rok 2007
Adams R (2007) Communication of Innovations: A Journey with Ev Rogers. Technovation 27:797-798
Aerts K, Matthyssens P, Vandenbempt K (2007) Critical role and screening practices of European business
incubators. Technovation 27:254-267 Business incubators guide starting enterprises through their growth
process and as such constitute a strong instrument to promote innovation and entrepreneurship. In this article
we sketch the European business incubator landscape. Then we describe screening practices by European
business incubators in 2003 and compare these results with the American incubators in the 1980s. In the last
phase an exploratory link between screening practices and performance, measured in terms of tenant failure,
is established. Most incubators do not screen potential tenants on a balanced set of factors, but concentrate
either on the characteristics of the tenant's market or on the characteristics of the tenant's management team.
However, we found that the tenant survival rate is positively related to a more balanced screening profile.
Based on our study results, we propose some recommendations for the main stakeholders in the field:
authorities, incubators and innovative entrepreneurs.
Aggeri F, Segrestin B (2007) Innovation and project development: an impossible equation? Lessons from an
innovative automobile project development. R & D Management 37:37-47
Product development
performance has become a key issue for car manufacturers. But innovation seeks to outperform dominant
design, whereas project development targets well-defined areas (costs, lead times, quality, etc.). This article
provides an analysis of the extent to which innovation is compatible with recent managerial and technical
methods (project and multi-project management, co-development, simulation tools and digital mock-ups,
etc.). The analysis is based on a recent development project conducted at Renault in which these various
techniques were used in an attempt to achieve highly ambitious targets simultaneously in the areas of lead
times, costs and innovation. During the course of the project, unexpected design problems revealed failures
in co-ordination, monitoring procedures and expertise. We argue that recent project development methods
can induce negative effects on collective learning processes and that these effects have managerial
implications for innovative developments.
Akgun AE, Byrne JC, Lynn GS, Keskin H (2007) Team stressors, management support, and project and
process outcomes in new product development projects. Technovation 27:628-639 Stress is an important
research area in the group and organizational behavior literature, yet it is underestimated in the new product
development scholarship. In particular, the impact of team stressors on project and process outcomes was
not empirically investigated in NPD project teams. In this study, we test the influence of team stressors,
consisting of team crisis and anxiety, on the project/process outcomes, such as team learning, speed-tomarket, new product success and proficiently executing the each stage of product development process,
including the degree of management support during the project. By investigating 96 NPD projects, we found
that when a high degree of management support is seen during tile project, team crisis positively influences
team learning, speed-to-market and new product success, and team anxiety positively impacts speed-tomarket. Interestingly, when low management support was noted during the project, we were not able to find
any statistical association between team crisis and anxiety, and project outcomes. Also, we found that when
there was a high level of management support, team anxiety is positively related to the proficiency in
executing the idea generation, market/technological assessment, product development, and product
commercialization stages; and team crisis is positively related to the market/technological assessment,
product development, product testing, and product commercialization stages. Further, we found that team
anxiety influences the proficiency in the product development stage regardless of low or high level of
management support. Next, managerial and theoretical implications were discussed.
Akgun AE, Keskin H, Byrne JC, Aren S (2007) Emotional and learning capability and their impact on
product innovativeness and firm performance. Technovation 27:501-513 Learning capability, as a part of
organizational capabilities, is an important factor for product innovativeness. The antecedents of the learning
capability of the firm should be expanded to leverage the understanding of how firms can develop new
products with success. The human resources management and organization behavior literature indicates that
emotional capability of a firm has an impact on learning capabilities. Nevertheless, emotional capability in
general and its impact on learning capability, product innovativeness, and firm performance in particular is
not discussed in the technology and innovation management (TIM) literature. In our investigation of 106
firms., we found that: (1) a firm's level of emotional capability (including the dynamics of display freedom,
experiencing, reconciliation, and identification constructs) has a significant affect on the firm's learning
capability (composed of the managerial commitment, systems perspective, openness and experimentation,
and knowledge transfer and integration); (2) a firm's emotional capability influences its product
innovativeness via learning capability; and (3) a firm's product innovativeness, influenced by emotional and
learning capability, significantly impacts the firm performance.
Allen J, James AD, Gamlen P (2007) Formal versus informal knowledge networks in R&D: a case study
using social network analysis. R & D Management 37:179-196 The existence of informal social networks
within organizations has long been recognized as important and the unique working relationships among
scientific and technical personnel have been well documented by both academics and practitioners. The
growing interest in knowledge management practices has led to increased attention being paid to social
network analysis as a tool for mapping the nature and membership of informal networks. However, despite
the knowledge-intensive nature of research and development (R&D) activities, social network analyses of
the R&D function remain relatively rare. This paper discusses the role of informal networks in the
development, exchange and dissemination of knowledge within the R&D function. A case study using social
network analysis is used to compare and contrast formal and informal knowledge networks within ICI.
Marked differences between the informal organization and ICI formal structures for knowledge exchange
are revealed and a series of insights into the working habits of technical staff are presented. The implications
for managers are clear: through a better understanding of the informal organization of R&D staff, they can
more successfully capture and exploit new ideas; more efficiently disseminate information throughout the
function; and more effectively understand the working habits and activities of employees.
Ancona DG, Caldwell D (2007) Improving the performance of new product teams. Research-Technology
Management 50:37-43
2007 is Research-Technology Management's 50th year of publication. TO mark
the occasion each issue reprints one, of RTMs six most ffrequently referenced articles. The articles were
identified by N. Thongpopanl and Jonathan D. Linton in their 2004 study of technology innovation
managenient.journals, a citation-based study; in which RTM ranked third out of 25 specialty journals in that
field (see RTM, May-June 2004, pp. 5-6). The article reprinted here was originally published in 1990 and
has been updated with its authors reflections. '' Addressing the question of how sucessful product
development teams interact with other groups in the organization, the article describes some qfthe.first
research efforts to systeniatically understand how such teams deal with outside groups. It lays out the
patterns of activities used to coordinate with otherparts of the organization and indicates how these patterns
can influence both the internal functioning (of the team and its overall performance.
Anderson TR, Daim TU, Lavoie FF (2007) Measuring the efficiency of university technology transfer.
Technovation 27:306-318
Universities provide education as well as innovations resulting from their
research. This paper focuses on the service of transferring research results into other sectors. Many
stakeholders such as academic researchers, technology transfer offices (TTOs) and private industry are
involved in technology transfer which calls for a comprehensive approach. A data envelopment analysis
(DEA) approach is used as a productivity evaluation tool applied to university technology transfer. The
methodology included weight restrictions providing a more comprehensive metric. The results include an
examination of efficiency targets for specific universities as well as peer count of inefficient universities.
Evidence of significant efficiency in university technology transfer is found in many leading universities. An
examination of differences between public versus private universities and those with medical schools and
those without indicated that universities with medical schools are less efficient than those without.
Antcliff RR (2007) Three tsunamis cresting move R&D lab of the future. Research-Technology
Management 50:2-3
Augustine NR (2007) Competitiveness: Late but not too late. Research-Technology Management 50:9-12
Azagra-Caro JM (2007) What type of faculty member interacts with what type of firm? Some reasons for
the delocalisation of university-industry interaction. Technovation 27:704-715
While there is significant
interest in improving university-industry interaction, literature on the university side has tended not to focus
on the characteristics of the personnel involved and has largely ignored the issue that there are differences
between types of faculty member in their degrees of interaction. This question is especially relevant at
regional level, as those faculty members who do interact with industry may show a preference for firms that
are larger and technologically superior to those in the region. Most analysts, however, have tended to focus
on the national level, particularly on those countries at the forefront of technological innovation. In the
absence of any formal theory, we propose a two-step method to formulate the hypothesis that only selected
faculty members interact with selected firms. First, we identify the type of faculty member who interacts
with firms. Second, we examine whether this type of faculty member interacts with every type of firm. A
test sample is drawn from the Valencian Community of Spain, a region with low absorptive capacity, where
firms may show undesirable properties for university interaction. The results allow Lis to challenge the view
that certain individual universities may show a higher propensity for interaction once we take into account
differences between the individual characteristics of their faculty members. We also claim that in a region
like the Valencian Community, faculty members who usually participate in contracts (male, holding an
administrative position) do so mainly with larger firms, but not with firms from their own region, where they
find lower technological standards. This partly explains the delocalisation of university-industry interaction.
