Product Planning - Arbiter for the Customer

With emphasis on the personal aspect, this paper discusses the role of the product planner in light of the “arbiter for the customer” relationship. This presentation covers the development, need, environment, responsibility, work, and qualifications of the product planner.

A detailed discussion of product planning as it is undertaken in the automotive industry is presented. Product planning can be successful only if it obtains, correlates, and customerizes the contributions of the other operating groups to the planning process.