Risk management in product platform development projects Online publication date: Sun, 04-Nov-2018
by Zakir Uddin; Peter E. Harland; Haluk Yörür
International Journal of Product Development (IJPD), Vol. 22, No. 6, 2018
Abstract: Companies introduce product platforms to achieve synergies in development and production, and to ensure diversity in products at the same time. In the literature, some positive effects of product platforms are described, but failures and (especially the reasons for them) are rarely considered. In this paper, by using literature research and five case studies, we identify risks in product platform development projects, categorise them into five fields of uncertainty, and use a standardised framework of project risk management to adapt it to the purposes of platform projects. Due to the long planning horizon and the length of platform usage time, product platform projects are prone to some specific risks (e.g., platform obsolescence risks, long-range-planning risks, and risks of a lack of distinctiveness in the products or of overdesign). The risk management framework developed here is designed to help companies control platform-specific risks, thereby boosting the opportunities for success with the product platforms.
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