Backman M, Borjesson S, Setterberg S (2007) Working with concepts in the fuzzy front end: exploring the
context for innovation for different types of concepts at Volvo Cars. R & D Management 37:17-28
Automotive firms are balancing the increasing needs for cost and time efficiency with the necessity of
developing more innovative products to stand out on in a competitive market. The strive for efficiency has
led to an increasingly structured development process with limited allowances for deviations. Previous
academic work has pointed out the importance and embedded potential of the fuzzy front end, where new
concepts still have the possibility to impact the new product development (NPD) process. However, most
research has focused on the transfer of new technologies, while concepts based on e.g. customer or market
knowledge have been more or less neglected. This paper discusses the need for alternative and contingent
approaches in the front end of NPD to also consider the transfer of other types of concepts. More
specifically, it addresses the need to distinguish between different types of concepts and to explore their
different prerequisites in NPD. It is argued that customer- and market-based concepts experience certain
difficulties due to the history and power of technology in research and development (R&D) domains in the
automotive context as well as a lack of support from the existing, formal processes. In this paper, we argue
that all new concepts need to be conceptualized before being introduced to the NPD process, but that does
not always suffice. Concepts other than technology concepts also need a contingent package to enable an
evaluation in the context of the R&D process - they need to be contextualized. This paper draws on an indepth case study of Volvo Cars within a long-lasting collaborative research setup. It is based on an interview
study with key persons in the areas of concept work and NPD, and uses an insider/outsider approach.
Badawy MK (2007) Managing human resources. Research-Technology Management 50:56-74
2007 is
Research-Technology Management's 50th year of publication. To mark the occasion, each issue reprints one
of RTM's six most frequently referenced articles. The articles were identified by N. Thongpapanl and
Jonathan D. Linton in their 2004 study of technology innovation management journals, a citation-based
study in which RTM ranked third out of 25 specialty journals in that field (see RTM, May-June 2004, pp. 56). The article reprinted here was originally published in 1988 and has been updated with its author's
reflections." It surveys what had been learned about the management of human resources during the
previous 50 years since the Industrial Research Institute's founding in 1938. The focus is on the effective
utilization of technical professionals, which the author breaks into four "distinct, yet, interrelated
components or sub-systems": an effective human resource planning, reward, performance appraisal, and
career planning system. After discussing the major research findings and lessons for each element, the
article concludes with a research agenda for the next 50 years.
Baek DH, Sul W, Hong KP, Kim H (2007) A technology valuation model to support technology transfer
negotiations. R & D Management 37:123-138
The development and commercialization of advanced
technologies will depend increasingly on efficient technology transfer and technology trading systems. This
requires the development of technology markets or exchanges and hence a reliable technology valuation
methodology. This paper develops a methodology for an objective and impartial valuation of fully
developed technologies. A web-based technology valuation system is developed with which interested users
can make efficient and real-time evaluations of technologies.
Baker WE, Sinkula JM (2007) Does market orientation facilitate balanced innovation programs? An
organizational learning perspective. Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:316-334
There
appears to be widespread agreement that optimal new product development programs require a balance
between customer-led and lead- the-customer innovation practices. The former is associated with adaptive
learning inspired incremental innovation, whereas the latter is associated with generative-learning-inspired
radical innovation. There is debate, however, as to whether a strong market orientation can facilitate this
balance. Some believe that a strong market orientation causes firms to overemphasize customer-led
incremental innovations. Others believe that a strong market orientation can facilitate this balance but assert
that traditional measures of market orientation only capture the types of behaviors associated with customerled incremental innovations. This latter concern has led some to abandon the single-construct
operationalization of market orientation and to introduce two constructs-responsive and proactive market
orientation-into the literature. The purpose of this research is to address these developments. The study
makes use of a national sample of marketing executives and employs a cross-sectional survey design.
Measures used are market orientation, radical and incremental innovation priority, generative and adaptive
learning priority, and new product success. Confirmatory factor analyses and structural equations models are
employed to develop measures and to test hypotheses. The study's results reaffirm the position that a strong
market orientation helps facilitate a balance between incremental and radical innovation by shifting firms'
innovation priority more toward radical innovation activities. It also suggests that the abandonment of
traditional conceptualizations and measures of market orientation are premature.
Ball A (2007) Knowledge at work: Creative collaboration in the global economy. R & D Management
37:280-281
Ball A (2007) The exceptional manager: Making the difference. R & D Management 37:89-90
Barczak G, Sultan F, Hultink EJ (2007) Determinants of IT usage and new product performance. Journal of
Product Innovation Management 24:600-613
Explosive growth of information technologies (IT) has
prompted interest in examining the role of IT in new product development (NPD). Through desktop
software and Web-based tools, IT has been used to aid idea generation and product testing as well as for
NPD activities such as process and portfolio management. Recent research suggests, however, that a gap
exists between IT availability and usage. Given the importance of IT in creating business value through the
development of new products and services, the present study seeks to identify factors that affect IT usage.
Further, anecdotal evidence and conceptual studies intimate that the usage of IT tools for NPD can shorten
time to market, can improve product quality, and can increase productivity. However, empirical
substantiation of this impact is mostly nonexistent. The current study investigates the relationship between
IT usage and two measures of new product performance: speed to market and market performance.
Employing a mail-survey methodology, the study uses data from a sample of practitioner members from the
Product Development & Management Association to examine the effect of project risk, existence of a
champion, autonomy, innovative climate, IT infrastructure, and IT embeddedness on the extent of IT usage.
These data are also used to explore the impact of IT usage on speed to market and market performance. The
results indicate that project risk, existence of a champion, and IT embeddedness positively affect the extent
of IT usage for NPD. Additionally, IT usage positively and significantly influences the performance of the
new product in the marketplace. Surprisingly, and contrary to popular belief, IT usage does not have any
impact on speed to market. An important implication of this study is that IT usage influences performance
but not in the way managers expect. Specifically, IT usage does not seem to affect speed to market but rather
positively impacts the performance of the new product in the marketplace. This result suggests that IT usage
in NPD provides far more value to firms than previously thought and provides evidence to support greater
investments in IT for product development efforts. Other implications of the study are that unless IT is
embedded into the NPD process and champions for IT tools exist, chances are that IT will not be used and
its benefits will not be realized.
Bart C, Pujari A (2007) The performance impact of content and process in product innovation charters.
Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:3-19
The significance of product innovation charters
(PICs) cannot be overemphasized, as they provide understanding and a tool for setting organizational goals,
charting strategic direction, and allocating resources for new product portfolios. In a unique way, a PIC
represents a sort of mission statement mutation for new products. With the backdrop of strategy formulation
and product innovation literatures, this article investigates the impact of both content specificity within PICs
and satisfaction with the PIC formulation process on new product performance in North American
corporations. A survey was undertaken among executives knowledgeable about their organization's new
product development process. The respondents included chief executive officers, vice presidents, directors,
and managers. The findings demonstrate that significant differences exist both in PIC content specificity and
process satisfaction between highly innovative and low innovative firms. The study also shows that PIC
specificity in terms of the factors mission content and strategic directives positively influences new product
performance. Further, the study demonstrates that satisfaction with the process of formulating PICs plays a
positive and powerful mediating role in the PIC specificity-performance relationship. The results suggest
that product innovation charters, like their mission statement cousins, may be of more value than most
managers realize. The study shows that achieving a state of organizational satisfaction with a PIC's
formulation process is critical for obtaining better new product performance. Directions for future research
also are suggested.
Bayo-Moriones A, Lera-Lopez F (2007) A firm-level analysis of determinants of ICT adoption in Spain.
Technovation 27:352-366 The purpose of this paper is to analyse the role played by five groups of factors
in ICT adoption: environment, firm structural characteristics, human capital, competitive strategy, and
internal organization. In order to achieve this goal, the data collected in a survey with a sample of 337
Spanish workplaces are used. The paper overcomes some of the limitations found in the empirical literature
since it examines several ICT infrastructure and usage indicators at the same time, using a sample of
workplaces of different sizes in all activity sectors in a context of a developed country with a low rate of ICT
incidence. Results highlight the need to study the different ICT separately as well as the importance of
establishment size, multinational ownership, and high-skilled workforce in ICT adoption. Quality control
systems and team-based organization of work also play a relevant role in the diffusion of certain. elements
of ICT within firms. The need of reviewing the traditional public support for ICT implementation on small
workplaces arises, together with the existence of complementarities with policies aimed to attract foreign
investments and to increase the workforce education level as a way to spread ICT implementation. Results
also show that managers need to align ICT adoption and the strategic focus of the firm more consistently.
