Product Development and Software Methodologies

Many companies have applied lean thinking to manufacturing or service processes. Some have experienced big performance gains through standardization, elimination of waste, and problem solving. But applying lean principles to Product Development and Software Methodologies requires a different mindset and a totally different approach. Manufacturing (and some service value streams) companies are transactional; they can be managed through standard tools and principles. Product development and software companies are about creating knowledge and thus require different skills.

The LTG approach to product development

1. We select working teams and give them the opportunity to “see” the performance problems of their existing processes.
2. The teams design new processes to eliminate problem areas and experiment with solutions to these problem areas.
3. They then enter a phase of continuous improvement and learning so that they are always becoming better at quality deliveries, in less time, with faster learning.

Agile / Scrum

Many software organizations have gone through a revolution in adopting Agile or Scrum methodologies. We have seen some increased performance with Agile but many companies are still underperforming based on the marketplace needs for speed and quality. LTG has developed a way to take Agile teams through a problem identification process to improve their Agile methodology. The result of these engagements are increased engagement and empowerment, improved quality and timing delivery, and better awareness of problem areas with clear metrics.