Lecture 4—

Capturing the Voice of the

Customer

Fall 2010 ECEn 490 Lecture #4 1

 Concept Development Phase
Phase 1 Phase 2 Phase 3 Phase 4 Phase 5
Concept System-Level Detail Testing and Production
Development Design Design Refinement Ramp-up

Mission
Statement

Identify Establish Generate Select a

Refine
Customer Target Product Product
Needs Concept Specs
Specs Concepts

Development
Analyze Perform
Plan Plan
competitive Remaining
Economic Development
Products Analysis Project

Concept Development

Fall 2010 ECEn 490 Lecture #4 2

 What’s the Problem?

Our
Performance

Customers’
Need

Fall 2010 ECEn 490 Lecture #4 3

“Marketing is too important to
leave to the marketing
department”—
Bill Hewlett—one of the founders of
Hewlett-Packard Co.

Fall 2010 ECEn 490 Lecture #4 4

 Kano's "3 Arrow Diagram"
Satisfied
Feeling

Neutral

Physically
Fulfilled
(Need is not met) Condition
(Need is met)

Dissatisfied
Feeling
Feeling

Fall 2010 ECEn 490 Lecture #4 5

 Kano's "3 Arrow Diagram"
Satisfied
Feeling

Physically
Fulfilled
(Need is not met) Condition
(Need is met)

Unstated, “Taken
Expected
Quality for
Dissatisfied granted”
Feeling

Fall 2010 ECEn 490 Lecture #4 6

 Kano's "3 Arrow Diagram"
Satisfied
Feeling “Competitive”
the more the better

ali t y
Qu
al "
n Physically
nsio Fulfilled
e
(Need is not met)
Dim Condition
(Need is met)
-
O ne
"
Unstated, “Taken
Expected
Quality for
Dissatisfied
Feeling
granted”

Fall 2010 ECEn 490 Lecture #4 7

 Kano's "3 Arrow Diagram"
Satisfied
“Surprise & Feeling “Competitive”
Delighters” the more the better

Exciting
Quality alit y
Qu
al "
n Physically
nsio Fulfilled
(Need is not met) m e Condition
D i (Need is met)
-
O ne
"
Unstated, “Taken
Expected
Quality for
Dissatisfied
Feeling
granted”

Fall 2010 ECEn 490 Lecture #4 8

 Kano's "3 Arrow Diagram"
Satisfied
Feeling
What was
exciting
yesterday
becomes
expected
tomorrow

Physically
Fulfilled
(Need is not met) Condition
(Need is met)

Unstated,
Expected
Quality
Dissatisfied
Feeling

Fall 2010 ECEn 490 Lecture #4 9

 What difference does it make?

• Does it change the effort on customer

identification?
• Does it change the risk of product
acceptance?
• What about manufacturing?
• How does it impact R&D expenditures?

Fall 2010 ECEn 490 Lecture #4 10

The goals for Identifying Customer Needs
1. Ensure that the product is focused on
customer needs.
2. Identify unusual or hidden needs.
3. Provide a ‘body of facts’ for justifying the
product specification.
4. Create an archival record of the needs.
5. Ensure that no critical customer need is
over-looked.
6. Develop a common understanding of the
customer needs by the team.

Fall 2010 ECEn 490 Lecture #4 11

The 6 steps in Identifying Customer Needs
1. Define the scope of the effort
2. Gather raw data from customers.
3. Interpret the raw data in terms of customer
needs.
4. Organize the needs into a hierarchy of
primary, secondary, and tertiary needs (if
required)
5. Establish the relative importance of the
needs.
6. Reflect on the results and the process

Fall 2010 ECEn 490 Lecture #4 12

Step1 Defining the scope
– Often included as the Mission Statement or
Project Charter
– the project charter usually contains
• a description of the customer and targeted market
• Key business goals
• critical customer needs being met
• key program assumptions
• major stakeholders

