Managing Biases in Product Development Teams: A Tale of Two Rocks

Abstract

The management of product development teams is a challenging task, especially when success hinges on the ability to guide technical and nontechnical personnel through an effective decision-making process. The “Tale of Two Rocks” exercise illustrates how differing motivations and beliefs about new technologies can affect the decisions developers and managers make in the product development process. In the exercise, the instructor provides a narrative about two very different new products: a novel, nontoxic cleaning solution and a simple rock with amusing packaging. When students complete a questionnaire about the market and profit potential of these new products, individuals with technical backgrounds prefer the high-tech solution, even when they sense that the market is more likely to accept the low-tech alternative. During the debriefing, students learn to both distinguish between a technical accomplishment and a business opportunity and better understand the mind-set of their colleagues.