Winning at New Product Development Why do seemingly irresistible products fail? Regardless of the industry, the same root causes are identified time and again:   1.   Poor market research – incorrect understanding of customer needs, market size and competitive forces   2.   Overly optimistic assessments of technical risks, and under estimation of costs and task durations 3.     Lack of alignment between resource plans and development schedules   4.     Bad timing - too late to market or rushing an   incomplete product to market     5.   Poor project management This risk is particularly serious for start-up companies trying to release their first products or build on initial success. For small companies a key source of competitive advantage is their fluidity, their ability to rapidly respond to market opportunities.  It is not practical or desirable for start-up companies to try and replicate the complex NPD structures and processes used by more mature High Tech giants. But even for small companies, success requires a robust NPD process to ensure their products can be effectively developed and released to market.