Time-to-market (TTM) is the total time it takes to identify, develop, and reach cost-effective delivery and serviceability on both new and incrementally improved products and services. It is essentially the cycle time of the design/development process.
A structured time-to-market development process assumes that skipping steps of a process to reduce time not only undermines quality but lengthens product development if steps have to be repeated. Applying process improvement tools and techniques to shorten the steps reduces decision-making time and automates activities.
Different enterprises should apply time-to-market methodologies according to their own business strategies, as speed is not always the objective. Time-to-market improvement processes enable more predictable schedules, minimize labor resources, and increase flexibility to make changes midstream without disruption. Click here for New Product Development Guide.