Product Lifecycle Management
The 21st Century Product Paradigm

The new paradigm of PLM results in many changes for each of the components of the PLM Grid.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The date and order in which companies carry out these changes differs from one company to another. Some companies started making these changes soon after PLM emerged in 2001. Often, they found that they could build on experience gained with similar changes in other areas of the company.

 

#1. With the PLM Paradigm, the activities of managing a company's products must be organised, defined and documented in cross-functional business processes across the product lifecycle. The processes fit into the company's Business Process Architecture. The change to business processes is one of those for which some companies already had experience. Often they had started Business Process Re-engineering in other areas of the company in the 1990s.

 

#2. With the PLM Paradigm, a cross-functional product data management (PDM) system manages product data across the product lifecycle.

 

#3. With the PLM Paradigm, product data (the data that defines a company's products) is a company asset. Content, format and structure are detailed and documented in a product data model. Product data is seen as a form of Intellectual Property. It's a valuable strategic resource. The product data model fits into the Enterprise data model.

 

#4. With the PLM Paradigm, the software applications used to support product-related activities across the lifecycle fit into an overall company IS Architecture.

 

#5. With the PLM Paradigm, the various methods (such as Design For Assembly) used to support product-related activities across the lifecycle fit into the overall company Business Process and IS Architectures.

 

#6. With the PLM Paradigm, Key Performance Indicators are business-oriented. Time to Market is an example. Another example is “% revenues from products less than 5 years old”.

 

#7. With the PLM Paradigm, product architecture, the portfolio of products, platform products, product families, and the relationship of a product to other products are all-important.

 

#8. With the PLM Paradigm, people work in Product Family Teams, and are focused on the success of the products of their family.

 

#9. With the PLM Paradigm, companies use the best people across the lifecycle, independent of their gender, race and religion.

 

#10. With the PLM Paradigm, Global Products give billions of people the possibility to benefit from products to which they previously had no access. Global Products are manufactured products that can be purchased and used worldwide, and are maintained and supported worldwide. Often they're developed and engineered in many locations, and assembled from materials and parts manufactured in many locations.

 

#11. With the PLM Paradigm, Organisation and Management are business-oriented, formally-defined, lifecycle, holistic, digital, joined-up, and product-focused. Under the previous paradigm, people thought departmentally about the company. A Marketing VP, an Engineering VP and a Manufacturing VP would report to the CEO. Managers of product lines would report in through a matrix. With PLM, a Chief Product Officer (CPO) has the responsibility for all the products across the lifecycle. The CPO reports to the CEO. So do the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) and the Chief Information Officer (CIO). Product Managers report to the CPO.