There are plenty of examples of companies that have launched large-scale projects to develop new software products and failed. You don’t want to make the same mistake.

From the outset, product managers and directors need to be able to understand their customers' needs and translate those into product features and requirements. They need to have an easy way to capture and communicate the goals and priorities of the product. Then, as development kicks-off, be able to monitor progress towards achieving these goals on an ongoing basis.

However, there are inevitable obstacles. The development project will almost certainly involve people from different parts of the business, as well as external consultants or customers, and teams may be distributed across different locations and time zones. As a result, it can be hard to gain one definitive and immediate answer to the question, "What is the status of the product?"

During development, customer needs and product requirements can change. If these changes are not closely monitored and communicated, companies can find that the scope of their development projects balloon out of control. Key deliverables may be overlooked, while timescales and expenditure increase.