Keeps
Keeps us from ““boiling
us from boiling the
the ocean
ocean”–
”– taking
taking on
on more
more
than
than we
we can
can accomplish.
accomplish.
Fall 2010 ECEn 490 Lecture #4 13
 Mission Statement: Screwdriver Project

Product Description •A handheld, power assisted device for installing

threaded fasteners.
Benefit Proposition •Drives screws more quickly, with less effort than by
hand
•Product introduction 4th Qtr 2006
Key Business Goals •50% gross margin
•10% share of cordless screwdriver market by 2008
•Do-it-yourself consumer
Primary Market •Light duty professional
•Hand held
Assumptions •Power assisted
•Nickel-metal-hydride battery technology
Stakeholders •Users
•Retailer
•Sales force
•Production
•Legal department

Fall 2010 ECEn 490 Lecture #4 14

 Step 2 Gather Raw Data from Customers
Identify typical customers or users
• sometimes these can be individuals, other times in groups
– develop a set of questions that will draw out needed
comments
– decide on using interviews or surveys.
– Perform the market study
– capture the customer inputs, written statements,
voice, video recording, etc.
– compile the final written list of customer statements.

Fall 2010 ECEn 490 Lecture #4 15

 Customer Needs Interviews
• Generate a ‘script’ or list of questions
• Open ended versus closed ended
questions
– examples
– when to use which
• Let the customer talk - be flexible
• Manage your time
• Get the whole team involved

Fall 2010 ECEn 490 Lecture #4 16

Step 3 Interpret the Raw Data in Terms of
Customer Needs

– express the need in terms of What the

product will do, not How it will do it.
– Try to keep the interpretation at the same
level of detail as the customer input.
– Use positive statements.
– Express the need as a product attribute.
– Avoid the words Must and Want

Fall 2010 ECEn 490 Lecture #4 17

Examples of interpreting customer comments
Customer statement Interpreted Need
“I need to drive screws fast, The SD drives screws faster than
faster than by hand” by hand.

“I sometimes do duct work; use The SD drives sheet metal screws

sheet metal screws”. into metal duct work.

“I like the pistol grip; it feels The SD is comfortable to grip.

better in my hand”.

“I don’t like it when the tip slips The SD tip remains aligned with
off the screw.” screw head without slipping.

“I sometimes drive screws in at The SD will show when the screw

an angle” in not aligned with the surface.

Fall 2010 ECEn 490 Lecture #4 18

Step 4 Organize the Needs into a Hierarchy

– Write each Interpreted Need statement on a sticky

note, and put them on the wall or chart.
– Eliminate redundant statements.
– Group the notes according to how similar the needs
are to each other.
– For each group of notes, write a label on a bigger
sticky note.
– Look for higher level groups of similar sub groups.
– Go back and do a “sanity check” on the data. “how
does it feel?”

Fall 2010 ECEn 490 Lecture #4 19

 Step 4 Organize the Needs into a Hierarchy

Quadrotor must
be able to move
Quadrotor must
in any direction
be able to hover
at 3 mph.
over the target

Quadrotor
Quadrotor must flight
be able to fly for
characteristics
10 mins without
recharging

Fall 2010 ECEn 490 Lecture #4 20

Step 5 Establish the Relative Importance of the
Needs.

– First try the Team Consensus method

– Give every team members three sticky dots and
have them vote. Or just give each team members
three votes.
– Be careful that all the primary needs are at the
same level.
– If key customers are available, let them help
establish importance either by surveys or in focus
groups.

Fall 2010 ECEn 490 Lecture #4 21

 Step 6 Reflect on the Results and the
Process

– This method is not an exact science.

– Did we get the important customers in our
data?
– Are there needs that the current customers
can’t envision?
– Do we have some weak areas of analysis?
– Are we surprised by the results? And why?
– Did we get the key stakeholders involved?

