Benefits of Modularity Strategies: Implications of Decisions and Timing

Many companies are managing the complexity of customized products, such as product variants, by implementing product modularity strategy. The modular product structure supports in realizing the potential benefits if it is exploited in relation to customer needs (Market Dimension), configuring to process capabilities and thereby cost and quality (Process Dimension), and configuring to supply chain architecture and thereby speed and predictability in supply and delivery (Supply Chain Dimension). This paper introduces interactive training and learning methods that can reveal and exemplify the complex relationships between efforts and benefits when implementing modular strategies. This approach is comprised of a combination of two parts: a serious play and simulation. The resulting setup based on a real but simple industrial product, the LEGO Collectable Minifigure Series, has demonstrated that the potential qualitative benefits of a modular strategy can be hold up against a synchronized quantitative financial impact assessment. It has been possible to demonstrate the complexity of realizing potential benefits from a modular strategy. In particular, it has been visualized how short-term benefits can differ significant from long-term benefits.