Smart Development News 3/2023
Dear Subscriber,
The skilled labour shortage in Germany does not stop at any industry and thus also at any company. In our first article, we highlight the negative consequences for product development and would like to show you three levers that you can use to deal with these challenges: Consideration in the corporate strategy, long-term personnel planning and structured project portfolio management.
Our second article is about efficient and effective cooperation in your organisation, especially of the departments or people involved in an interdisciplinary product development. Classic organisational charts and job descriptions provide orientation for employees. But only with clear role descriptions do you create clarity about self-image, responsibility, authority and goals.
In our practical example in this newsletter, we give you an insight into concrete consulting projects. This article deals with the question of how best to structure the product backlog for a mechatronic product. We show you how you can use elements of a very classic requirements management method, Quality Function Deployment (QFD), in combination with SCRUM.
Finally, we would like to introduce you to our new employees and with them new competences at CO Improve: With Hans-Peter Neu, we have an experienced senior consultant on board with many years of experience in product development in the automotive industry in combination with a particular expertise in platform and module strategies in conjunction with complexity management.
Our consultant Deborah Brattig focused on agile working methods at the beginning of her career and has already gained experience with agile transformation of companies. She has mastered methods such as Scrum and Kanban as well as OKR. Deborah enriches our team as an Agile Coach, especially for the agile development of mechatronic products involving mechanics, electronics and software.
With these impulses, we wish you a relaxing weekend. As always, we look forward to stimulating discussions on these or other topics for successful product development.
With best regards
Yours, Dirk Meißner
Consequences of the shortage of skilled workers on project work
The causes of the shortage of skilled workers are manifold, but all in all it affects all companies in all sectors. To ensure that your project work continues to function smoothly in the future, we have identified the right levers for you.
Why role definitions have priority in the company
Why is role definition so important in an organisation? This describes the self-image, responsibilities and authority associated with a particular position or role in the organisation. This definition ensures that your employees always know what is expected of them and how they can contribute to achieving the organisation's goals.
SCRUM supported by QFD
When developing new products, SCRUM - supported by Quality Function Deployment - can help you to understand customer requirements and incorporate them into the design and development of the product. In particular, this method can help you with structuring and prioritisation. We have an illustrative practical example for you!
CO Improve continues to grow and brings more expertise on board
Our CO Improve team continues to grow. We are pleased to have Hans-Peter Neu and Deborah Brattig as new consultants in our midst. With both of them, we are strengthening our holistic competence for product development, especially in the areas of platform and module strategy and agile transformation.