Research Approach & Methods

RESEARCH APPROACH & METHODS
1.1 Data Collection
Firstly an interview with the management and R&D team is conduced. The interview aim is to
gather detailed information about the current product development process in the company and
the future vision on the product development process. All the internal existing materials and
researches which, are related to product development and product launch, are reviewed.
Secondly, the literature review has been presented. The literature studies are focused in the entire
product launch process with a stage-gate model, which matches the company’s product strategy
and the current developing model. This process starts from the idea generation and end up with
the launch of the product in the market. By creating a visual concept on the product launch
process, it is easier to understand the best practices which companies should use for maximizing
their product launch success.
1.2 Data Analysis
After reviewing the literature from different sources, the author analyses the current situation at a
Company. The existing materials such as; product development plan, marketing plan, sales
materials and other related document are analyzed and compared with the literature suggestions.
The qualitative research conducted with the R&D and Management team are used to better
understand how the company is managing the product launch process, and what is expected to
being developed in the near future. The interviews with the Sales Partners and Assembly
Partners (customers) are analyzed in the final stage, which is the launch of the product into the
market.
contd…
MARKETING IMPLICATIONS & OUTCOMES
2.1 Product Development & Launch Process
During the study of company’s current situation in the product launch process it was found that
the company's main difficulty when launching new products is the introduction of the product
into the market. The result of the analysis also shows that using a structured method organized in
phases practically has been made the previous product developments.
Recommended Development Process
2.2 Reliability & Validity of the Report
During The number of the interviews was decided based on the resources and the allocated time
for writing this thesis. Furthermore, in all meetings with the potential partners and end-users the
author collected the feedback in order to achieve more accurate results. The answers and the
feedback from the interviews in the majority of the cases matched with the suggestions of the
theory. Even the number of the people interview during this research is relatively small; the
gathered data was considerable. The results of the internal research come via two sources; the
management and R&D team interview and the research of all existing material related to product
launch and development process. The Management and R&D team has all the necessary
knowledge to give accurate answers on the actual product development and launch process.
2.3 Further Discussion
The framework presented on this thesis is based on an internationally recognized model which is
applied in both business-to-business and business to consumer markets. This model was chosen
for the fact that it is a process which has been proven to be successful in many different
industries, including pulp and paper industry. The finalized recommended process is unique for
the fact that it can be modified and changed according to the product, customers or strategy of
the company. Another uniqueness of this framework is that the empirical research is not done by
only focusing on the research of the stage gate model.
2.4 Own Professional Development & Learning
Writing this thesis has been a challenging but at the same time, a great learning process. The
topic, which was chosen by the commissioner, was a very wide topic which created difficulties
when studying the theoretical part and trying to include all the important 50 aspects in one
report. However, from the learning prospective this was the best challenge, as the author has
learnt much more about product development and product launching process. Moreover, the
author had the opportunity to study deeper the company's strategy, operations and activity. In
addition to the valuable learnings, this thesis helped the author to improve himself
professionally.

Research Approach & Methods

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Research Approach & Methods

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Research Approach & Methods

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

RESEARCH APPROACH & METHODS

1.1 Data Collection

1.2 Data Analysis

Recommended Development Process

2.2 Reliability & Validity of the Report

2.3 Further Discussion

2.4 Own Professional Development & Learning

You might also like