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How Product Developers Can Survive and Thrive in an Era of Escalating Supply Chain Disruption
Posted: April 1, 2020With the protracted US-China trade wars only recently abating and the outbreak of COVID-19, supply chain disruption continues to loom large. Whether threats to sourcing are geopolitical, viral, or climatic, it’s never been more clear to product developers that securing their supply chain is mission-critical.
How can product developers not only survive but also thrive amid global upheaval? Here are three approaches for successfully navigating supply chain disruption.
A Letter from our CEO
Posted: March 27, 2020As we all navigate the treacherous COVID-19 outbreak and determine the impact on our families, businesses, staff, communities, and the world, there are many short- and long-term implications that need to be addressed. Pivot has the manufacturing-capability to solve your supply chain challenges, close your inventory gaps, and meet your immediate product needs. We can also be your strategic partner to help you improve on opportunities that emerge in relation to the current crisis.
COVID-19 is Impacting EMS, but Solutions are in Sight
Posted: March 26, 2020According to a survey conducted by the global electronics manufacturing trade association, IPC, electronics manufacturers anticipate at least a five-week product shipment delay from suppliers due to COVID-19, with 84% expressing concerns about delays. With so many businesses experiencing strain, IPC president and CEO John Mitchell opined, “The delays will likely have ripple effects for the rest of the year...and the supply chain will experience more and varied strains and disruptions.” But even in the wake of mounting supply chain threats, solutions are in sight.
How can your organization effectively mobilize for disruption related to COVID-19? Here are three approaches to successfully navigate the current crisis.
How to Map and Manage Risk to Safeguard Procurement
Posted: March 19, 2020Risk is intrinsic to doing business. No part of an organization or phase of product development is ultimately free from threat, and much of a company's success and long-term market viability depends on its ability to map and manage risk.
At Pivot International, we've built safeguards into every phase of the product development process to protect against threats and successfully bring our client's products to market.
Seeking Market Insights for New Product Development? Try Social Listening
Posted: March 12, 2020Social listening — analyzing what consumers say on social media — is a method typically used in consumer-facing sectors that enable businesses to learn about the opinions customers hold about particular products. What is not yet widely realized is just how much this approach can inform and fuel new product development (NPD). By gaining actionable insights in real-time, without incurring the high cost of more conventional practices, like focus groups and research reports, companies that engage in social listening can gain a competitive advantage.
Best Front-End Practices for Ensuring Success in New Product Development
Posted: March 5, 2020When New Product Development (NPD) fails, it's often in either the last or commercial stage of the development process. However, these late-stage failures can most often be traced to the beginning stage or the front end of NPD. The front end begins when an organization recognizes that an opportunity lies within an idea and ends with the approval or disapproval of a proposed project. More than any other phase of the product development process, the front end exhibits a dynamic and interactive nature.
New Product Development and the Changing Consumer Landscape
Posted: February 20, 2020According to a recent report by Deloitte on consumer behavior, the consumer has not changed in many of the ways popularly believed and commonly reported. To be clear, the consumer is changing. But these changes are primarily driven by economic and market conditions rather than by what might appear to be fundamental changes to consumers’ psychological makeup.
At Pivot International, we're a global single-source leader that understands that successful product development depends on an integrated understanding of the dynamic demographic factors that generate the unique needs, cultural biases, and purchase decisions of today's changing consumer.
4 Ways Top Manufacturing Companies are Building Digital Muscle
Posted: February 13, 2020From ongoing constraints due to trade uncertainties to difficulty attracting and retaining talent, the U.S. manufacturing industry has seen a year of heightened challenge. And although this past year saw the expansion in the U.S. economy become the longest in history, the manufacturing sector has shown signs of contraction in current months. According to Deloitte, projections for GDP growth levels reflect recent trends, adjusting from 3.7% down to 2.7% for 2019 and 2% down to 1.3% for 2020.
However, amidst continued volatility in prices and policy decisions and diminished productivity, the industry is working to regain its footing. And digital “muscle building” is one of the emerging trends of this progression. Building digital muscle refers to the adoption and deployment of innovative digital technologies that build both agility and scalability.
3 Design Trends That are Driving Innovation in Product Development and Business Operations Alike
Posted: February 5, 2020It's no secret that products are continually evolving, reflecting changes in consumer demand and the techno-economic landscape. But the field of design itself is growing, and designers are thinking about design differently. They're reconceiving their roles, taking a more interdisciplinary approach, and driving the broader application of design-thinking to deliver next-level results.
At Pivot International, we're a global single-source product development partner that leverages the world's top design talent and advanced technology to help our customers successfully bring new products to market. With nearly half a century of experience in product design, development, manufacturing, and supply chain management, we're at the leading edge of the seismic shifts in design that are shaping the industry and the future.
Top Products from CES 2020: Choosing the Right EMS Partner
Posted: January 30, 2020As a leading single-source electronics manufacturing services (EMS) partner with state-of-the-art surface mount technology (SMT), we at Pivot International are behind some of the most innovative trends for the consumer market. Every year we watch with pride as our clients attend CES to showcase the innovations we've partnered with them to bring to market.
Top trends and popular products of CES 2020 proved to be those that delivered human-centric care through applications in artificial intelligence, virtual reality, and robotics. Below is a list of our favorites, including a product we played a central role in developing that garnered a prestigious CES Innovation Award.
