New research finds that companies are shifting to a product-focused business model supported by Digital Product Management to achieve their top business objectives in 2022. Sponsored by Broadcom Software and conducted by Dimensional Research, a survey of more than 300 executives, IT, and business leaders found that 89% plan on increasing utilization of their DPM solutions over the next 18 months.
What is Digital Product Management?
Digital Product Management (DPM) organizes and prioritizes the way people work by connecting business objectives with teams, tasks and budgets. Team members across the organization understand how their product's performance affects the overall business, which improves effectiveness and productivity.
Companies Focused on Customers and Product Quality in 2022
In light of the significant changes companies have undertaken over the past two years, this research sought to understand the priorities companies are focusing on for 2022. Delivering more customer value (56%) leads all initiatives, followed by improved product quality (52%), which is critical to customer satisfaction. Half of companies surveyed are focusing on increasing efficiency, which has suffered due to recent supply chain issues and is likely why reliable product delivery (40%) also appears as a top business focus.
Benefits of Digital Product Management
Because DPM is relatively new, participants were asked if their DPM initiative has been successful in order to gauge if DPM is actually delivering value, a work in progress, or just a fad. An overwhelming 94% of respondents stated that DPM has already been successful and provided value to their business.
- 90% reveal that DPM solutions enable a shift from a project focus to a product focus.
- 86% indicate that DPM better connects business objectives and customer needs, driving innovation.
- 89% state that DPM solutions make digital transformation easier.
When asked what drove the move to a product focus philosophy, nearly 60% cited improved customer value. The next three drivers were nearly the same, led by the desire to improve competitiveness (53%), followed by aligning product processes with development’s Agile approach (52%), and supporting digital transformation initiatives (52%).
“The majority of respondents shared that digital products are a large part of their job, which indicates that digitization is a major driver in business operations,” said Lynn Reling, Executive Advisor for Strategic Portfolio Management, Agile Operations Division, Broadcom Software.
Challenges Easy to Overcome
There are challenges to DPM, but digital product experts represent them as manageable and indicate the benefits far outweigh the hurdles and effort. Not surprisingly, the top challenge is simply resistance to change; half of those surveyed revealed that getting the DPM solution integrated with other applications and systems was challenging. Despite these issues, it’s telling that 89% plan on adding new products to their DPM solution and process over the next 18 months.
“DPM may be a young methodology, but as this research shows, it has very quickly proven its value to businesses that have adopted it. DPM is not a solution looking for a problem, but rather a solution and enabler for a direction that companies have already taken,” said Laureen Knudsen, Chief Transformation Officer, Agile Operations Division, Broadcom Software.