LEAN BRANDS

Lean Brands, Catch Customers, Drive Growth & Stand Out In All Markets, by Luis Pedroza, Career Press, 2020

Pedroza emphasizes the importance of being fast on your feet but also thinking globally from the start because brands need a big base, room to grow.  But what is especially meaningful to manufacturing types is how the author links what we do in manufacturing with new product development,  branding and marketing success - how about that for making new connections! 

*  Global brand builders can increase agility and speed to market by using a lean development process that includes rapid prototyping, co-creating and ninja-style testing.

*  Improve the quality of your innovation by "getting out of the building" and engaging in co-creation to build rapid prototypes and test your hypotheses with real end-users in real-life situations.

The Lean Brand Canvas is how we get there.  Check out Step Three: Co-Creation, page 60, for more specifics about this method designed to take even more time out of the new product to production to consumer cycle.  Are we talking about production in parallel with sales, or design on the spot?  Not exactly, but assuming we have some influence all through the process,  we are getting close.  In fact, the concept of co-creation is an exciting idea that deserves its own complete book.  The author cites 4 products whose co-creation process "have the potential to step-change DHL's growth trajectory-"

    *  Smart glasses.  Augmented reality technology for DHL workers that improves inventory and warehouse picking efficiency by 25%

    *  Maintenance on Demand (MoDe).  Sensors automatically relay delivery vehicle and component performance to identify when and where truck maintenance will be required.

    *  Parcelcopter:  A drone delivery service to deliver parcels to remote areas and help businesses become more efficient and responsive.

    *  Robotics applications:  Robots ranging from self-driving trolleys to robots that support pickers and copacking.

Note the author's commentary on the stage-gate approach to product development.  He is concerned that consumer validation doesn't typically happen until then the end, too late for major changes.  His second criticism of stage-gate is that it takes too long, "designed like a relay race," sometimes extending into years of development time, too late to market.