PRODUCT JUGGERNAUTS

Deschamps and Nayak, vice-presidents of the international consulting firm Arthur D. Little, Inc., argue that a company's success depends on its ability to improve its products or services continuously while simultaneously focusing the entire organization on the process of product creation. Product juggernauts are companies that attain market leadership by creating a continuous stream of world-class products through concentrated efforts on product development procedures. The authors describe seven core competencies, including those covering customer service, product creation, and promotion strategies, that are necessary in order to compete successfully in today's global marketplace. They amply illustrate their discussion with examples from global companies and include a "how-to" checklist with each chapter. A useful, hands-on guide describing methods practiced by many world-class organizations, this will be of interest to both scholars and practitioners.