Speeding up Development Projects’ Investment Decisions in a Fast-Changing Environment
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Typ
Examensarbete för masterexamen
Program
Quality and operations management (MPQOM), MSc
Publicerad
2022
Författare
Sikström, Jakob
Åberg, Johanna
Modellbyggare
Tidskriftstitel
ISSN
Volymtitel
Utgivare
Sammanfattning
The importance of quick improvements of products and processes is growing more important as
markets move faster each year. In order to ensure that product offerings are competitive,
improvements of products and processes need to be launched quickly, which requires fast
development and resolute decision-making. Development projects with respect to products and
processes need to proceed fast to provide decision-makers with enough basis to bolster
managers’ risk-taking regarding given decisions. In autumn 2020 Volvo Cars began looking into
a radical new process for constructing body structures. The new manufacturing process entailed
casting large parts of the body in aluminum instead of traditional stamped and joined steel sheets.
This project was named “Mega casting” and had the potential to improve both manufacturing
efficiency and cost significantly. The mega casting project quickly developed and reached the
stage of board of directors’ decision significantly faster than comparable development projects.
The aim of this study was to explain how investment decisions in development projects can be
taken quickly from examining how the mega casting investment decision could be taken so
quickly in comparison to other development projects of similar impact at Volvo Cars.
A three-stage method was employed starting with an initial data collection of formal
documentation and initial interviews. This was followed by a survey to quantify the importance
of the initial findings. Lastly, a secondary round of interviews was conducted to deepen
understanding in key areas regarding speed.
31 success factors enabling the speed of the mega casting investment decision were identified
from initial interviews. Based on the survey result eight of these were further investigated in
secondary interviews. The results showed that the mega casting quickness was a result of many
interrelated individual, organizational, economic, and strategic factors. From the mega casting
project, the most impactful success factors enabling the speed of development projects’
investment decisions were:
• Project gave advantages to all essential departments
• Project aligned with strategic ambitions
• Large size and impact of the project
• Newsworthiness and innovativity of the project
• Continuous and transparent communication with management
• Well-constructed development team
• Supportive managers
• Fast follower project of industry influencer
Beyond these findings it also emerged that the mega casting project differed from other
development projects at Volvo Cars. Differences were found in the workflow, both of foregoing
frameworks and devoting full-time to a single project, as well as the investment decision relying
on longer-term factors. Lastly, agile workflow within the mega casting project was examined,
however, no conclusive evidence for agile workflow affecting the speed of the mega casting
project was found.
Beskrivning
Ämne/nyckelord
investment decisions , development project , process development , product development , development project speed , decision making , strategic decisions , mega casting , giga casting