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CIRP Annals
Manufacturing Technology
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Guidelines for the development process of a Gillette razor system
P.R.H. Braakhuis
Industrial Design Engineer, Faculty of Engineering Technology
University of Twente, Enschede, the Netherlands
As part of a course on governing product development, the author has developed guidelines for redesigning the next generation Gillette razor
systems, decisions are based on previously prepared information. After choosing a design method, recommendations are made concerning
multiple levels and angles of planning and management to achieve a successful redesign of the Gillette Razor systems. The increasing
competitiveness in today’s global marketplace highlights the importance of picking the right development projects to stay ahead of the
competition. Such decisions also concern the choice of design methods, product planning, cost management and production planning.
This paper offers guidelines for the development process of Gillette razor systems.
Development process, Design method, Information management
1. Introduction a “Microcomb” to guide hair to the blade. But also its “Enhanced
Lubrastrip” is larger than previous strips and is infused with
Strictly speaking, a razor is a sharp-edged cutting instrument mineral oil and lubricating polymers.
especially used in the removal of unwanted body hair. Also Shaving has come a long way, but has it gone to far? This
described as a device for holding razorblades with guards to publication deals with the new product development of the next
prevent cutting of the skin. generation Gillette non-disposable razors in the worldwide
The forerunner of modern razors traces back to the early 19th market for male wet shaving products, which can be classified as
century. In 1903 King Camp Gillette introduced the first modern the personal care of non-cyclical consumer products. A variety of
safety razor. A year later Boston based Gillette Safety Razor topics about improving the development process are represented
Company, founded in 1901, receives the first U.S. patent on the in this publication. Certain specific topics are ignored due their
safety razor (T-shaped/double-edged) selling 90,000 razors and complexity or because they where not relevant for this
12 million blades. Ever since, Gillette practiced exemplary publication.
product innovation according to the claim “If there’s a better way
to shave – and we believe there is – we will find it.”. 2. Product Portfolio Management
According to this vision Gillette tries to optimize the shaving
experience with every new razor product they launch, such as the Gillette is a company that offers products in the sector of non-
Mach3 Turbo, the vibrating M3Power or the Fusion shaving cyclical consumer goods with its industries in personal and
system. Recently Gillette launched a new razor in the Fusion household products. Focusing on the blades and razor market,
product line called Fusion ProGlide. Gillette is hoping that men Gillette still grows by increasing its technological leadership
are ready to pay more for this five-blade version because this new position by constantly product innovations and leading-edge
Fusion Pro-Glide system is priced above the first Fusion system, brand marketing.
which was already at the top of the market. With this new version The increasing competitiveness in today’s global marketplace
Gillette introduces new breakthrough technology to help address highlights the importance of picking the right development
skin discomfort and the root cause of tug and pull, delivering a projects to stay ahead of the competition. Gillette spend much
more comfortable saving experience. time and money on new product development, based on highly
Taking a closer look in the history of Gillette’s product advanced processes, market research and customer integration.
portfolio tells us that being innovative plays an important role to Portfolio management processes can be successfully developed
stay ahead of the competition. Actually shaving innovations to executives in their attempts to obtain better results from scarce
seems beset by an “enough is never enough” mentality. Case in R&D dollars, achieve the balance needed between short term
point, the above mentioned new Fusion ProGlide; according to its pressures and the future, long term, needs of the organization and
fact-sheet it has seven new innovative features. These include to ensure that R&D efforts are being directed towards helping
“Low Cutting Force Blades,” a “Snowplow Comfort Guard,” and organization achieve its strategic objectives [1].
Like many other company’s the primary focus of Gillette’s Method). The development process for Gillette’s razors is a
decision making is based on financial reasons, many of these creative but scientific, multi-disciplinary process which includes
financial reasons obviously are closely related to keep the three main disciplines; marketing/sales, development/design and
competitive position of the business. But also the company’s product development/product establishment/production. These
strategy and brand image plays an important role in decision three disciplines are also reflected in Andreasen’s Design
making during new product development. Gillette’s parent Method.
company Proctor and Gamble is a brand and marketing specialist. Besides the fact that engineering and scientific research plays
And also is Gillette an established market leader in the a major role in Gillette’s new product development process,
worldwide razor market, this means that new launched products another important aspect is testing working prototypes and
should already meet certain requirements to capture and exploit obtaining feedback from its customers. Gillette already tested
the Early Majority. previous prototypes in cooperation with over 300 company
Overall a financial approach in portfolio management should employees. They took part in Gillette’s shave-at-work program.
play a dominant role, especially because of it’s large but also The company had set up 20 booths where employees did use
expensive resources. A financial approach ranks certain projects unmarked razors on different sides of their face. They then rate
against each other, which gives a good inside of the R&D efforts performance attributes of each razor with the aid of a computer
that are needed to provide the expected financial results. program.