Bayus BL, Kang W, Agarwal R (2007) Creating growth in new markets: A simultaneous model of firm
entry and price. Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:139-155 Sales in a new market generally
follow a hockey-stick pattern: After commercialization, sales are very low for some time before there is a
dramatic takeoff in growth. Reported sales takeoffs across products vary widely from a few years to several
decades. Prior research identifies new firm entry or price declines as key factors that relate to the timing of a
sales takeoff in new markets. However, this literature considers these variables to be exogenous and only
finds unilateral effects. In the present article, new firm entry and price declines are modeled as being
endogenous. Thus, the simultaneous relationship between price declines and firm entry in the introductory
period of new markets when industry sales are negligible is studied. Using a sample of new markets formed
in the United States during the last 135 years, strong support for a simultaneous model of price and firm
entry is found: Price decreases relate to the competitive pressures associated with firm entry, and, in turn,
firm entry is lower in new markets with rapidly falling prices. Furthermore, a key driver of firm entry during
the early years of a new market involves the level of patent activity, and a key driver of price decreases is
the presence of large firms. In contrast to the recommendations from other research, these results indicate
that rapid price declines may further delay sales takeoff in industries by dampening new firm entry. Instead,
rapid sales takeoffs in new markets come from encouraging greater innovative activity and the entry of large
firms.
Berkowitz L (2007) Unobviousness now less obvious. Research-Technology Management 50:7-7
Berkowitz L (2007) Supreme court says you can license and sue. Research-Technology Management 50:9-9
Biemans W, Griffin A, Moenaert R (2007) Twenty years of the Journal of product innovation management:
History, participants, and knowledge stock and flows. Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:193213
The Journal of Product Innovation Management (JPIM) serves as a marketplace for science-based,
innovative ideas that are produced and consumed by scholars and businesspeople. Now that JPIM has
existed for 20 years, two intriguing questions emerge: (1) How has the journal evolved over time in terms of
knowledge stock, that is, what are the characteristics of the growing stock of knowledge published by JPIM
over the years; and (2) how has the journal evolved in knowledge flow, that is, how is JPIM influenced by
other scientific publications and what is its impact on other journals? In terms of knowledge stock, over 35%
of the articles published over the 20 years investigate processes and metrics for performance management.
The next most frequently published area was strategy, planning, and decision making (20%), followed by
customer and market research (17%). The dominant research method used was a cross-sectional largesample survey, and the focus most usually is at the project level of the firm. The large majority of JPIM
authors (60%) have a marketing background, with the remaining 40% representing numerous functional
domains. Academics at all levels publish in JPIM, and though most authors hail from North America, the
Dutch are a significant second group. JPIM was analyzed from a knowledge-flow perspective by looking at
the scientific sources used by JPIM authors to develop their ideas and articles. To this end a bibliometric
analysis was performed by analyzing all references in articles published in JPIM. During 1984-2003 JPIM
published 488 articles, containing 10,314 references to journals and 6,533 references to other sources. Some
20% of these references (2,020) were self-references to JPIM articles. The remaining 8,294 journal
references were to articles in 287 journals in the fields of management (25%), marketing (24%), and
management of technology (14%). However, it should be pointed out that many domains were dominated by
a limited number of journals. The second component of knowledge flow concerns the extent to which the
ideas developed in JPIM are consumed by other authors. Again, bibliometric analysis was used to analyze
data from the Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI) about citations to JPIM in other journals. For the period
1984-2005, the SSCI registered 7,773 citations to JPIM in 2,067 articles published in 278 journals (including
the 2,020 self-citations in JPIM). The functional areas most frequently citing JPIM are management of
technology (25%), marketing (15%), management (14%), and operations management and management
science (9%). Again, several domains were found to be dominated by a limited number of journals. At the
level of individual journals the analysis shows a growing impact of JPIM on management of technology
journals. The knowledge-flow analysis demonstrates how JPIM functions as a bridge between the
knowledge from various domains and the body of knowledge on management of technology. It suggests a
growing specialization of the field of technology innovation management, with JPIM being firmly
entrenched as the acknowledged leading journal.
Blau J (2007) Philips tears down Eindhoven R & D fence. Research-Technology Management 50:9-10
Blau J (2007) Entrepreneurship popping in Silicon Fjord. Research-Technology Management 50:2-3
Blau J (2007) New EU partnerships aim to boost competitiveness. Research-Technology Management 50:78
Blau J (2007) IBM's Germany lab holds onto skilled high-paid engineers. Research-Technology
Management 50:5-7
Brodie CH (2007) Innovation games: Creating breakthrough products through collaborative play by luke
hohmann. Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:629-630
Brown C, Markham S (2007) Innovation learning at BP. Research-Technology Management 50:9-14
Brown S (2007) Making common sense common practice - models for manufacturing excellence.
Technovation 27:89-90
Bruce M, Daly L, Kahn KB (2007) Delineating design factors that influence the global product launch
process*. Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:456-470 Preparing for and managing the global
product launch process offers unique challenges as each targeted country can pose unique differences across
the design categories of channel parameters, country mores, language and colloquialisms, and technology
infrastructure. Though not an exhaustive list, these have a predominant influence on the global product
launch process on a per-global-region basis. Using a case-study methodology, this article draws on the
global product launch experiences of two firms, showing that such influences preclude use of a massmarketing, standardization approach. Though it appears that certain elements of global product launch may
be standardized for purposes of efficiencies, a global product launch appears to require at least some degree
of customization. Such thinking parallels a design perspective, which mandates a tailoring of product and
marketing mix to encourage early acceptance within the intended global market. To suggest when
customization should be employed, four design categories of channel parameters-country mores, language
and colloquialisms, and technology infrastructure-appear to have strong propensity to dictate customized
design requirements for a worldwide launch, where greater differences across these design categories would
mandate more customization toward each respective global region. Post hoc comments by managers in the
focal case studies support this and further delineate that these four design factors necessitate keen
consideration in the course of planning and enacting activities during the global product launch process. The
two cases studies especially show that customized design decisions will likely pertain to launch schedule
due to local retailers' calendars, product aesthetics due to local consumer preferences, point-of-sale and other
marketing communications due to language requirements, and technology enhancements in light of local
market acceptability and both social and regulatory expectations. Managers involved in planning a global
product launch should therefore heed channel owners-brand owners, retailers, and distributors-so that they
give preference to, promote, and sell the respective company's product relative to competitors' products. To
assist toward securing such preference status, channel owners should have a role in advising the timing of
launch and design considerations (e.g., color and form). Logistic issues, such as delivery and after-sales
support via this channel, are keen considerations as well. Logistics has to be thought through to ensure that
demand can be met across all regions for a new product. And with the growing prevalence of Internet
worldwide, managers must pay keen attention to cultural references and language used on any Internet site
to ensure that the product is properly represented and promoted during its global launch. The process of a
global product launch is therefore more than the company's ability to gain access to a particular market; it is
the company's ability to understand key design issues per each global region respectively and to respond to
pressing global region differences by customizing the total product offering to meet the needs of that global
region.
Bruque S, Moyano J (2007) Organisational determinants of information technology adoption and
implementation in SMEs: The case of family and cooperative firms. Technovation 27:241-253
The
current work attempts to identify the factors behind the intensity and speed of adoption of information
technology in small and medium-sized firms (SMEs) in which family or cooperative character play an
important role. For this purpose, we have used a qualitative perspective, in which we have taken into
account the opinions of entrepreneurs and managers of SMEs that have been involved in technological
change processes in recent years. Our results indicate that there are a number of internal factors that
influence the success of the adoption decision, on the one hand, and the implementation process, on the
other hand. Among these, we might mention various systems for the socialisation of the workers, the
rotation of personnel for exemplary purposes, the simultaneous implementation of information technology
and quality systems, and professionalisation in the case of family firms. There are also inhibiting factors of
the adoption and implementation, such as the modification of the firm's hierarchy and power structures, as
well as the absence of qualified personnel.
Bryde DJ, Joby R (2007) Product-based planning: the importance of project and project management
deliverables in the management of clinical trials. R & D Management 37:363-377 As the cost of clinical
trials continues to rise organisations are looking at ways of managing this part of the drug development
process as effectively and efficiently as possible. As a tactical response, many pharmaceutical companies
outsource the management of clinical trials to clinical research organisations on a fixed-price contract basis.
This paper presents an alternative approach based on the concept of Product-Based Planning. Key elements
of the approach are the creation of a deliverables budget and the establishment of project managementrelated deliverables. The conceptual developments described in the paper are supported by a telephone
survey of 10 UK practitioners. The survey confirms the prevalence and limitations of fixed-price contracts
while highlighting a willingness to try a deliverable-based approach - initially through small pilot studies.
The key barrier to implementing a new approach is resistance from key stakeholders, such as finance
departments, which can be addressed through selling of the business case.
