Time for Some PLM Spring Cleaning

I finally think spring is here! I could be hallucinating, but I don't think so. I am starting to see flowers, and blossoms, and people on the driving range, so spring must be here. Just thinking about spring makes me feel happy and all warm inside! If you're like me, it's time for some spring cleaning as well. If you need some tips to help with your spring cleaning, you can look here. If you need some tips to help with your PLM spring cleaning, keep reading:

Communication

First, take a look at how your Engineers communicate among themselves and with others: Do they use email only? Do they yell over the cubicle walls? Can they chat easily with others, especially with remote users? Is there a way for people to share information easily? Maybe it's time to look at better ways of communicating in your company. There are many tools today that allow information to be shared just as you would with social media. Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, and Youtube are all ways that people share information when not at work. There should be some similar kinds of internal tools that allow people to communicate better. Putting in place a more robust framework for communication will have all kinds of positive benefits.

Finding Information

Next, think about how people search for information in your company: Can people go to one place and find everything they need to do their job? Is your company filled with multiple disconnected databases that require multiple searches from various systems to actually find information? Are there still people inputting manual data into your systems? Do you still rely on MS Excel spreadsheets for important product information? Do people still have important information stored on their personal laptops or other devices?

All of these challenges can be reduced with a strong integration plan. Manual data entry should be the first activity to vanish. Manually entering information will lead to mistakes and impact product development. There should also be some very serious rules about keeping important information on personal disk drives; this should never be allowed. Getting rid of Excel spreadsheets should also be a top goal of any business. Working on these areas will provide a much more efficient environment for information sharing and tracking.

Managing Change

Finally, you should look at how people manage change in your organization: Do your engineers kick off a custom ad-hoc workflow whenever there is a change? Do they keep all changes until the very end, and then release them in a lethal flow of paperwork? Do you have too many change processes? Can you track your change processes easily (and, by that I don't mean on a spreadsheet)? Can you see at any time how a change will effect your product requirements? All of these challenges may be sucking the efficiency out of your business.

Implementing good configuration management processes in your company can have a powerful affect on everything you do. Don't try to do everything at once, but take one step at a time and you will soon see some powerful benefits. Keeping an eye on change processes will allow more changes to be processed more quickly, and will ultimately lead to better, more innovative products, with higher quality, that get to market faster with greater customer satisfaction; and who doesn't want that?

So, keep working on that spring cleaning, and in no time at all you will have your house in order.

What do you think?

Cheer,

Jim

The Basics of Configuration Management - Part II

In part 1 we talked about some of the basic steps you should take to make sure Configuration Management (CM) is working well in your company. Following strict rules around CM provides the foundation for product innovation. In this post I want to cover a few of the rules you should follow to make sure CM is helping support your business properly.

Change Processes

The first set of rules you should evaluate covers how changes are initiated, tracked, and completed. There should be as few options here as possible. Do not provide the ability for anyone to use any type of ad hoc process they choose. Two or three options is all you really need: Simple and Low Risk (75%-80%), Complex and Medium Risk (15%-20%), Complex and High Risk (0%-5%); that's about it. Audit change processes, and make sure no one is going around them for a "unique" change. There should be accountability and penalties for those who do not follow the prescribed change processes. Your system should be set up so that NO WORK CAN BE DONE unless they have come through an approved change process.

Working on change practices can have a very significant impact on your projects. Those who have excellent change management practices are much more likely to achieve or exceed project objectives. This usually leads to happier customers, and more revenue for you.

(Procsi, 2009 Best Practices in Change Management Benchmark Report)

Requirements

The most basic approach to CM is to make sure the final product matches the original requirements. There must be a way to capture these requirements, and checks to measure conformance at each stage of product development. Many companies have some requirements that initiate a product, but as the process progresses there is no linkage back to these requirements. At the end of product development a working product may be produced, but if it matches the original requirements is anyone's guess. Implement a strong PDM system that can track requirements and provide a global view of as-planned vs. as-released states. Hold people accountable for decisions they make that are not in line with these original requirements.

