Tag Archive

Recently, I noticed I reduced my blogging activities as many topics have already been discussed and repeatably published without new content.

With the upcoming of Gen AI and ChatGPT, I believe my PLM feeds are flooded by AI-generated blog posts.

The ChatGPT option

Most companies are not frontrunners in using extremely modern PLM concepts, so you can type risk-free questions and get common-sense answers.

I just tried these five questions:

1. Why do we need an MBOM in PLM, and which industries benefit the most?
2. What is the difference between a PLM system and a PLM strategy?
3. Why do so many PLM projects fail?
4. Why do so many ERP projects fail?
5. What are the changes and benefits of a model-based approach to product lifecycle management?

Note: Questions 3 and 4 have almost similar causes and impacts, although slightly different,  which is to be expected given the scope of the domain.

All these questions provided enough information for a blog post based on the answer. This illustrates that if you are writing about what are current best practices in the field – stop writing – the knowledge is there.

PLM in the real life

Recently, I had several discussions about which skills a PLM expert should have or which topics a PLM project should address.

PLM for the individual

For the individual, there are often certifications to obtain. Roger Tempest has been fighting for PLM professional recognition through certification – a challenge due to the broad scope and possibilities. Read more about Roger’s work in this post: PLM is complex (and we have to accept it?)

PLM vendors and system integrators often certify their staff or resellers to guarantee the quality of their solution delivery. Potential topics will be missed as they do not fulfill the vendor’s or integrator’s business purpose.

Asking ChatGPT about the required skills for a PLM expert, these were the top 5 answers:

1. Technical skills
2. Domain Knowledge
3. Analytical and Problem-Solving Skills
4. Interpersonal and Management Skills
5. Strategic Thinking

It was interesting to see the order proposed by ChatGPT. Fist the tools (technology), then the processes (domain knowledge / analytical thinking), and last the people and business (strategy and interpersonal and management skills) It is hard to find individuals with all these skills in a single person.

Although we want people to be that broad in their skills, job offerings are mainly looking for the expert in one domain, be it strategy, communication, industry or technology. To get an impression of the skills read my PLM and Education concluding blog post.

Now, let’s see what it means for an organization.

PLM for the organization

In this area, one of the most consistent frameworks I have seen over time is CIMdata‘s Critical Dozen. Although they refer less to skills and more to trends and enablers, a company should invest in – educate people & build skills – to support a successful digital transformation in the PLM domain.

Oleg Shilovitsky’s recent blog post, The 12 “P” s of PLM Explained by Role: How to Make PLM More Than Just a Buzzword describes in an AI manner the various aspects of the term PLM, using 12 P**-words, reacting to Lionel Grealou’ s post: Making PLM Great Again

The challenge I see with these types of posts is: “OK, what to do now? Where to start?”

I believe where to start at the first place is a commonly agreed topic.

Everything starts from having a purpose and a vision. And this vision should be supported by a motivating story about the WHY that inspires everyone.

It is teamwork to define such a strategy, communicate it through a compelling story and make it personal. An excellent book to read is Make it personal from Dr. Cara Antoine – click on the image to discover the content and find my review why I believe this book is so compelling.

An important reason why we have to make transformations personal is because we are dealing first of all with human beings. And human beings are driven by emotions first even before ratio kicks in. We see it everywhere and unfortunately also in politics.

The HOW from real-life

This question cannot be answered by external PLM vendors, consultants or system integrators. Forget the Out-of-the-Box templates or the industry best practices (from the past), but start from your company’s culture and vision, introducing step-by-step new technologies, ways of working and business models to move towards the company’s vision target.

Building the HOW  is not an easy journey, and to illustrate the variety of skills needed to be successful, I worked with Share PLM on their Series 2 podcast. You can find the complete overview here. There is one more to come to conclude this year.

Our focus was to speak only with PLM experts from the field, understanding their day-to-day challenges with a focus on HOW they did it and WHAT they learned.

And this is what we learned:

Unveiling FLSmidth’s Industrial Equipment PLM Transformation: From Projects to Products

It was our first episode of Series 2, and we spoke with Johan Mikkelä, Head of the PLM Solution Architecture at FLSmidth.

FLSmidth provides the global mining and cement industries with equipment and services, which is very much an ETO business moving towards CTO.

We discussed their Industrial Equipment PLM Transformation and the impact it has made.

Start With People: ABB’s Engineering Approach to Digital Transformation

We spoke with Issam Darraj, who shared his thoughts on human-centric digitalization. Issam talks us through ABB’s engineering perspective on driving transformation and discusses the importance of focusing on your people. Our favorite quote:

To grow, you need to focus on your people. If your people are happy, you will automatically grow. If your people are unhappy, they will leave you or work against you.