Buggie FD (2007) Follow these product development "rules". Research-Technology Management 50:12-14
Calantone RJ, Griffith DA (2007) From the special issue editors: Challenges and opportunities in the field of
global product launch. Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:414-418
Calantone RJ, Stanko MA (2007) Drivers of outsourced innovation: An exploratory study. Journal of
Product Innovation Management 24:230-241 The outsourcing of innovation has been on the rise for years,
but research in this area lags behind industry practice. Interviews with managers and a theory base grounded
in transaction cost analysis are used to guide the development of an exploratory model that details potential
drivers of the outsourcing of innovation activities. Using industry-level data, the proposed model is partially
tested using two distinct regression analyses that reveal significant effects both contemporaneously and
persisting over time. Several of the proposed drivers of outsourced innovation are shown to be significant,
including exploratory research performed and profit margin. The finding that exploratory research
performed is significantly related to the outsourcing of innovation activities represents a significant
contribution to the innovation and organizational learning literatures. As well, finding a relationship between
margins and organizational sourcing fills a gap in the business to business marketing literature. Managerial
implications are drawn for both managers of the innovation process in traditional firms and those in firms
wishing to garner outsourced innovation contracts. The drivers found to be significant in this study should
allow for better resource planning from innovation managers in traditional firms as well as better targeting
of perspective clients from firms seeking contract innovation business.
Calia RC, Guerrini FM, Mourac GL (2007) Innovation networks: From technological development to
business model reconfiguration. Technovation 27:426-432 This case study presents an example of how a
technological innovation network provides the necessary resources to change the business model, in order to
achieve global competitiveness. It describes the R&D investments of a family-operated business that
supplies the aluminum industry with metals and non-ferrous metal alloys. Seven years ago, when the
company was facing a severe financial crisis, it ignited a "re-birth" process through research activities,
which developed a product known as "aluminum tablets". The company established changes and brought
product innovations by introducing tablets from steel scraps with aluminum alloys through "water
atomization" technology. The impact of this innovation was not limited to the new product's technological
aspect, but it also changed the company's operational and commercial activities, which ultimately resulted in
a more comprehensive customer base focused in foreign trade. The present work appraises the evolution and
development of this product, supported by a theoretical reference focused on innovation networks and
business models.
Camarinha-Matos LM, Afsarmanesh H (2007) Results assessment and impact creation in collaborative
research - An example from the ECOLEAD project. Technovation 27:65-77 Assessing research progress
and results in collaborative projects is a rather difficult subject for which there are no clear effective
methods, and yet researchers are accountable to their funding sponsors. Based on some experiences with
European projects, this paper contributes to the discussion of assessment methods and their limitations in the
case of collaborative projects. The impact creation process is also analyzed and linked to the assessment
process.
Canez L, Puig L, Quintero R, Garfias M (2007) Linking technology acquisition to a gated NPD process.
Research-Technology Management 50:49-55
In today's competitive business and technology
environment, the consideration of acquiring technology from industry leaders to deliver technology based
solutions is an imperative. Although there is an increased recognition of the need to establish collaborative
arrangements for technology acquisition, there is evidence that the success rate of alliances is less than 50
percent. This finding highlights the need for a structured approach to technology acquisition. The approach
adopted in the Mexican oil industry not only assists managers in considering relevant factors for establishing
more successful collaborations for technology development in a new product development (NPD) context, it
also encourages organizations to regularly scan available technologies in the marketplace before deciding on
in-house technology development.
Castellion G (2007) Hard facts, dangerous half-truths, and total nonsense: Profiting from evidence-based
management. Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:506-508
Castellion G (2007) Manage for profit, not for market share: A guide to greater profits in highly contested
markets. Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:404-406
Castellion G (2007) Kellogg on branding: By the marketing faculty of the Kellogg School of Management.
Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:184-186
Cegarra Navarro JG, Dewhurst FW, Briones Penalver AJ (2007) Factors affecting the use of e-Government
in the telecommunications industry of Spain. Technovation 27:595-604 e-Government has become one of
the most important keywords for the public sector reform with proponents claiming that it guarantees
transparency; Accountability; Interface with citizen; Business; And other local and national administrations.
Few, if any, studies have investigated the factors that might contribute to the integration or implementation
of e-Government in business; Particularly SME. This paper examines the relative importance and
significance of company size; Business performance and three types of information communication
technology on the use of e-Government through an empirical investigation of 321 businesses in the Spanish
Telecommunication sector using a multinomial logistic regression. The main conclusions are that there is a
significant lack of use of the internet for e-Government by SMEs and that any use of e-Government is
significantly affected by the size of business and the extent of use of information communication technology
within the business. Although the targets set by the Eu for e-government might be achieved it is unlikely that
many businesses will take advantage
Chang SL, Chen CY, Wey SC (2007) Conceptualizing, assessing, and managing front-end fuzziness in
innovation/NPD projects. R & D Management 37:469-478
Front-end fuzziness (FEF) within
innovation/NPD projects remains unclear and under-explored. In this research, FEF is clarified to have three
change patterns of dynamic fuzziness levels and to have both positive and negative effects on the success of
an innovation/NPD project. In this context, FEF sources are categorized into front-end environment, means,
and goals, and FEF dimensions are extended to include uncertainty, equivocality, complexity, and
variability. Accordingly, a management template is developed to help innovators track specific FEF to
relative sources, assess FEF quantitatively, and manage both the positive and the negative effects of FEE
Finally, the article concludes with suggestions of the applications of the FEF management template.
Chang WC, Li ST (2007) Fostering knowledge management deployment in R&D workspaces: a five-stage
approach. R & D Management 37:479-493
In recent years, R&D institutes have encountered various
intensified challenges. New instruments are needed to manage knowledge-related activities more effectively
and efficiently. This paper presents and discusses the lessons learned from a case study in fostering
knowledge management (KM) initiatives and systems in a research-oriented institute serving the metal
industry, specifically the Metal Industries Research and Development Centre (MIRDC) in Taiwan. We
perform a comparative review of the experience of embarking on KM among Taiwanese R&D institutes, a
very rarely performed job. Following this, we investigate, by conducting the primary and secondary
researches, how MIRDC has adopted a five-stage approach to develop a deliberate framework of KM
deployment in order to manipulate the KM operations in the context of a Chinese R&D institute. The
MIRDC case demonstrates a sophisticated KM process that provides an activity-based perspective of the
plan, control, coordination and evaluation framework in an R&D workspace. This paper argues that welldefined deployment frameworks embody qualities of goal pursuing that are important to KM activities and
compel managers to examine more closely how to realize the KM initiatives. This paper also reveals that a
rigid hierarchical R&D structure inhibits the dynamics of the knowledge cycle due to technology
segmentation. A parallel R&D structure supported by mission offices and a 'pioneer and innovation program'
that is cross-departmental and industry-focused can positively motivate horizontal 'coopertition' networking
so as to better exploit and leverage knowledge assets. The practices applied in these elemental KM activities
are useful to other R&D organizations by suggesting how each of the KM activities can be configured and
implemented.
Chao CC, Jen WY, Hung MC, Li YC, Chi YP (2007) An innovative mobile approach for patient safety
services: The case of a Taiwan health care movider. Technovation 27:342-351
As the importance of
patient safety increases for hospital management, many health care providers have begun to use innovative
mobile technology to make their procedures more accurate and efficient, and to reduce the risk of human
error. This paper explores an innovative mobile approach for patient safety and health care services in a
Taiwan hospital, where a web-based patient safety services (PSS) system was implemented to enhance the
efficiency of diagnosis and patient safety. The functions and operating procedures of the PSS system are
introduced. Furthermore, the contributions of the PSS system over a six-month period of clinical use are
analyzed. Finally, the managerial implications of mobile PSS are discussed.
Chao CC, Yang JM, Jen WY (2007) Determining technology trends and forecasts of RFID by a historical
review and bibliometric analysis from 1991 to 2005. Technovation 27:268-279
Radio frequency
identification (RFID) has been identified as one of the ten greatest contributory technologies of the 21st
century. This technology has found a rapidly growing market, with global sales expected to top US $7
billion by 2008. An increasing variety of enterprises are employing RFID to improve their efficiency of
operations and to gain a competitive advantage. To shed light on RFID trends, and contributions, a historical
review and bibliometric analysis are included in this research. The bibliometric analytical technique was
used to examine this topic in SCI journals from 1991 through November of 2005. Also, a historical review
method was used to analyze RFID innovation, adoption by organizations, and market diffusion. From the
analysis of the study's findings, supply chain management (SCM), health industry, and privacy issues
emerge as the major trends in RFID. Also, the contributions of the RFID industry and forecasts of
technological trends were also analyzed, concluding that RFID will be more ubiquitously diffused and
assimilated into our daily lives in the near future.
