The business world has opportunities for meeting the needs of unsatisfied clients through innovating products and facilities. The NPD process is used to fill this gap in the industry. The NPD procedure focuses on formal plans or thoughts from the first phase of opinions to the launch of products in the market. The purpose of implementing the NPD procedure in a company is to improve the competency and effectiveness. The process is commonly used by companies to increase their competitive advantage over the substitute firms. The process is incorporated in the organization’s setups that offer quality, productivity, and frequency. A company needs a well-designed product development process to make sure the items meet the required standards. The NPD mechanisms are used to reduce risks that occur when improving the quality of the products (McNally, Akdeniz & Calantone, 2011) .
Stage-Gate Process
The process is used to develop and manage new and existing products in the organization. The stage-gate process consists of steps from the conception of the idea to the launch of the products in the industry. The process outlines the requirements that should be met for the items to be launched in the market. The stage-gate procedure is also used in projects to make sure it is completed in time, and the goals have been met. An ordinary stage-gate process is used to enhance the improvements of products in a company. The procedure comprises of three phases including idea, discovery, and post-launch stages. The first phase deals with formulating the plan that will be implemented in developing the products. The discovery phase focuses on the analyzing the ideas and their relevance to improving the outcomes. In this stage, the companies test the products in the market to identify their defects. The firms eliminate the weaknesses found in the items to satisfy the needs of their clients. The post-launch stage involves launching the product in the market after corrections have been made ( Cooper, 2008) . A typical stage-gate system has five phases of improving and managing the items. The stages include investigating, formulating a business model, developing the issues, examining and verifying as well as launching (Sommer et al., 2015) .
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Advantages of the Stage-Gate Process
Firstly, the process is flexible and can be easily adapted by any organization. The stage-gate process can be used to launch new items in the industry. It consists of steps that are helpful in making sure the products are successfully launched in the market. The company will have an easier time of establishing its facilities in their area of operation. The process is used by companies to develop efficiency along with effectiveness. The firms gain a competitive advantage over its competitors as a result of incorporating the stage-gate process in their activities. Another advantage of the stage-gate process is that it utilizes proper decision-making tools such as scorecards, managing portfolios, success methods, self-management gates, electronic as well as virtual gates. Finally, the stage-gate system can be used to invent new items in an organization ( Cooper, 2008) .
Disadvantages of the Stage-Gate Process
The first disadvantage of the process is that governance challenges can arise when it is incorporated in the organization. The stage-gate has mechanisms that are bureaucratic which becomes a barrier to its successful implementation in the company. The other disadvantage is that the costs might not be adequately applied when developing the products. The cost reduction measures that are affected include the Six Sigma along with Lean Manufacturing process ( Cooper, 2008) .
Booz, Allen, and Hamilton Process
The process is used to reduce risks associated with the development of products in the company. The BAH model has seven phases that are effective in eliminating the threats. They include new product improvement mechanism, formulating ideas, analyzing and examining, examining the business, developing, measuring, and commercializing. The first stage deals with developing new strategies that will be implemented in the company. The firm will create new ideas that will be used as solutions to the challenges that occurred during the product improvement process. Thirdly, the organization will analyze and examine the plans for them to come up with the appropriate decision. In the fourth phase, the company will focus on identifying the necessary choices that will eliminate the challenges. The firm incorporates the plans in the product improvement activities to reduce the barriers for successful launching. Further, the company tests the effectiveness of the product in the market. The organization corrects the defects that are found in the products to suit the specifications of the customers. Finally, the products are introduced in the market after they have been improved (Bhuiyan, 2011) .
Advantages of the BAH Model
The process is effective in reducing the barriers to product improvement. The products are successfully launched in the market after incorporating the BAH model in their operations. The company will not incur losses associated with the development of their items. The firms become efficient as a result of adopting the BAH process. The mechanism is useful in increasing an organization’s competitiveness in the market (Bhuiyan, 2011) .