Enabling change: Exploring the human side of digital transformations

We spoke with Antonio Casaschi as he shared his thoughts on the human side of digital transformation.  When discussing the PLM expert, he agrees it is difficult. Our favorite part here:

“I see a PLM expert as someone with a lot of experience in organizational change management. Of course, maybe people with a different background can see a PLM expert with someone with a lot of knowledge of how you develop products, all the best practices around products, etc. We first need to agree on what a PLM expert is, and then we can agree on how you become an expert in such a domain.”

Revolutionizing PLM: Insights from Yousef Hooshmand

With Dr. Yousef Hooshmand, writer of the paper: From a Monolithic PLM Landscape to a Federated Domain and
Data Mesh,  with over 15 years of experience in the PLM domain, currently PLM Lead at NIO, we discussed the complexity of digital transformation in the PLM domain and How to deal with legacy, meanwhile implementing a user-centric, data-driven future.

My favorite quote: The End of Single Source of Truth, now it is about The nearest Source of Truth and Single Source of Change.

Steadfast Consistency: Delving into Configuration Management with Martijn Dullaart

Martijn Dullaart, who is the man behind the blog MDUX: The Future of CM and author of the book The Essential Guide to Part Re-Identification: Unleash the Power of Interchangeability and Traceability, has been active both in the PLM and CM domain and with Martijn the similarities and differences between PLM and CM and why organizations need to be educated on the topic of CM

The ROI of Digitalization: A Deep Dive into Business Value with Susanna Maëntausta

With Susanna Maëntausta, we discussed how to implement PLM in non-traditional manufacturing industries, such as the chemical and pharmaceutical industries.

Susanna teaches us to ensure PLM projects are value-driven, connecting business objectives and KPIs to the implementation and execution steps in the field. Susanna is highly skilled in connecting people at any level of the organization.

Narratives of Change: Grundfos Transformation Tales with Björn Axling

As Head of PLM and part of the Group Innovation management team at Grundfos, Bjorn Axling aims to drive a Group-wide, cross-functional transformation into more innovative, more efficient, and data-driven ways of working through the product lifecycle from ideation to end-of-life.

In this episode, you will learn all the various aspects that come together when leading such a transformation in terms of culture, people, communication, and modern technology.

The Next Lane: Marel and the Digital Product Highway with Roger Kabo

With Roger Kabo, we discussed the steps needed to replace a legacy PLM environment and be open to a modern, federated, and data-driven future.

Step 1: Start with the end in mind. Every successful business starts with a clear and compelling vision. Your vision should be specific, inspiring, and something your team can rally behind.

Next, build on value and do it step by step.

How do you manage technology and data when you have a diverse product portfolio?

We talked with Jim van Oss, the former CIO of Moog Inc., for a deep dive into the fascinating world of technology transformations.

Key Takeaway: Evolving technology requires a clear strategy!

Jim underscores the importance of having a north star to guide your technological advancements, ensuring you remain focused and adaptable in an ever-changing landscape.

Diverse Products, Unified Systems: MBSE Insights with Max Gravel from Moog

We discussed the future of the Model-Based approaches with Max Gravel – MBD at Gulfstream and MBSE at Moog.

Max Gravel, Manager of Model-Based Engineering at Moog Inc., who is also active in modern CM, emphasizes that understanding your company’s goals with MBD is crucial.

There’s no one-size-fits-all solution: it’s about tailoring the strategy to drive real value for your business. The tools are available, but the key lies in addressing the right questions and focusing on what matters most. A great, motivating story containing all the aspects of digital transformation in the PLM domain/

Customer-First PLM: Insights on Digital Transformation and Leadership

With Helene Arlander, who has been involved in big transformation projects in the telecom industry. Starting from a complex legacy environment, implementing new data-driven approaches. We discussed the importance of managing product portfolios end-to-end and the leadership strategies needed for engaging people in charge.

We also discussed the role of AI in shaping the future of PLM and the importance of vision, diverse skill sets, and teamwork in transformations.

Conclusion

I believe the time of traditional blogging is over – current PLM concepts and issues can be easily queried by using ChatGPT-like solutions. The fundamental understanding of what you can do now comes from learning and listening to people, not as fast as a TikTok video or Insta message. For me, a podcast is a comfortable method of holistic learning.

Let us know what you think and who should be in Season 3

And for my friends in the United States – Happy Thanksgiving and think about the day after ……..