Product development professionals have been studying new product development practices to find out what really works best. Recent research shows that firms need to keep up with evolving NPD processes to stay competitive. While many use a cross-functional stage-gate process, some still have no formal process for managing NPD. Best-practice firms focus on team-based rewards like project-completion dinners rather than financial rewards. They also use more multifunctional teams, measure NPD processes and outcomes, and have higher expectations for their NPD programs.