The phase-gate process governs new product development as well as smaller project extensions and simple changes. It consists of a series of phases with gates that determine whether the project is ready to move forward. Each phase contains its own scope, objectives, and activities that lead to deliverables as well as staffing resources and functional responsibilities. Each gate contains the criteria and results that must be met for the project to move to the next phase. Clearing the gate is the entry point to the next phase.
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You should set the number and placement of gates at the beginning of the product&#;s lifecycle. These gates mark the points in new product development when management and the project team assess the project&#;s status and risk against internal and external criteria. The timing of the gates is based on the size, complexity, and progress of the product. The steps in the phase-gate process are as follows:
Phase 0 in the Phase-Gate Process: Ideation or Discovery
This kickoff phase gathers together a team to decide what products and projects your company might want to take on and whether you have the capacity to pursue them. Ideas typically start with identifying a market need and then determining if you can offer a potential solution. Here are a number of ways that you can generate ideas:
- Brainstorming and mind mapping
- Empathic design or research regarding the user&#;s experience in order to understand their underlying needs
- Communication with customers and user feedback
The group conducts some preliminary analysis to explore opportunities and propose ideas. The gate for this phase is receiving approval from decision makers that the idea is worth the effort.
Phase 1 in the Phase-Gate Process: Scoping or Concept Development
In this phase, gather available data and conduct initial research about the idea. Perform a SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats) analysis to help you narrow down the pool of projects and quantify the opportunities for your product. You want to know the following:
- Strengths: How does your product add value for consumers? What resources will help you develop the product? What are the technical benefits?
- Weaknesses: What are the limits of your resources to invest in the product? What capacity would you need to add? What other factors would limit development?
- Opportunities: How does the product address current customers&#; needs and market trends? What will it offer potential customers?
- Threats: What do competitors offer? What economic conditions could limit your product&#;s development?
This basic SWOT matrix template can help you conduct your SWOT analysis. The template provides the basic 2x2 layout for an easy-to-read view of your analysis. It also includes a column for measuring the significance of each item in your SWOT categories.
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In this phase, use information that&#;s readily available (and, therefore, inexpensive) to evaluate your product&#;s potential and assess threats to its success. The gate in this phase is management approval to move forward. But remember: The greater the threat, the greater the chance that the gate will close and you&#;ll have to go back to explore other ideas.
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Phase 2 in the Phase-Gate Process: Building the Business Case and Plan
This is the last step of concept development. This phase focuses on conducting in-depth research, analyzing the product&#;s market and technical feasibility, and creating a detailed design and project plan. Elements of this phase include the following:
- Product Definition and Analysis: This information needs to justify the development of a new product. What are the user needs and wants? What is the value to the customer? What benefits and features should the product offer? What is the market size and the rate of growth? Is the product technically feasible? What processes, resources, and operations do you need to produce the product? What is the cost analysis for those processes, resources, and operations? With the market and technical analyses in hand, identify how you will develop prototypes and gather feedback. The product definition needs to include the business, risk, and financial analyses of the new product.
- Business Case: Build a document that includes the rationale or justification for developing the product. Use the business and financial analyses to explain why the project will be successful. Include any legal, health, and safety requirements.
- Project Plan: List the tasks, milestones, resources, and timeline in a project plan (you should include the expected launch date). Using a Gantt chart for this step can help you with the schedule, resource allocation, and timeline.
- Feasibility Review: Have various departments weigh in to review the rationale for the product and assess the plan&#;s chances of succeeding.
At the end of this phase, review the business case, justification, and plan. If the product has sufficient potential, the gate opens to the next phase and the organization starts product development.
Phase 3 in the Phase-Gate Process: Product Development
It&#;s time to execute the design plans and start the pilot production that turns your concept into reality. Cross-functional teamwork allows you to start manufacturing the product. During this phase, you should do the following activities:
- Develop marketing plans.
- Regularly review and update the timeline.
- Develop large-scale production plans.
- Gather customer feedback and conduct user testing.
- Govern development by SMART goals (specific, measurable, actionable, realistic, and time-bound). Here&#;s a user-friendly SMART goals template to get you started. It includes space for initial goals and SMART goals and will help you to determine if what you want to achieve is realistic and if so, to set a deadline.
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The deliverable at the end of this phase is a working prototype that has been alpha or lab-tested. Based on these tests, the gate will stay closed if the product has not been sufficiently developed.
Phase 4 in the Phase-Gate Process: Testing and Validation
Tests at this phase validate or fine-tune the product and manufacturing or service process. Look for any problems or issues concerning the product, customer acceptance, and financial assumptions. Consider these three types of testing:
- Near Testing: Ask people who are familiar with and knowledgeable about the product to find bugs or issues.
- Field Testing or Beta Testing: Gather feedback from customers, partners, or internal staff who are not familiar with the product in order to find out how interested they are in your product, how they use the product, and how durable it is. Use this feedback to make any improvements and shape your sales and marketing efforts.
- Market Testing: How well does your product meet customers&#; needs? Get an early forecast of expected sales, and adjust your marketing plan as needed.
At the end of this phase, the product is no longer a prototype. In its final form, it has most of the features and functionality it will have when you actually sell it. The gate review approves the product and the sales and marketing plan.
Phase 5 in the Phase-Gate Process: Product Launch and Marketing
The product goes into production, full operation, and the marketplace. Establish the product price, starting product volume, distribution channels, and policies for production, inventory, and customer support. The launch also includes implementing your marketing strategy to generate customer demand, anticipate market needs, and establish sales staff training.
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- Post-Launch Review: Phase gate typically ends with a post-launch review. Look at the numbers to see if you reached the revenue you expected, sold the number of products you expected, and reached the number of customers you expected. Gather user stories to see whether customers encountered issues or bugs that your planning and testing didn&#;t find, and evaluate customer satisfaction. Above all, ask what you learned from the project and what you can improve next time. This process enables your organization to engage in continuous learning, provide process improvement, and ensure accountability.
- How Many Phases Do You Need? The traditional phase-gate process, typically used in new product development, has five phases with four gates. Ideation and post-launch review are informal phases at the beginning and end of any process. With moderate-risk projects (such as product enhancements or extensions), you can use a three-phase version that combines scoping with the business case phase and development with the testing phase. Simple changes, such as handling a marketing request, use two phases (development and testing are combined with the launch phase).