I found the fact that not a single case/best
practise study came from the pharmaceutical industry and the software
industry, those industries where portfolio management/selection are at
the very heart of the strategic management process. It would have been
a huge (and logical) opportunity to cover in this book how Merck or
Pfizer steer their new product development processes. But don`t look
for clues to this questions in this book. The case studies you will
find in this book are about a small Canadian bank, a small US chemical
company, and about Hoechst US. The last case study offered at least
some ideas useful for improving the portfolio management process (that
is the main reason for the second star).

Somewhat disturbing are
platidudes widely used throughout the book (e.g. " ....Remember:
understanding the problem is the first step to a solution!
.... (p. 184)). If esclamation marks after platitudes make you
nervous, then you will probably throw this book away before reaching
page 100.

The only bright side of this book are the first 20 pages,
where the authors discribe present shortfalls of the portfolio
management process currently used in some firms (i.e. in the firms
they interview, and these firms are underperformers). It helps to get
an idea of what effective portfolio management should do - and these
points are very agreeable indeed (e.g. value creation, balance,
strategic fit). That these questions are inadequeately and only
empirically adressed in this book, is a source of frustration for its
readers. I would give only a very very weak recommendation for this
book....

databaseU

In this text, the authors thoroughly review the methods currently being practiced in companies to make decisions about their investments in new products and technologies, and the success of these various methods. They recognize the difficulties of making such decisions, especially by relying on simple processes without understanding shorfalls of the process and the robustness of the data. They focus on the goals of maximizing value, achieving a balanced portfolio and linking the decisions to business strategy. They tie this process into other key processes in the company, including the product development process and the new product strategy. By far the most valuable aspect of the book, however, is the link between process and real operation provided by the "Points for Management to Ponder" commentary which runs throughout the book. This is a current, encyclopedic and practical guide to this very difficult business process.

The resources invested in producing and supporting new products in markets provide, on average, a poor return on investment (see the research of Cooper and others on this topic). Managing across a portfolio of products adds a degree of complexity to the task of being successful with each individual product. This book provides the essential information for management to understand the fundamentals of a rational, process based approach to managing new products.

REVIEW: (Rev of 2nd edition) It is now widely accepted that innovation is a core competence that is required by nearly all organizations. As a result, many companies have been very successful at generating new innovations. However, generating innovations is just the first step and an excess of innovations in many companies has created a need for good management processes to deal with them. These are the issues addressed by this book and there may be no other place where these issues are addressed as thoroughly and well as here. The author provides a thorough review and analysis of each step of the development process from idea to commercial launch. While the book can be slow reading at times, I firmly believe the author's method of separating the process into stages and providing screening mechanisms between the stage are excellent advice. Following these methods should lead to: (1) accelerated product development, (2) increased success rate of new products, and (3) a more effective and efficient new products development process. Accordingly, the book should be especially useful to those managers responsible for portfolios of new products. If this is you, this book is highly recommended.

STRENGTHS: The book provides a very thorough review and analysis of the new product development process from innovation through to launch. The author has done a very thorough review of the research in this field and the book does an excellent job of citing other material. The book also contains an appropriate use of graphics for illustrating some points.

WEAKNESSES: While the book doesn't focus on any particular industry, its teachings are probably most applicable to more traditional product companies (e.g. P&G, DuPont). Also, (and this maybe an unfair comment for a book targeted at products) the book probably isn't that helpful for innovations in services which may be even more important in modern companies than product innovation (e.g. GE and IBM are currently pushing services). Another concern, the book is fairly "textbook like" and only those seriously interested in the subject may find it easy/enjoyable to read. Some passages seem to drag on and I often wished the author would have been more concise and not tried to so thoroughly justify every point.

WHO SHOULD READ THIS BOOK: Product development managers, new business managers, and others responsible for bringing innovations to market should read this book. Those responsible for _portfolios_ of new products/innovations may especially find this book useful.

ALSO CONSIDER: Jeffrey A Timmons - New Venture Creation; Guy Kawasaki - Rules for Revolutionaries; Peter F. Drucker - Innovation & Entrepreneurship

Cooper does a great job presenting the value of his "stage gate" system for developing and launching new products while minimizing risk of failure. A bit academic, but useful advice for all product managers in any industry.

Bob Cooper provides a clear roadmap for new product success. Figuring out the smartest, most consistent way to create winning products can be the key to long term success. Yet setting up systems and process to help employees achieve these results without burdening them with unecessary bureaucracy is a challenging task. Using a solid research base and the experiences of dozens of corporations, Bob Cooper lays out a clear yet flexible blueprint for managing new product development. Its all here for those who are interested. I have read many books on this subject but this is the one I use and refer too all the time. An excellent resource.

Cooper's previous books have covered different aspects of the demanding task of managing the development and introduction of new industrial products. We heard he was preparing a slim volume suitable for high level general managers, and this is it. Cooper's writing ability guarantees an absorbing read, and his vast amount of practical experience in companies guarantees that you learn how to make the advice really work. My only criticism is that this book needs to be slimmer still for a generalist audience, though it does have key-point boxes running through.

Robert G. Cooper capitalizes on his long hands-on experience to analyze the key elements that make the product development process across industries successful. The key strength of Cooper's book lies in the systematic approach that he adopts in identifying the dos and don'ts of the product development process. Cooper helps readers understand the usage and limitations of that process. Unlike Clayton M. Christensen in The Innovator's Dilemma, Cooper unfortunately does not make a very clear distinction between sustaining and disruptive technologies and their impact on the product development process in his otherwise excellent book.

The value of this book lies in two major aspects. Cooper is a world expert at the product development process, and focuses on the elements needed to make that process successful (rather than just explicating the steps). He does this by pointing our the critical sucess factors. Six of these focus on the process elements that are necessary, and seven more focus on critical elements for execution. However, just as important, Cooper makes use of his vast background in consulting and his knowledge of the workings of many companies, and fills the book with commentary on the usage and limitations of the process, using examples from real companies, and "Key Points for Management. He is one of the few consultants who has developed a process who also teaches the reader how to make it valuable to his own needs.