In the previous article we saw how Disney and Amazon improved their customer experience. Now let's see what the mckinsey.com website advises us to do when it comes to developing new products.
Collaboration and experimentation
Companies must encourage employees to move beyond the traditional understanding of their working roles. This is typically accomplished by bringing together people to form temporary teams while working on temporary projects. And can you get employees to improve the customer experience by spontaneous cooperation? Using modern technology and virtual environments can stimulate their desire to experiment and innovate. Having motivated employees also helps. They should be empowered and make decisions for the sake of customer satisfaction. However, there still must be a sense of a clear purpose, of something you want to achieve together.
Sometimes you need to get people under one roof
One European financial institution launched a three-month program that did not succeed. The participants were at six different locations and they still reported to their direct superiors. Things got better only after one leader was appointed for the whole initiative and when people came together and met for five days. The meeting was supported by coaches who also facilitated experiential learning. Trust among workers has increased significantly, while many learned new skills as well.
From new product to the never-ending reworking
Many incumbents usually develop a new product once a year or once every six months at best. Often they don’t get bothered by customers and test the new product behind closed doors. Most young companies, by contrast, believe that the product is never really finished. Young companies in Silicon Valley prefer to launch a product that has some basic functions. Then changes are made based on the feedback and the product is relentlessly improved and redone. Speed has priority over perfection. And it makes sense – you never know in advance how your customers will evaluate a new product. Therefore it is better to launch it early, even if it does not have all the features. That enables you to easily rework it and quickly complete new, more desirable features. Collecting feedback regularly and incorporating it is the key to truly successful products.
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