Chen SH (2007) The national innovation system and foreign R&D: the case of Taiwan. R & D Management
37:441-453 R&D internationalization has increasingly involved countries outside the developed world. In
addition, there has been a growing trend for countries in East Asia to seek to attract the R&D facilities of
multinationals (MNCs). For such countries, they are faced with a fundamental question as to what kinds of
impact MNCs' offshore R&D facilities will have on their own countries, especially in terms of technological
innovation and industrial development. Set against the above backdrop, this paper sets out to examine a
relatively new aspect of R&D internationalization related to global innovation networks and to open up the
blackbox of the spillover effect regarding foreign R&D by examining the interplay of foreign R&D and
Taiwan's national innovation system. The empirical part of the paper draws mainly upon intensive case
studies of four high-profile foreign R&D facilities in the IT industry. The way foreign R&D interplays with
Taiwan's NIS is examined in terms of the market & technology linkages.
Cheng SH, Wang YD, Horng RY, Huang YC (2007) Person-project fit and R&D performance: A case study
of industrial technology research institute of Taiwan. R & D Management 37:209-220
This study
examined the relation between the research and development (R&D) performance and the fit between a
researcher's cognitive type and the task demand of the project that was implied in Wang, Wu & Horng's
(1999) study. Three hundred and eighteen research projects completed by 205 project leaders in the 3 years
were classified into Unsworth's four creativity types along two dimensions: (1) whether the research
addressed an open- or closed-ended problem and (2) whether the project was assigned or actively sought by
the researcher. Each researcher's personal traits were assessed using Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI)
and Kirton's Adaptor-Innovator Scale (KAI). Results show that researchers with a conforming, feeling, or
judging-type cognition performed better with assigned projects for solving closed problems. Those with an
originality and intuitive-type cognition performed better on self-initiated projects for solving open-ended
problems. Researchers with sensing-type cognition performed better with assigned projects for solving
open-ended questions. Thus, a careful match between a researcher's cognitive type and the task demand of
project is important for R&D management.
Chesbrough H, Schwartz K (2007) Innovating business models with co-development partnerships.
Research-Technology Management 50:55-59
Business model innovation is vital to sustaining open
innovation. External technology partnerships allow, open business models to accomplish even more. One
important mechanism for innovating one's business model is through establishing co-development
relationships. The proper character of these relationships varies, depending on the context for the
relationship. To sustain co-developinent relationships, one must carefully, define the business objectives and
align the business models of each firm. One should also determine whether the various R&D capabilities are
core, critical or contextual. The decision to partner externally will have different iniplications for each of
these.
Chiesa V, Frattini F (2007) Exploring the differences in performance measurement between research and
development: evidence from a multiple case study. R & D Management 37:283-301
Researchers and
practitioners have recently paid great attention to research and development (R&D) performance
measurement, although it is acknowledged to be a very challenging task because of R&D intrinsic
uncertainty and complexity levels. In this paper, the problem of designing a performance measurement
system (PMS) for R&D activities is addressed; specifically, we investigate if and how the design of the PMS
is influenced by the type of activity it is applied to, namely Basic and Applied Research or new product
development (NPD). We first develop a theoretical framework that comprises the main constitutive elements
of a PMS for R&D. Then the framework is used for supporting a multiple case study analysis involving
eight Italian technology-intensive firms. The research results show that the criteria for designing the
constitutive elements of the PMS are radically different in Basic and Applied Research and NPD. The
reasons behind the observed dissimilarities in the design criteria are widely discussed in the paper, as well as
their implications for R&D managers.
Chiva R, Alegre J (2007) Linking design management skills and design function organization: An empirical
study of Spanish and Italian ceramic tile producers. Technovation 27:616-627
Design management is an
increasingly important concept, research into which is very scarce. This paper deals with the fit between
design management skills and design function organization, ranging from solely in-house to solely
outsourced and including a mixture of the two. We carried out a survey in the Spanish and Italian ceramic
tile industry, to which 177 product development managers responded. Our results revealed that companies
have different degrees of design management skills depending oil tile approach to design function
organization. Solely in-house design approach companies are the most skilled firms and solely outsourced
ones are the least skilled. Despite the fact that the design function has apparently evolved towards
outsourcing, this research supports the idea that., under certain conditions, the in-house design department is
the best option in order to attain higher degrees of design management skills. Implications of the findings for
both academics and practitioners are examined.
Choi DY, Perez A (2007) Online piracy, innovation, and legitimate business models. Technovation 27:168178
This explorative paper examines the impact of online piracy on innovation and the creation of new,
legitimate businesses. While viewed only as a legal matter, online piracy has shown to be an important
source of technological and strategic innovation to both industry incumbents and newcomers. This paper
briefly describes the evolution of pirate technologies and the associated online communities. Then, it
examines the processes by which pirate technologies and communities have stimulated innovation and the
creation of pirate as well as legitimate business models. The paper concludes with some suggestions by
which incumbents and entrepreneurs may deal with and take advantage of piracy.
Citrin AV, Lee RP, McCullough J (2007) Information use and new product outcomes: The contingent role
of strategy type. Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:259-273
Information is an important
resource for firms to develop new products successfully, and firms must rely on their ability to use
information effectively. This research builds on information processing and contingency theories to explore
the effect of firm strategy type and the conceptual and instrumental use of information on new product
outcomes. Firms operating in high-tech industries are faced with high levels of uncertainty caused by rapidly
evolving technologies. Consequently, creating innovative and successful products becomes particularly
challenging. Past research examining organizational use of information points to the presence of strategic
contingencies that may impact the new product outcomes that accrue to a firm. A cross-sectional study was
conducted to examine how the impact of information use on new product outcomes varies by strategy type.
Using data from 150 software development firms based in a developing economy, the theoretical hypotheses
proposed are tested. After controlling for environmental turbulence, the research results demonstrate that
firms focusing on specific types of information use innovate successfully only when that information use is
congruent with an appropriate strategic orientation. Specifically, the present study finds that prospector
firms focusing on conceptual information use enhance both their new product performance and new product
creativity outcomes, whereas analyzer firms enhance only their new product performance outcomes. A focus
on instrumental information use has different effects for firms. Defender firms enhance both their new
product performance and creativity outcomes only when focusing on instrumental information use. In
contrast, prospector firms detract from their new product creativity outcomes, and analyzer firms reduce
their new product performance outcomes when focusing on instrumental information use.
Clarke T (2007) Teaching Chinese R&D managers. Research-Technology Management 50:4-5
Clarysse B, Bruneel J (2007) Nurturing and growing innovative start-ups: the role of policy as integrator. R
& D Management 37:139-149
Nurturing and growing innovative start-ups have become an important
point on the political agenda. After the dotcom bubble, however, many financial schemes and incubation
initiatives initiated, in the mid-nineties, were cancelled or down scaled. There was a consensus that
innovative start-ups need more than just money. Networking and coaching were identified as additional
needs. Besides this, there is a change in the intensity and nature of these needs during the different stages of
the early life cycle. In this paper we make an in-depth study of three approaches to nurture and grow
innovative start-ups. Each of these initiatives embeds in a very different national innovation system:
Chalmers Innovation in Sweden and Anvar/Banque de Developpement des PMEs in France, and Sitra's
PreSeed Service in Finland. Each approach is compared in terms of its financing, networking, and coaching
support, along the different stages of the start-up's life cycle.
Coates JF (2007) The lab in a box or the evolving laboratory. Research-Technology Management 50:3-6
Coates JF (2007) Wanted: A theory of the Internet. Research-Technology Management 50:10-11
Coates JF (2007) Management from A to Z: 2057. Research-Technology Management 50:32-34
Continuity and change will mark the rubbery boundaries of a manager's worklife 50 years from now.
Information technologies will facilitate and improve the handling of such issues as education and training,
while cultural elements in a globalized world will raise new problems. While American English will be the
lingua franca, it will be far from the universal culture, which will demand new levels of managerial
sophistication. The unionization of R&D managers will create new benefits, including sabbaticals, profit
sharing on inventions and discoveries, and sophisticated training to keep tip with new developments.
Anonymous electronic voting on merit and credibility will guide relations with a firm's top management.
