Risk Management for New Product Development Projects in Food Industry

Abstract

Project risk management provides a guideline for decision making in new product development (NPD) projects, reducing uncertainty and increasing success rate. However, the acceptance of formal risk management applications in industry, especially for NPD projects is still in question. A study of a food conglomerate in Thailand found that only 9% of NPD projects used a systematic approach for managing risk. 61% of the projects realised the importance of risk management, while the remaining 30% did not involve risk management at all. This study aims to develop a risk management model for NPD projects in the food industry. The first section of this paper reviews the literature on risk management theory, including international standards for risk and project management (ISO31000 and ISO21500), publications for the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK), by a professional organisation the Project Management Institute (PMI), and also academic research. 182 academic papers, published between January 2002 and August 2012 were selected. The second part interviews conducted with eight NPD experts from five of the major food manufacturers in Thailand to examine their risk management practices and problems. Conclusions are made on five topics : classification of research method, project type and industrial segment, distribution of articles by region, tools & techniques for risk management and risk factors in projects. Specific requirements of risk management for NPD projects in the food industry are identified. A risk management model and the concept of risk management applications for the food industry are proposed.