Exam 12: Managing New Product Development Teams

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To ensure that members have a clear focus and commitment to the development project,many organizations now have heavyweight and autonomous teams develop a project charter and contract book.The project charter encapsulates the project's mission and articulates exact and measurable goals for the project.It might include a vision statement for the project and a background statement for why this project is important for the organization.The charter may describe who is on the team,the length of time members will spend on the team,and the percentage of their time that will be spent on team activities.It may also stipulate the team's budget,its reporting timeline,and the key success criteria of the project.
Once the team charter is established,core team members and senior managers must negotiate a contract book.The contract book defines in detail the basic plan to achieve the goal laid out in the project charter.Typically,the contract book will estimate the resources required,the development time schedule,and the results that will be achieved.The contract book provides a tool for monitoring and evaluating the team's performance in meeting objectives by providing a set of performance benchmarks and deadlines to which the team's performance can be compared.More important,however,the contract book is an important mechanism for establishing team commitment to the project and a sense of ownership over the project.After negotiation and acceptance of this contract,all parties often sign the contract book as an indication of their intention to honor the plan and achieve the results.Team members who sign the contract book typically feel a greater sense of duty to work toward the project's goals.