New Product Development (NPD) Simulations: Some Challenging Questions and Tough Modeling Issues

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to raise some very challenging questions about how to model new product development (NPD) issues in a computerized business simulation. Initially, we briefly review some of the key issues found in the NPD literature, framing each one as a question that challenges new product managers. The paper then addresses how a designer might model these questions in a strategy-oriented game that will include NPD elements. The overall purpose is to start an open forum whereby modelers could discuss and brainstorm contemporary business issues that warrant modeling into competitive business games.