The product/service life cycle (PLC) refers to the stages that a product or service goes through from its introduction to its retirement. It includes four stages: introduction, growth, maturity, and decline. The PLC can have a significant influence on operations strategy and performance.
- Introduction: During this stage, the product or service is new to the market, and the focus is on product development, marketing, and building a customer base. Operations strategy should focus on developing the necessary systems and processes to support production and delivery.
- Growth: As the product or service becomes more popular, demand increases and the focus shifts to scaling production and delivery to meet that demand. Operations strategy should focus on increasing capacity and efficiency while maintaining quality.
- Maturity: In the maturity stage, demand for the product or service begins to level off, and the focus shifts to cost reduction, efficiency improvements, and maintaining market share. Operations strategy should focus on reducing costs and improving efficiency, while continuing to meet customer needs.
- Decline: In the decline stage, demand for the product or service decreases, and the focus shifts to reducing costs and managing inventory. Operations strategy should focus on reducing costs and managing inventory levels to minimize losses.
It’s important to keep in mind that the product or service life cycle is not always linear, and some products or services may experience multiple growth or maturity stages, or may not experience a decline stage at all. The PLC can vary depending