Benchmarking New Product Forecasting

BENCHMARKING NEW PRODUCT FORECASTING By Chaman L. Jain, St. John’s University New products have been and will continue be the main source of business success. In fact, in today’s competitive marketplace, introducing new products on a regular basis is not an option, but a necessity. Without them, your competitors will get an upper hand. Your company may stagnate and even cease as a going concern. When some one asked Michael Dell, CEO of Dell Computer, about his recipe for success, he said, “Taking risk and staying one step ahead of your competitors.” One way to stay ahead of your competitors is to introduce new products continuously and vigorously. DEFINING NEW PRODUCTS There is no set definition of new products. Dr. Kenneth Kahn in his manuscript on “Benchmarking New Product Forecasting Practices” defines product as new when it results from product improvement, line extension, market extension, or when it is new to the company and world. Product improvement is generally the result of some changes, which may be technological, or psychological or both. Fashions and car models fall in this category, where products are continuously modified to stop or slow down ...