.....contd.

    The PD process is, however, ineluctably subordinate to the firm's PD priorities. If a product is intended to achieve a breakthrough for the company by using new technologies aimed at new markets then an entirely new business model may have to be developed along with the product if it is to be imbued with the necessary integrity and achieve the performance and market goals set. Similar issues arise though to lesser degrees even if the product envisaged is a platform architecture or quick and inexpensive derivatives based on it. Shaping PD priorities is a top management preserve.

    Product development is the key to corporate vitality and economic development. It should be at the expense of economic efficiency. The latter, in fact, has to pay for investment in PD. But PD cannot be neglected any longer. It has to make its way to the top of the corporate agenda. In the end, while PD may seem to be all too risky an activity, it may actually be far riskier for firms in the global economy to escape from it.