Productize

How a few companies make it . . . and why the rest failMore and more traditional professional services firms are turning to "productization" as a strategy to grow, improve valuations, and to fend off new digital-first competitors. However, many of them will fail and waste a lot of money in the process. They fail for two reasons. First, they tend to massively underestimate how difficult it is to add a product business model alongside a services business model. Second, they do not...
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How a few companies make it . . . and why the rest failMore and more traditional professional services firms are turning to "productization" as a strategy to grow, improve valuations, and to fend off new digital-first competitors. However, many of them will fail and waste a lot of money in the process. They fail for two reasons. First, they tend to massively underestimate how difficult it is to add a product business model alongside a services business model. Second, they do not recognize how hard it is to develop successful new products, even in the best conditions (new product failure rates are estimated to be somewhere between 40-70%).For companies that deliver highly customized services, new product development and commercialization are often outside of their core skills, processes, and mindsets. Productizing services typically requires organizations to think differently about how they work and how they create value for their customers. This change does not come easily.Productize first outlines the "Seven Deadly Productization Mistakes" made when pursuing a product strategy, then provides the blueprint for overcoming each of these missteps. Throughout, Productize urges leaders to follow three key principles:· Think Big, Start Small· Follow Urgent, Expensive Customer Problems· Be Fearless