Growth-stage companies have ambitious plans—expanding teams, breaking into new markets, and scaling production at a rapid pace.
But while their focus is on momentum, many overlook a critical foundation for long-term success: scalable product lifecycle management (PLM).
Without the right PLM solution, fast-growing companies often find themselves trapped by outdated, piecemeal solutions that can’t keep up. By the time they realize the need for a more robust system, the transition is costly and disruptive.
The key to avoiding this pitfall? Investing in a scalable PLM solution from the beginning—one that evolves alongside the company.
The Essentials of PLM for Growing Companies
A modern PLM system should provide the foundational capabilities necessary for managing product data while being flexible enough to support future growth. Here are the must-have PLM functionalities for any emerging company:
1. Bill of Materials (BOM) Management
- Maintain a structured BOM that includes assemblies, items, parts, and attached documents.
- Track changes with redlining to compare versions as products evolve.
- Define and optimize how products are constructed by connecting every component in a trusted source of truth throughout the whole product lifecycle.
2. Change Management
- Implement automated workflows with criteria-based approvals to streamline design and manufacturing changes.
- Create templates to expedite containment, assessment, and disposition of non-conformances or deviations.
- Automate compliance workflows and maintain complete audit history.
- Collaborate directly in product records to eliminate outdated or lost communications. Move critical information out of lengthy, confusing email chains or chat threads.
3. Approved Manufacturers List (AML/AVL)
- Track manufacturers and suppliers, monitor costs, and assess potential supply chain risks.
The Future-Proof Advantage: Why a Scalable, Connected PLM Matters
Many emerging companies begin with standalone tools or manual processes, only to realize that disconnected systems create inefficiencies as they grow. A cloud-native PLM built on a unified platform offers:
Trusted Data for Reporting & Analytics
In a fast-growing company, data silos can quickly become a major roadblock, leading to errors, inefficiencies, and lost opportunities. A cloud-native PLM system provides a single source of truth, ensuring all teams—engineering, quality, and operations—work with accurate, real-time data. This enables companies to make informed decisions faster and maintain compliance without the burden of manually tracking changes.
Seamless Single-Platform Expansion
Growth-stage companies need technology that evolves with them. As your needs expand beyond PLM, you can add processes such as quality management, commercialization, and supplier community to the same platform—unifying all of these data sources and workflows, working seamlessly together within one powerful tool.
Simplified IT Stack
Many emerging businesses lack a large IT staff to manage complex integrations. Propel, built on Salesforce, provides the flexibility to integrate with CRM, ERP, and other enterprise solutions as needs expand. This means companies can start with the essentials and scale into more advanced capabilities without expensive, disruptive system overhauls, future-proofing their operations from day one. This approach removes IT headaches, allowing teams to focus on growth rather than system maintenance.
Making a Smart Investment: Building Your Business Case for PLM
For many smaller companies, purchasing enterprise software is a new experience. Your leadership might be skeptical of taking on a software investment, especially if the capabilities seem more robust than your current small business needs.
It’s crucial to demonstrate that PLM adoption aligns with company growth plans because the system will scale alongside the business.
Highlight the metrics that matter most by connecting your PLM investment to your business goals:
- Grow the business: Fuel revenue and market share through new products and channel expansion
- Speed innovative products to market: Capture first-mover value in dynamic markets
- Improve profit & productivity: Drive cost reduction and operational efficiencies
- Increase customer satisfaction: Deliver compelling experiences at every touchpoint
- Mitigate corporate risk: Secure business continuity by reducing supply chain disruption and ensuring regulatory compliance
Mapping out each of these benefits for your company goes a long way to clearly defining ROI to secure buy-in from leadership and finance teams.
Case Studies: Propel PLM in Action
These companies faced a period of growth and change—here’s how they leveraged Propel PLM to scale efficiently and stay ahead.
Walmart Advanced Systems & Robotics
Walmart ASR (formerly Alert Innovation) has relied on Propel PLM to scale operations while keeping pace with retail requirements. By choosing a solution that grows with them, they avoided IT roadblocks and maintained agility. Propel’s start-anywhere, go-anywhere approach has been a cornerstone of their strategy, supporting 100% growth over three years without the burden of system limitations. Read the case study.
TRX Training
TRX needed to rebuild and expand quickly under new leadership. Propel’s JetStart program enabled them to go live in just three weeks, far faster than traditional PLM implementations. With Propel, TRX immediately streamlined product management while maintaining flexibility—setting the stage for rapid innovation and future growth. Read the case study.
Conclusion
For emerging companies, investing in PLM isn’t just about solving today’s challenges—it’s about ensuring they never outgrow their systems. Propel PLM provides the modern foundation needed for scalable growth, streamlined operations, and future-proof product management.
