Improving product introduction through appropriate organization: the development of the SIMPLOFI positioning tool

This paper presents the SIMPLOFI positioning tool. This tool has been devised to assist in the quest for an appropriate product development organization. The positioning tool, given a specific product introduction within a specific environment, will give recommendations for an organization for that product's development. The tool's key feature is that it is contingent; i. e. its proposals depend upon the environment in which it is used. The paper begins by giving an overview of the tool in terms of its need, its target user group and its physical embodiment. The paper then demonstrates the effectiveness of the tool to potential users in two ways: 1. It validates the tool by examining its theoretical provenance. 2. It verifies the tool by testing it in case study environments. Seven case study applications of the SIMPLOFI positioning tool from five companies are presented. The companies in which the tool was tested are The Rover Group, Instron, Morris Mechanical Handling, Markham and Company and Hawker-Siddeley Switchgear. The paper concludes by identifying how far the effectiveness of the tool has been demonstrated and further ways in which the tool can be developed.