Collins L (2007) Industrial/academic collaboration is 3-way win. Research-Technology Management 50:3-5
Collins L (2007) Embedding innovation into the firm. Research-Technology Management 50:5-6
Collins L (2007) Citizens' juries take hold in United Kingdom, Denmark. Research-Technology
Management 50:2-4
Collinson S (2007) High-tech industries in China. Technovation 27:322-323
Cooke Y (2007) SMEs and new technologies: Learning E-business and development. Technovation 27:413413
Cooper RG (2007) Grappling with innovation. Research-Technology Management 50:7-8
Cooper RG, Kleinschmidt EJ (2007) Winning businesses in product development: The critical success
factors. Research-Technology Management 50:52-66
2007 is Research-Technology Management's 50th
year of publication. To mark the occasion, each issue reprints one of RTM's six most frequently referenced
articles. The articles were identified by N.. Thongpapanl andJonathan D. Linton in their 2004 study of
technology innovation management journals, a citation-based study in which RTM ranked third out of 25
specialty journals in that field (see RTM, May-June 2004, pp. 5-6). The benchmarking study reprinted here
was originally published in 1996 and has been updated with its author's reflections. Their study of 161
business units uncovered the key drivers of new product performance at the business unit level. Ten
different performance measures were gauged, including percentage of sales by new products, profitability
and success rate. The ten gauges were reduced to two key performance dimensions-profltability and impactwhich defined the "perfbrmance map." Nine possible drivers-including strategy, process, organizational
design, and climate-for innovation-were investigated, and four key drivers of performance were identified;
namely, a high-quality new product process, the new product strategy for the business unit, resource
availability, and R&D spending levels. Merely having a formal new product process had no impact.
Cosner RR, Hynds EJ, Fusfeld AR, Loweth CV, Scouten C, Albright R (2007) Integrating roadmapping into
technical planning. Research-Technology Management 50:31-48
Developing a roadmap within a single
product line or a single autonomous business unit is relatively straightforward. A substantial body of
literature exists on the process of generating roadmaps at the product, group or business-unit level. However,
additional factors need to be considered when extending roadmapping to an integrated view of several
highly autonomous business units. The customer base, the rate of product turnover, and the planning horizon
will vary across business units. The architecture of the integrated roadmaps and the model for supporting the
process should fit the structure and organization of the company. Additional issues also can be anticipated in
areas including the scope of roadmapping, the level of detail in the roadmaps, the security of the roadmap
information, and the use of a standard taxonomy to integrate information from diverse organizations.
Crawford JC (2007) Product innovation: Leading change through integrated product development. Journal
of Product Innovation Management 24:188-190
Cutler G (2007) R&D gets up to speak. Research-Technology Management 50:67-69
Cutler G (2007) Hank shakes the technical ladder. Research-Technology Management 50:67-68
Cutler G (2007) Mike leads his first virtual team. Research-Technology Management 50:66-68
Davenport S, Bibby D (2007) Contestability and contested stability: Life and times of CSIRO's New
Zealand cousins, the Crown Research Institutes. Innovation-Management Policy & Practice 9:181-191
The progress of the Crown Research Institutes (CRIs) since their formation in 1992 from the dismantling of
the centralised Department of Scientific and Industrial Research (DSIR) is charted. Particular attention is
paid to the funding environment, characterised by the concept of contestability, in which the CRIs have
operated. In recent years, the CRIs have lobbied for more funding stability arguing that contestability has
resulted in fickle funding decisions, eroding their ability to plan for the long-term and build human capital.
Certainly recent changes in policy reflect a greater concern with CRI capability. When the Government
moved to increase the amount of core funding for CRIs, however, the universities, concerned that this would
reduce their access to funding, argued that this 'stability' would result in ossification and less than excellent
science. The paper concludes with some reflections on the contrast between the CSIRO and CRI cousins,
and on the future for CRIs.
de Campos AL (2007) Renewing unilever: Transformation and tradition. Technovation 27:716-717
de Weerd-Nederhof P (2007) Innovation management: Strategy and implementation using the pentathlon
framework. R & D Management 37:90-92
De Weerd-Nederhof PC, Wouters MJF, Teuns SJA, Hissel PH (2007) The architecture improvement
method: cost management and systemic learning about strategic product architectures. R & D Management
37:425-439
The architecture improvement method (AIM) is a method for multidisciplinary product
architecture improvement, addressing uncertainty and complexity and incorporating feedback loops,
facilitating trade-off decision making during the architecture creation process. The research reported in this
paper demonstrates the ability of the AIM to contribute to cost management and systemic learning in the
creation of strategic product architectures, throughout the entire product life cycle. Application of the
method in five case studies within two divisions of Royal Philips Electronics shows that in cases of medium
uncertainty, substantial cost management benefits can be achieved and that the AIM facilitates systemic
learning through the accumulation of architectural competence, thus facilitating organizational memory.
Deck MJ (2007) Dealing with Darwin: How great companies innovate at every phase of their evolution.
Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:91-93
Decter M, Bennett D, Leseure M (2007) University to business technology transfer - UK and USA
comparisons. Technovation 27:145-155
University to business technology transfer offers specific
challenges, beyond those encountered in industry more widely. This paper examines the issues in university
to business technology transfer in the UK and USA and presents the results of a survey of UK and US
university technology transfer officers. Findings indicate significant differences in the motivations of
universities in each country to transfer technology, the consistency of university technology transfer policies
and the accessibility of university technologies to business. The study also looks at perceived barriers to
university to business technology transfer and offers suggestions for possible improvements to the process.
Deevi SC (2007) The strategy paradox: Why committing to success leads to failure and what to do about it.
Research-Technology Management 50:77-78
Deevi SC (2007) Permanent innovat!on: The definitive guide to the principles, strategies, and methods of
successful innovators. Research-Technology Management 50:69-69
Dehoff K, Loehr J (2007) Innovation agility. Research-Technology Management 50:70-70
Dell'Era C, Verganti R (2007) Strategies of innovation and imitation of product languages. Journal of
Product Innovation Management 24:580-599
Nowadays, design is recognized as a strategic resource.
Customers are increasingly paying attention to the aesthetic, symbolic, and emotional value of products, a
value that is conveyed by the design language-that is, the combination of signs (e.g., form, colors, materials)
that gives meaning to a product. As a consequence firms are devoting increasing efforts to define a proper
strategy for the design language of their products. An empirical analysis was conducted on the product
language strategies in the Italian furniture industry; in particular, the present article explores the relationship
between innovation and variety of product languages. Companies are usually faced by two major strategic
decisions. The first one concerns the innovation of product languages: To what extent should a firm
proactively propose new design languages or, rather, should adopt a reactive strategy by rapidly adopting
new languages as they emerge in the market? The second decision concerns the variety and heterogeneity of
languages in their product range. Should a firm propose a single product language to communicate a precise
identity, or should it explore different product languages? Of course, the two strategic decisionsinnovativeness and variety of product languages-are closed connected. Analyzing more than 2.000 products
launched by 210 firms, the present article explores how the variety of product languages is approached in the
strategy of innovators and imitators. The empirical results illustrate an inverse relationship between
innovativeness and heterogeneity of product signs and languages. Contrary to what is expected, innovators
have lower heterogeneity of product languages. They tend to be strongly proactive and limit
experimentations of new languages in the market. Imitators, instead-which would be expected to have low
variety since they can invest only in languages that have been proven successful in the market-tend on the
contrary to have higher product variety. Eventually, by having lower investments in research on trends of
sociocultural models, they miss the capability to interpret the complex evolution of products signs and
languages in the market. Strategic decisions on innovativeness and variety of product languages are
therefore interrelated; counterintuitively companies should carefully analyze these decisions jointly.
Desouza KC, Awazu Y, Ramaprasad A (2007) Modifications and innovations to technology artifacts.
Technovation 27:204-220
What happens to a technology artifact after it is adopted? It has to evolve
within its particular context to be effective; otherwise, it will become part of the detritus of change, like the
many genes without a discernible function in a living organism. In this paper, we report on a study of postadoptive behavior that examined how users modified and innovated with technology artifacts. We uncovered
three types of modifications made to technology artifacts: personalization, customization, and inventions.
Personalization attempts are modifications involving changes to technology parameters to meet the
specificities of the user; customization attempts adapt the technology parameters to meet the specificities of
the user's environment; and inventions are exaptations conducted to the technology artifact. This paper
presents a grounded theoretic analysis of the post-adoptive behavior based on in-depth interviews with 20
software engineers in one multi-national organization. We identify a life-cycle model that connects the
various types of modifications conducted to technology artifacts. The life-cycle model elaborates on how
individual and organizational dynamics are linked to the diffusion of innovations. While our research is
exploratory, it contributes to a deeper understanding of post-adoptive behavior and the dynamic relationship
between user innovations and organizational innovations.
Dew N, Read S (2007) The more we get together: Coordinating network externality product introduction in
the RFID industry. Technovation 27:569-581
How organizations attempt to coordinate with one another
in markets increasingly marked by network externalities is an emerging topic of interest for researchers
working in the traditions of innovation studies and new product development. New network externality
products often face complex "chicken-and-egg" coordination problems, since the user base and
complementary goods that add to product value are not yet established. In this paper we highlight three
mechanisms of spontaneous coordination among large numbers of organizations: focal points, leadership
and common knowledge. We catalogue these three mechanisms at work using data from the RFID (radio
frequency identification) industry.