Disadvantages of the BAH Process
The first drawback of the model is that some companies have challenges in implementing because it comprises of many stages which consume time and has high costs. Only prominent organizations incorporate it into their activities due to their high margins. People would prefer the stage-gate model over the process because it focuses on eliminating risks of developing products. The model can only be used as a supplement to other procedures (Bhuiyan, 2011) .
Evaluation of the Pros and Cons of Stage-Gate and BAH Processes
| Pros and Cons of the Stage-Gate Model | Effectiveness in the Product Development Process | The possibility of Minimizing the Risks |
| Flexible and easily adopted | Effective | - |
| Contributes to successful product launch | Effective | - |
| Uses good decision-making tools | Effective | - |
| The company gains a competitive edge | Effective | - |
| Governance challenges | - | Can be eliminated |
| Bureaucratic | - | Can be eliminated |
| High costs | - | Takes time to eliminate |
| Pros and Cons of the BAH Model | Effectiveness in the Product Development Process | The possibility of Minimizing the Risks |
| Eliminates risks | Effective | - |
| Contributes to successful product launch | Effective | - |
| Increases product competitiveness | Effective | - |
| Facilitates innovation of items | Effective | - |
| Inflexible | - | Cannot be eliminated |
| Time-consuming | - | Takes time to eliminate |
| High costs | - | Takes time to eliminate |
Recommended Process
The appropriate mechanism that can be applied in developing the products of the company is the stage-gate process. The disadvantages of the stage-gate model can be eliminated, but those of the BAH process will take time to be changed. The company can incorporate good governance approaches such as “gates” that are protective. The organization should select the people responsible for implementing the model and set rules that will prevent governance issues. The second drawback of bureaucracy can be eliminated through formulating “lean gates” to establish proper regulation of adopting the process (Kahn et al., 2012) . Although the process incurs high costs of reduction standards, they can be decreased after some time. The disadvantages of the Bah model can be eliminated, but the process will still consume time. The stage-model is appropriate for big and small organizations, but the BAH process is suitable for large corporations.
The Rationale for the Stage-Gate Process
The primary purpose of the stage-gate process is to manage and handle products in the company. The method applies to develop existing products to increase customer satisfaction and retain the market position of a company. The stage-gate process is utilized in innovating new products and facilities. It also improves the efficiency and effectiveness of operations in the organization. A company gains a competitive edge over its competitors after adopting the stage-gate process. The process is used in other projects of a company besides the improvement of products (Sommer et al., 2015) .
In conclusion, product development is essential in retaining and attracting new customers in the company. The NPD models are useful in increasing the efficiency of products and enhancing innovation in the organization. The appropriate model that is applicable in most firms is the stage-gate process. It is flexible, adaptable, improve product quality and facilitates the invention of new items. The drawbacks of the method can be eliminated to achieve the successful launch of the goods. The BAH model is limited to big companies and consumes time along with money.
References
Bhuiyan, N. (2011). A framework for successful new product development. Journal of Industrial Engineering and management , 4 (4), 746-770.
Cooper, R. G. (2008). Perspective: The stage ‐ gate® idea ‐ to ‐ launch process—update, what's new, and next-generation systems. Journal of product innovation management , 25 (3), 213-232.
Kahn, K. B., Barczak, G., Nicholas, J., Ledwith, A., & Perks, H. (2012). An examination of new product development best practice. Journal of product innovation management , 29 (2), 180-192.
McNally, R. C., Akdeniz, M. B., & Calantone, R. J. (2011). New product development processes and new product profitability: Exploring the mediating role of speed to market and product quality. Journal of Product Innovation Management , 28 (s1), 63-77.
Sommer, A. F., Hedegaard, C., Dukovska-Popovska, I., & Steger-Jensen, K. (2015). Improved product development performance through Agile/Stage-Gate hybrids: The next-generation Stage-Gate process?. Research-Technology Management , 58 (1), 34-45.
