Step 5 Test Assumptions at Milestones

The introduction of the product will include several milestones at which the course of the project can be changed. These milestones occur both before and after product release. Examples include completion of market research, prototype production, customer testing, initial sales, plant startup, and periodically after introduction. Variations between actual and forecast performance will point to problem areas — hopefully in sufficient time to take needed action. 

Discovery-driven planning will be particularly useful in avoiding mismatches between customer demand and supply chain design. For any one company, a new product or delivery process can fundamentally alter the economics of present supply chains. It might have the effect of rendering them useless for the innovation. It would be an error to assume a new product should ride to market on the back of a legacy supply chain that will not work. Discovery-driven planning is a way to avoid the trap. 

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