Dewett T (2007) Linking intrinsic motivation, risk taking, and employee creativity in an R&D environment.
R & D Management 37:197-208
Intrinsic motivation is thought to spur risk taking and creativity.
Nonetheless, the relationship between common creativity antecedents and intrinsic motivation is seldom
clarified and the assertion that intrinsic motivation spurs risk taking and creativity has rarely been addressed.
The current study adopts an individual level of analysis and attempts to link several common creativity
antecedents, intrinsic motivation, and one's willingness to take risks to employee creativity. Using survey
data collected from 165 research and development personnel and their supervisors, evidence is provided
showing that intrinsic motivation mediates the relationship between certain antecedents and one's
willingness to take risks and that this willingness mediates the effect of intrinsic motivation on employee
creativity. However, starkly different findings emerge when using subjective versus objective indicators of
employee creativity, suggesting that further theoretical development is in order to explain the differences.
Di Benedetto CA (2007) Untitled. Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:509-509
Di Benedetto CA (2007) From the editor. Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:413-413
Di Benedetto CA (2007) Untitled. Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:283-284
Di Benedetto CA (2007) From the Editor. Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:191-192
Di Benedetto CA (2007) From the editor. Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:99-100
Di Benedetto CA (2007) From the Editor. Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:1-2
Dittrich K, Duysters G (2007) Networking as a means to strategy change: The case of open innovation in
mobile telephony. Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:510-521 The purpose of this article is to
investigate how innovation networks can be used to deal with a changing technological environment. This
study combines different concepts related to research and development (R&D) collaboration strategies of
large firms and applies these concepts to R&D alliance projects undertaken by Nokia Corporation in the
period 1985-2002. The research methodology is a combination of in-depth semistructured interviews and a
large-scale quantitative analysis of alliance agreements. For the empirical analysis a distinction is made
between exploration and exploitation in innovation networks in terms of three different measures. As a first
measure, the difference between exploration and exploitation strategies by means of the observed
capabilities of the partners of the contracting firms is investigated. The second measure is related to partner
turnover. The present article argues that in exploration networks partner turnover will be higher than in
exploitation networks. As a third measure, the type of alliance contract will be taken; exploration networks
will make use of flexible legal organizational structures, whereas exploitation alliances are associated with
legal structures that enable long-term collaboration. The case of Nokia has illustrated the importance of
strategic technology networks for strategic repositioning under conditions of change. Nokia followed an
exploitation strategy in the development of the first two generations of mobile telephony and an exploration
strategy in the development of technologies for the third generation. Such interfirm networks seem to offer
flexibility, speed, innovation, and the ability to adjust smoothly to changing market conditions and new
strategic opportunities. These two different strategies have led to distinctly different international innovation
networks, have helped the company in becoming a world leader in the mobile phone industry, and have
enabled it to sustain that position in a radically changed technological environment. This study also
illustrates that Nokia effectively uses an open innovation strategy in the development of new products and
services and in setting technology standards for current and future use of mobile communication
applications. This article presents one of the first longitudinal studies, which describes the use of innovation
networks as a means to adapt swiftly to changing market conditions and strategic change. This study
contributes to the emerging, but still inconsistent, literature on explorative and exploitative learning by
means of strategic technology networks.
Doak S, Assimakopoulos D (2007) How forensic scientists learn to investigate cases in practice. R & D
Management 37:113-122
The formation of organisational tacit knowledge has been studied in the most
part using only qualitative explanations such as case studies including those on the workings of communities
of practice. From this perspective, tacit knowledge is submersed and consequently it is difficult to quantify.
In our community of communities of practice case study we use quantitative social network analysis
techniques to explore the process of tacit knowledge exchange among expert knowledge workers - forensic
scientists. Conceptually, we search for more structured relational mechanisms that shape tacit knowledge
flows occurring between participant actors in communities of practice, in their day-to-day knowledge
intensive environments.
Du J, Love JH, Roper S (2007) The innovation decision: An economic analysis. Technovation 27:766-773
Studies of the determinants and effects of innovation commonly make an assumption about the way in
which firms make the decision to innovate, but rarely test this assumption. Using a panel of Irish
manufacturing firms we test the performance of two alternative models of the innovation decision, and find
that a two-stage model (the firm decides whether to innovate, then whether to perform product only, process
only or both) outperforms a one-stage, simultaneous model. We also find that external knowledge sourcing
affects the innovation decision and the type of innovation undertaken in a way not previously recognised in
the literature.
Dutrenit G (2007) Globalization and technology. Technovation 27:640-641
Eriksson K, Nilsson D (2007) Determinants of the continued use of self-service technology: The case of
Internet banking. Technovation 27:159-167
This study focuses on buyers' continued use of self-service
technology (SST). This area is often neglected because most studies focus on buyers' adoption or acceptance
of SST. In comparison to new buyer acquisition, continued use is a cost-effective market strategy aimed at
retaining buyers. Based on a sample of 1831 Estonian Internet banking customers, we find that continued
use of SST is positively affected by buyers' perceived usefulness. We also find that continued use of SST is
negatively affected by multichannel satisfaction. As our results show, two important issues are facing
developers of SSTs and sellers using SSTs: First, continued use of SST is achieved when the buyer finds the
SST useful. Second, SSTs need to be considered in the context of all channels in the buyer-seller interface
because the buyer does not separate the service offering of an SST from other channels. The benefits
associated with using SSTs will increase if these strategic issues are taken into account.
Ettlie JE (2007) PERSPECTIVE: Empirical generalization and the role of culture in new product
development. Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:180-183 Empirical generalization continues
to be a challenge in most applied fields that favor publication of original results. The purpose of this study
was to report on a new product development exercise in one, controlled cultural setting, which replicates and
extends Ettlie (2002). Results from four recent graduate business classes in Portugal show that the
background of students-technical versus other or mixed-is a nearly perfect predictor of the average or central
estimates the class makes tendency (median) of new product success in the exercise. Country matters little.
These results have now persisted over nearly seven years, and implications are discussed concerning theory,
practice, and future research.
Ettlie JE, Elsenbach JM (2007) Modified Stage-Gate (R) regimes in new product development. Journal of
Product Innovation Management 24:20-33
The purpose of this research was to explore the nature of the
Stage-Gate(R) process in the context of innovative projects that not only vary in new product technology
(i.e., radical versus incremental technology) but that also involve significant new product development
technology (i.e., new virtual teaming hardware-software systems). Results indicate that firms modify their
formal development regimes to improve the efficiency of this process while not significantly sacrificing
product novelty (i.e., the degree to which new technology is incorporated in the new offering). Four
hypotheses were developed and probed using 72 automotive engineering managers involved in supervision
of the new product development process. There was substantial evidence to creatively replicate results from
previous benchmarking studies; for example, 48.6% of respondents say their companies used a traditional
Stage-Gate(R) process, and 60% of these new products were considered to be a commercial success. About
a third of respondents said their companies are now using a modified Stage-Gate(R) process for new product
development. Auto companies that have modified their Stage-Gate lot procedures are also significantly more
likely to report (1) use of virtual teams; (2) adoption of collaborative and virtual new product development
software supporting tools; (3) having formalized strategies in place specifically to guide the new product
development process; and (4) having adopted structured processes used to guide the new product
development process. It was found that the most significant difference in use of phases or gates in the new
product development process with radical new technology occurs when informal and formal phasing
processes are compared, with normal Stage-Gate(R) usage scoring highest for technology departures in new
products. Modified Stage-Gate(R) had a significant, indirect impact on organizational effectiveness. These
findings, taken together, suggest companies optimize trade-offs between cost and quality after they graduate
from more typical stage-process management to modified regimes. Implications for future research and
management of this challenging process are discussed. In general, it was found that the long-standing goal of
50% reduction in product development time without sacrificing other development goals (e.g., quality,
novelty) is finally within practical reach of many firms. Innovative firms are not just those with new
products but also those that can modify their formal development process to accelerate change.
Ettlie JE, Elsenbach JM (2007) The changing role of R&D gatekeepers. Research-Technology Management
50:59-66
Understanding connnunication flows in R&D laboratories for the last five decades has been
enhanced by illinninating the role of'R&D gatekeepers. Simply put, for applied projects (as opposed to basic
or service R&D), the R&D gatekeeper usually the first-line supervisor in a research group-was traditionall))
the priniai-1; reservoir of ideas,for new and iinproi)ed products..4dd inarketing and one has the balanced
inodel qfidea sourcing. Have things changed? Dataftoin three studies conducted oi,er 15 'years on successfid
Soln'cinu of ideas.for new products and services, shoii, 7 that the profile.for the R&D gatekeeper has
evolved aii,,cii;_fi-oi)ipi-iii7cii-i;clepei7detice oii,fii-st-lillesilpel-visol-,,;. This role is now more broadl v
shared across several positions aboie (e.g., R&D middle management and VP qf'R&D) and below (e.g.,
engineering and R&D staffi the technicalsuper14sor, eslmciallly in S117all- and inediumsized enterprises.
