One limitation to T2M as a success factor is undoubtedly a consequence of the fact that it is restricted to a temporal consideration, that of “time-before-sales”. This in turn means that T2M has a strictly internal orientation and is related primarily to efficiency. The question as to whether a product which has been developed and launched quickly actually satisfies complex market and customer requirements, effectively assuring market success, is ignored completely in this time-based observation dimension.

Overtaking the market by means of an overly hasty and premature launch of a product cannot be the goal. So the simple answer to the question about the right timing for a planned product launch is this: as quickly as possible, but also as slowly (in the sense of carefully) as necessary. There is always a certain fundamental risk, especially in dynamic and highly competitive industries with complex product structures, that products will turn out to be “over-engineered” after being launched and will not be accepted by the market. The prospects for long-term business success can be secured only if the right product is offered to the market at the right point in time.

If the ideal degree of coverage of market or customer requirements for the product design is to be achieved, a second high-level goal dimension, the fit-to-market (F2M), must also be considered along with the T2M. The aim of this type of dual goal orientation is the identification of an ideal balance between “fast” and “right”.

Increasing the success rate by introducing speed zones  

One good way to assure that T2M and F2M enjoy equality is to create a fundamental differentiation of the product development process in Adagio zones (Italian for slowly and cautiously) and Presto zones (Italian for fast). We can basically say that the Adagio zone is related to the innovation management and the product concept at the beginning of the PLM process while the realization and implementation of the product takes place in the Presto zone.

The most important commandment within the Adagio zone is to exercise due care. The primary objective in this phase is to determine customer requirements comprehensively and correctly. This is the foundation for all of the subsequent activities on which the product development in all of its many facets will build. Orientation to F2M at the earliest possible point in the PLM process inevitably leads to investment protection. Personnel and financial development resources are kept strictly in line with customer value and not wasted on planned products which have a poor chance on the market from the very start. The turbocharger to accelerate to the speed of a rapid T2M should not be turned on until customer requirements have been completely cataloged and verified – equally applicable to radical and incremental innovations. Stepping up the pace in the Presto zone and designing, implementing, and launching the product as quickly as possible should not happen until customer benefits have been clarified and the construction plan for the product is finished.