Baselines

Create baselines to "freeze" the product at certain points in the development process. Baselines are very important since they allow us to go back to a valid design at any time. We can analyze these baselines, share them with partners and suppliers, evaluate with marketing and sales, and use these for product reuse to start a new valid project. Most companies do not have a good way to create a valid baseline. Have you ever sent something to a supplier, and then wondered what version you actually sent them? Baselines eliminate all these problems, and allow a smooth error-free design process.

Making CM an important part of your business will provide many benefits. It doesn't happen overnight, so keep working on it. Once you make this part of how everyone works, it will become second nature. I will provide a few more insights in part III.

What do you think?

-Jim

The Basics of Configuration Management - Part I

Configuration Management (CM) is like a seat belt: it might be uncomfortable, unfashionable, and painful, but without it, you just might be dead. When I say CM what am I talking about? Well, here's the short definition that I like to use:

Configuration Management is a set of inter-related processes meant to enable people to work together better. 

The Basics

There are many aspects to this discipline and very few companies will likely apply all of them. However, I want to mention 4 areas where you can start to use CM to support innovation and collaboration today.

1) Initiate basic rules in your company that support CM - Many companies think too many rules will stifle creativity; nothing could be further from the truth. As I mentioned in my previous article, The Tortoise and the Hare: a PLM Story, there is no way to support collaboration and innovation if you do not have very strict, formal rules that are followed by everyone; that leads me to point #2:

2) Make sure people actually follow your rules - It doesn't make much sense to spend time formalizing rules and procedures, only to allow people to do whatever the heck they want. Make sure you audit your processes and make sure people are following CM rules, whatever they are. If people know your rules are only weak suggestions, they will not follow them.

3) Automate as much of the CM process as possible. If you expect people to enter information or update details manually, it won't happen. With good tools in place you can automate much of your work without depending on the potentially limited brains of your workers. But, remember, process leads, tools follow; when tools lead, fools follow. Create your business processes first, then use tools for support.

4) And, finally, don't try to do everything at once. Remember, incremental improvement is better than delayed perfection. Start in one area, like Engineering Change Management, and walk the walk. Once you have processes and tools to support you in one area, you can grow into other areas. Your users will get use to following CM processes, and additional changes will seem less gruesome.

Good luck with all your efforts at Configuration Management; more on this later.

What do you think?

- Jim

2013: The Year of PLM!

As we slide towards the end of the year (and the end of the world, if you believe the Mayan Calendar), it makes sense to evaluate our PLM activities in 2012. Did you move forward with your PLM initiatives? Did you improve some aspect of your design and manufacturing lifecycles? Or, did you just run around fighting fires, trying to keep your head above water? Now is the time to analyze your efforts, and plan for a highly successful 2013.

I recently read a very interesting blog post: Our Brain Blocks PLM Acceptance, by Josh Voskuil. He raises some interesting points. As I think about PLM, I wonder how many executives really understand the strategic nature of a PLM investment. Most people understand that ERP and IT investments are strategic, but what about PLM?

Do the people in your company look at PLM as a strategic investment? If not, what will you do in 2013 to get them educated. Without the proper view of PLM, you will not get much traction with your initiatives. Often the people that adopt PLM do so grudgingly, and they never realize all of the benefits. I liked this quote from the article:

"Social scientists have shown that when people undergo major changes in circumstances, their lives typically are neither as bad nor as good as they expected - another case of how bad we are at estimating. People adjust surprisingly quickly, and their level of pleasure (hedonic state) ends up, broadly, where it was before."

This speaks to the need for aggressive cultural change management from the very beginning so that people start to think about PLM in the proper context. PLM users who understand the importance of their job to the overall life of the product will tend to do better when changes occur. A very objective method is required for selecting and implementing PLM solutions. Without an objective approach, there will be chaos, and success with PLM will be limited:

"So often a PLM decision has not been made in an objective manner and PLM selection paths are driven to come to a conclusion we already knew."

I could not agree more. My experience has been that when a proven methodology is used to select and implement PLM, success is almost always achieved. Without an objective, proven approach, it is likely that PLM will not lead to the kinds of changes you envision.

So, how are you planning to get PLM rolling in 2013?

Cheers,

Jim