Fall 2010 ECEn 490 Lecture #4 22

 Steps in customer needs prioritization.
Theme
State the Project Scope or Mission.

Theme
Capture customer inputs, one customer
need on each Sticky note.
Theme
Group similar needs.

Theme Title the groups.

Theme Lay out groups and show relations

between groups.

Theme Conclusion Vote on most important needs and

draw conclusion.

Fall 2010 ECEn 490 Lecture #4 23

Email Homework Assignment

• Go through the process describe in the lecture

(and text) with your team. Email me with the
following,
1. Description of the customer for your project,
2. The questions you would like to ask this customer,
3. The customer responses that you think the
customer would give, and,
4. The interpreted customer needs that you
determined.
5. The method of prioritizing the needs that you used.

• Reading Assignment, Chapter 5--Establishing

Product Specifications, Ulrich/Eppinger
Fall 2010 ECEn 490 Lecture #4 24
Examples of Homework example (page 65 text)
Customer statement Interpreted Need Priority
“I need to drive screws The SD drives screws faster **
fast, faster than by hand” than by hand. 3
M
“I sometimes do duct The SD drives sheet metal *
work; use sheet metal screws into metal duct work. 1
screws”. L
“I like the pistol grip; it The SD is comfortable to ***
feels better in my hand”. grip. 5
H

“I don’t like it when the The SD tip remains aligned **

tip slips off the screw.” with screw head without 3
slipping. M

“I sometimes drive screws The SD will show when the *

in at an angle” screw in not aligned with the 1
surface. L

Fall 2010 ECEn 490 Lecture #4 25

 Control Documents

The Functional Specification Document, FSD, answers the

question; What does the customer want, or what will they accept? It
is mainly a quantitative measure of user needs that allows the team to
know when they have met their goals.

The Concept Generation and Selection Document, CGSD answers

the question; How will we deliver the solution to the customer’s
requirements, and how do we know that we are offering an optimum
solution. Again the meat of the CGSD is a set of tables and matrices
showing quantitatively how we have arrived at our project definition.

The Project Schedule answers the question; When will we deliver

the solution. The Schedule shows the timing of project tasks, the
breakdown of staffing requirements, and dates for project reviews and
checkpoints.

Fall 2010 ECEn 490 Lecture #4 26

 Functional Specifications Document
• Most product ideas are initially driven by a loosely
defined set of customer inputs that usually are not
consistent or complete.
• One of the most common mistakes that companies make,
is to go into full-scale product development before these
customer needs are thoroughly analyzed and the
feasibility of the complementary technologies are
determined.
• In several studies of unsuccessful commercial products,
it was found that there was a common theme of poorly
defined features in the early stages of the project.
• Subsequent project redefinition caused delays and
missed expectations to the customer.

Fall 2010 ECEn 490 Lecture #4 27

 FSD Requirements
– Project Description and background: What is the
project, and what is expected to be accomplished.
(Mission statement)
– Project Requirements: The customer needs and
requirements including their relative importance.
– Functional Specifications: The measurable engineering
characteristics and target values for the product. You
should include preliminary targets for marginal values
and ideal values for each specification.
– Linking of the Project Requirements and Functional
Specifications: The analysis of the specifications to
insure that critical program and customer
requirements are being met. (First step in testing
document)
Fall 2010 ECEn 490 Lecture #4 28
 Control Documents
Identify Establish Generate Select a
Refine
Customer Target Product Product
Needs Concept Specs
Specs Concepts

Analyze Perform
Plan
competitive Remaining
Economic Development
Products Analysis Project

FSD CES FSD Schedule

• Preliminary & Final “Functional Specifications Document” - (FSD)

• “Concept Evaluation and Selection Document”- (CESD)
• “Project Schedule” with Staffing Assignments – (Schedule)
• “Final Project Report”

(Most of the control documents are initiated during the 1st phase, and only updated in later
phases.)

Fall 2010 ECEn 490 Lecture #4 29