Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/59185
I Driving nnovation N In this high-pressure business simulation, students learn new product development by competing against other teams to design and market a self-parking model car. by Keith Goffin and Rick Mitchell ew MBAs often join the workforce to find themselves managing some form of new product development. Not only do they need a theoretical understanding of the issues involved, they need specific skills in making design deci- sions, achieving effective cross-functional teamwork, and meeting tough deadlines. On the job, it might be months or even years before a manager finishes a complete project cycle and gains useful expe- rience in new product development (NPD). How can some of that learn- ing be distilled—and accelerated—in the classroom? At Cranfield University in England, we have developed a business sim- ulation technique that allows students to experience the new product development cycle over the course of a day. The Cranfield CityCar sim- ulation was designed three years ago, based on research we did to dis- cover what R&D managers explicitly and implicitly believe they have learned from their own NPD projects. During the first half of the simulation, students develop their product and bring it to market. In the second half, participants analyze and dis- cuss their results, then hear short presentations on the theories and prac- tices of new product development. The Cranfield CityCar project essen- tially offers on-the-job training in a controlled atmosphere and com- pressed timeframe, and it works equally well for MBA students and busi- ness executives. Teams Under Pressure In the CityCar simulation, five or more teams of six people each approach the problem of launching a new product—a car made of Lego pieces and controlled by complex software. Each team assumes it is a startup financed by venture capital, which means it has limited financial resources. Within a tight timeframe, the team members must perform research and development to identify customer needs, design the car, program it, test it, and market it. They also must prepare a manufactur- ing strategy and a sales plan. And they must do all this in just three hours. At the beginning of the simulation, each member of each team is assigned one of six roles. These roles cover the functional disciplines: mar- keting, R&D for hardware, R&D for software, manufacturing, finance, and general management. A two-page briefing sheet helps each team member understand his or her role. For example, the marketing person is 42 BizEd JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2006