Like Andreasen already mentioned, product development is
3. Design Methodology an iterative process [2]. By iterative is meant that Gillette
gradually approaches their goals through a number of cycles in
Razors and blades have been Gillette’s domain for almost a which corrections are made or decisions are taken. .
century, guided by the vision to continuously seek for new ways
to provide a better shave. The kind of promotional strategy can 4. Project Planning
be described as a push market introducing a new razor every two
years. Irrespective of whether a development project is based on It is vital for large companies like Gillette to bring a project
radically new ideas or will merely make a small improvement to like a new razor to completion on time, within the budget costs,
an existing product, the sole reason for the existence of the and to meet the planned performance or end product goals [3].
product is that it must meet a recognized need [2]. But when is a project called a success? And how much effort
In the case of Gillette, customers and especially the early should a company like Gillette invest in a project planning to
adopters are always looking for an improved shaving experience. achieve this certain degree of success. The success rating of a
We can say that the development process of Gillette razors is not project may also differ according to subjective, individual
only about the technological part, but also endless customer judgment. Freeman and Beale [4] point out that success means
feedback loops and market research inputs should be integrated different things to different people.
in the development process. The development process that is also In case of Gillette the end goal is to satisfy all stakeholders.
driven by the marketing strategy and it’s global production So let’s say; “A new development project is successful when the
facility’s is a parallel process that proceeds in a relative short needs of the stakeholder have been met”. Important is to find out
Figure 1. Andreasen’s Design Method who the stakeholders are and find out their needs. All needs
should be listed and when this has been done, the next step is to
time period. So quite specific marketing and production activities prioritize them. From the prioritized list you could create a set of
must be carried out in time with, and in collaboration with, the goals that can be easily measured and recorded in the project
research and development team [2]. plan.
This approach of integrated product development would Also project planning is an important part of the project plan,
benefit the most when it is based on the design method created by especially in large engineering and research groups, which have
Andreasen. This design method is an idealized model for product to deal with complex products like razors. Andreasen mentioned;
development, which is integrated in terms of creation of market, “How can it be that project planners are able to make a detailed
product and production, and which clarifies integration between project plan, when either activities cannot be foreseen or they
project and management (see Figure 1. Andreasen’s Design depend on the outcomes of earlier activities?” [5]. Because
Gillette has already years of experience developing innovative development groups at a different time or place becomes more
razors, the actual project is not a complete unique task. It has critical.
similarities to earlier, completed projects. Based on previous The ideal information infrastructure for Gillette will be one
developed project planning's and the set of goals which have to that is distributed and collaborative, but also allowing all
be accomplished to meet the expectations of all stakeholders, employees and other related personnel that are involved within
project planners are now able to make a general project planning. the project to effectively communicate and exchange knowledge.
Because of the size of the project and the large amount of To realize such complex information system Gillette should
individual developments teams a combination of milestone invest in a highly advanced IT infrastructure based on internet
planning and activity planning would fit the most in this case. A communication architectures and general database technologies
milestone plan shows the milestones of the project and the logical supported by user-friendly software. According to Szykman, to
dependencies between them [5]. A milestone plan diagrams also successfully implement a computer-based distributed product
gives a good overview of the goals in the described project plan development environment, requirements in four areas must be
that have to be accomplished by the collaborating development addressed: (1) software applications, to support product
teams. These development teams can use activity planning to development activities, (2) standards, to support exchange of
accomplish their own assigned goals without losing the overview information among applications, (3) information technology
of the development process. Focusing on the overall project infrastructure, on which the distributed environment will be built
planning, a project has typically multiple goals. I already and will operate, and (4) organization, to address the changes in
mentioned the fact that reviewing multiple prototypes will now product development is being done from the human
improve final results; this fits well with a more complex perspective [6]. Investments in such innovative information
milestone planning with different result paths. technologies will also provide a reliable basis for implementation
The result path is a collection of milestones that are primarily regarding effective control and support of manufacturing
directed towards the fulfilment of one kind of result [5]. This is processes worldwide. In conclusion, global players like Gillette,
illustrated in Figure 2. In this way the project planning remains controlling more than 30 manufacturing operations in 14
simple and clear because activity planning should only be done countries, are becoming increasingly dependent on such
when it is necessary and not before all the necessary information information systems to optimize their development process and
is available. reduce the cost price of its products.
6. Facilities and Supply Chain Management
Facility location decisions play a critical role in the strategic
design of supply chain networks for global players like Gillette.
A few years ago the brand power and popularity of Gillette’s
products masked a hard reality. Gillette could not get product to
the channel efficiently, resulting in a 90% fill rate and screaming
customers because fill rates were not meeting the expectations.
A critical aspect to avoid problems like this could be that the
movements of products from suppliers to manufacturers to
distributors, but also movement of information, funds, and
products in both directions has not been optimized in an efficient
way. On the other hand, company’s like Gillette should critically
consider their facility locations. Well-positioned facilities will
reduce operating costs and improve efficiency across the global
blade and razor manufacturing operation. The decision to build at
a certain place should be based on the results of a detailed study
of a number of countries considering for example the nearness of
potential markets and the availability of raw materials. Well
Figure 2. Milestone plan with result paths positioned locations also ensures that company’s have access to
the country’s leading technical talent and resources for their new
5. Data Management facility.
According to Melo, this globalization of economic activities
As mentioned by Szykman: “Information technology has together with fast developments in information technologies have
played an increasingly important role in engineering product led to shorter product life cycles, smaller lot sizes and a very
development. Its influence over the past decade has been dynamic customer behaviour in terms of preferences [7].
accelerating and its impact in the coming decade will be These changes also effects the supply chain network and how
immense” [6]. For companies like Gillette, with more than 500 global operating companies should manage them. Supply Chain
top scientists and engineers involved in new product Management is the process of planning, implementing and
developments projects like the new Fusion Pro-Glide system, controlling the operations of the supply chain network in an
data management is a crucial factor in the success of a project. In efficient way. Fig. 3 depicts a generic supply chain network that
addition, the product development process in a company like includes both forward and reverse activities [7]. Based on the
Gillette becomes increasingly knowledge-intensive and above-mentioned problem Gillette should also restructure the
collaborative; the need for software to enable the possibility to supply chain organization and minimize complexity. They should
find and reuse product knowledge that has been created by other be focusing on overall view of the supply chain to meet
customer’s expectations rather than function specific.
8. Conclusion
Research into governing a development process for global
company’s like Gillette has indicated that globalization of
economic activities together with fast developments in
information technologies have led to shorter product life cycles,
smaller lot sizes and very dynamic customer behaviour. When
focusing on innovative information technologies company’s can
provide a reliable basis for implementation regarding effective
control and support of parallel processes as described in the
design model of Andreasen. This results in an optimised
development process to obtain better results from scarce R&D
and marketing dollars.
References
[1] Cooper, R.G., Edgett, S.J., Kleinschmidt, E.J., 2001, Portfolio
Figure 3. Example of a generic supply chain network management for new product development: results of an industry practices
study. R&D Management, 31(4): p. 361-380.
[2] Andreasen, M.M., Hein L., 1987, Integrated Product Development,
Also Supply Cain Planning could be improved on London: IFS Publishing.
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frequency of products. Decisions could be based on inventory New York: John Wiley.
planning, these inventory levels would be based on planners past [4] Freeman M., Beale P., 1992, Measuring project success, Project
Management Journal, 23(1):8–17.
experience. Overall seen, Gillette must focus on what they could
[5] Andersen, E.S., 1996, Warning: activity planning is hazardous to your
sell and not what they wanted to sell to avoid problems with project's health!, International Journal of Project Management, 14(2): p. 89 -
supplies in retail. 94.
[6] Szykman, S., Sriam R. D., 2001, "The role of knowledge in next-
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and information science in engineering, 1(3).
[7] Melo, M. T. N., S., Saldanha-da-Gama, F., 2009, "Facility location and
With the growing complexity of the work environment, many supply chain management – A review.", European Jornal of Operational
organizations have reconstructed individual work procedures into Research, 196: 401 - 412.
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organizational effectiveness [8]. When managing team processes project duration on team development effectiveness.", International Journal of
in a organization like Gillette’s development department, where Project Management, 28: 413 - 421.
[9] Banker, R.D., Field, J.M., Schroeder, R.C., Sinha, K.K., 1996, Impact of
the number of employees involved in the development process work teams on manufacturing performance, A longitudinal field study,
has reached around 500, effective management plays a critical Academy of Management Journal, 39, 867–890.
role in the success of a project. As in longer projects, for example [10] Miles, R.E., Snow, C., 2003, Organization Strategy, Structure, and
the new Mach3 razor system that took 10 years to develop, there Process, Stanford Business, Stanford.
is more to implement team development practices. It is expected [11] Tampoe, M., Thurloway, L., 1993, Project management: the use and
abuse of techniques and teams (reflections from a motivation and
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Innovation is and has always been the heart of Gillette’s
success. It is the primary way their company touch and improve
lives and, as a result, grow their business. Nowadays they have a
strong, global, multiyear innovation program that is driving
profitable share growth around the world. According to the
typology of Miles & Snow [10], Gillette fits the best with the
description of a prospector. The definition of which is to use
innovation strategies and quickly implement new technologies in
shaving equipment and move further when other companies catch
up. This results in specific strategic choices for the organization
characterized by sophisticated recruitment.
Interestingly, a new innovation at a company like Gillette doesn’t
mean “out with the old.” The company still sells its Sensor XL.
According to this information Gillette could also be a defender,
selling razors for a smaller market, which they then defend by
pricing and quality strategy. In this case the organization would
look totally different.
In conclusion; HRM could also be a more project-based task
than a company based task. But in today’s knowledge-intensive
environments HRM is an important factor towards project
success and a core element of project management bodies of
knowledge [11].