Feldman LP (2007) The change function: Why some technologies take off while others crash and burn.
Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:186-188
Fredberg T (2007) Real options for innovation management. Research-Technology Management 50:70-70
Fuller J, Matzler K (2007) Virtual product experience and customer participation - A chance for customercentred, really new products. Technovation 27:378-387
This paper demonstrates how customers can be
virtually integrated into a company's innovation process. New interaction tools allow companies to gain
valuable input from customers via the Internet. First, we explain why too closely listening to customers may
turn out to be problematic for the development of real new products. The KANO model shows that it is
difficult for customers to express their latent needs as well as those which are taken for granted. New virtual
interaction tools and virtual product experiences help to overcome these problems and enable customers to
transfer their explicit and implicit knowledge to innovation teams. How to apply virtual interaction tools and
how to virtually integrate customers into the innovation process in practice is illustrated in detail in the
AUDI case study. Our case study findings show that virtual customer integration provides valuable input for
new product development. This paper introduces virtual customer integration as a new means of coming up
with customer-centred, really new products.
Furnsinn S, Gunther M, Stummer C (2007) Adopting energy flow charts for the economic analysis of
process innovations. Technovation 27:693-703 in many industries, process innovations play a major role
in securing long term profitability. Corresponding research and development resources must be used
effectively, which requires comprehensive insight into both technological and managerial aspects of the
processes concerned. This paper introduces so-called economic flow charts that combine technical and
economic approaches and thus provide a means of overcoming communication barriers between engineers
and managers. The flow charts illustrate the economic implications of an investment by adopting the widely
accepted energy flow charts and by doing so, provide a clear picture of the profitability associated with a
process and facilitate the identification of optimization potentials, respectively. An example from the field of
biomass-based heat and power production is used to illustrate the economic flow charts' applicability to
practical problems.
Gamlin JN, Yourd R, Patrick V (2007) Unlock creativity with "active" idea management. ResearchTechnology Management 50:13-16
Garcia-Morales VJ, Llorens-Montes FJ, Verdu-Jover AJ (2007) Influence of personal mastery on
organizational performance through organizational learning and innovation in large firms and SMEs.
Technovation 27:547-568
This paper analyzes the influences of personal mastery on organizational
performance, both directly and indirectly through the dynamic capabilities of organizational learning and
innovation. Although these indirect interrelations are very important for improving organizational
performance, they are not usually explored in research. We confirm these influences empirically in both
large firms and SMEs, basing our research on a sample of 401 Spanish firms. The results reveal that in both
types of firms: (1) personal mastery influences organizational performance directly and indirectly through
organizational learning and innovation; (2) organizational learning influences organizational performance
positively, both directly and indirectly through organizational innovation; (3) organizational innovation
influences organizational performance positively.
Garcia-Muina FE, Navas-Lopez JE (2007) Explaining and measuring success in new business: The effect of
technological capabilities on firm results. Technovation 27:30-46
This paper analyzes the relationship
between technological capabilities and firm success. Although literature has recognized that intangibles
resources and capabilities are of great strategic potential, there is a noticeable lack of empirical evidence
dealing with it, and some methodological issues must be improved. In order to do so, we define this
relationship from output and qualitative approaches, directly linking different technological results to firm
success. The empirical study was carried out on a sample of Spanish biotechnology firms. Results show that
those technological activities oriented to knowledge exploration processes have more potential than those
technological capabilities focused on the mere maintenance of a certain competitive advantage. These results
support our criticism of certain generally accepted strategic resource evaluation criteria and the need to
adopt a contingent view to the study of such issues.
Gilmont ER (2007) Making innovation work: How to manage it, measure it, and profit from it. ResearchTechnology Management 50:69-70
Gilmont ER (2007) Payback: Reaping the rewards of innovation. Research-Technology Management 50:6970
Githens G (2007) Product lifecycle management: Driving the next generation of lean thinking. Journal of
Product Innovation Management 24:278-280
Goffin K (2007) Managing product innovation. Technovation 27:412-412
Gonzalez-Alvarez N, Nieto-Antolin M (2007) Appropriability of innovation results: An empirical study in
Spanish manufacturing firms. Technovation 27:280-295
This study is intended to analyse several
mechanisms available to companies in order to appropriate the results of their innovative activities. These
mechanisms include patents, industrial secret, cost and time of imitation and continuous innovation.
Specifically, this paper focuses on studying the factors that determine the choice of one appropriation
method over another. To this end, we propose a specific model of analysis, which includes various
hypotheses to be tested in a sample of 258 Spanish manufacturing companies. The results confirm that
companies that mostly use explicit knowledge chose the patenting system as a defence mechanism, while
those companies in which tacit type knowledge predominates tend to opt for industrial secret. We could also
prove that larger companies tend to choose the patenting system as a protection mechanism. Finally, the
hypothesis that companies that use high-commitment human resources practices use continuous innovation
or technological leadership as a protection mechanism could also be tested.
Goodrich N, Aiman-Smith L (2007) What does your most important customer want? Research-Technology
Management 50:26-35
It's easy to say that success in innovation is a key driver of future growth and
profitability - but it's not so easy to accomplish that innovation. After assessing the level of Alcan:
Pharmaceutical Packaging's potential for value innovation by using the Value Innovation Assessment Tool,
Alcan recognized that it needed to develop a customer-centric innovation process that could be used by the
entire organization. Internal champions launched a 12-step process to develop innovation-opportunity
insight with customers across the value chain. One outcome was an expanded view of the types of jobs that
packaging could be hired to do.
Grimpe C (2007) Successful product development after firm acquisitions: The role of research and
development. Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:614-628
A major reason for carrying out a
merger and acquisition (M&A) is to gain access to technological knowledge and to increase new product
development (NPD) capabilities. To achieve the desired effect of improving a firm's capacity for innovation,
this knowledge must be combined with the acquiring firm's existing resources. Previous research, however,
has made it clear that M&A transactions tend to disrupt a company's innovation processes, resulting in
reduced investment in research and development (R&D) activities as well as a lower innovative output in
terms of patents and new products introduced to the market. In this regard, a successful postmerger
integration of the firms' R&D units plays a decisive role. Conceptually, this exploratory article distinguishes
between the strategic approach to integration and the integration instruments or measures to be employed
within the approach. Whereas the former sets the general strategic direction of the integration or, in other
words, establishes some kind of acquisition posture, the latter describe the relevant fields or dimensions to
be addressed during integration. These integration strategies and instruments are subsequently investigated
in a sample of 35 M&A transactions. It is shown that companies typically revert to three distinct integration
strategies, depending on the need for strategic interdependence and organizational autonomy: symbiosis,
absorption, and adjustment. Together with the integration instruments that relate to structural linking,
process redesign, systems standardization, and culture building, the integration strategies are analyzed using
seemingly unrelated regression models. It turns out that technological success and, hence, NPD capabilities
benefit most from a symbiosis and an absorption strategy. Apparently, only wide-ranging reorganization
efforts in R&D focussing on common structures, processes, and systems can fully realize the benefits from a
combination of resources. To achieve economic success or high integration quality, an adjustment strategy
appears to be the best choice as reorganization efforts are rather limited. With respect to the integration
instruments, the research shows that the structural linking exhibits a great impact on technological and
economic success but no effect on integration quality. Obviously, common structural patterns and
interlinked structures within the R&D units have a positive effect in that they facilitate better collaboration
and research outcomes. A common organizational structure hence serves as a basis for realizing innovative
resource combinations and streamlining the NPD process. A standardization of systems exhibits strong
positive links with all success variables. Apparently, a consistent unification, offering orientation and
comparability, is of high importance to achieve the best possible implementation of the integration and to
foster innovative capabilities. Significant effects of culture building can be substantiated for economic
success. Moreover, there tends to be a positive effect on integration quality. This underpins the importance
of measures to encourage the build-up of a common corporate culture. To sum up, the research provides a
couple of insights on how to strengthen NPD capabilities following a merger.
Groenveld P (2007) Roadmapping integrates business and technology. Research-Technology Management
50:49-58
2007 is Research-Technology Management's 50th year of publication. To mark the occasion,
each issue has reprinted one of RTM's most frequently referenced articles. The articles were identified by N.
Thongpapanl and Jonathan D. Linton in their 2004 study of technology innovation management journals, a
citation-based study in which RTM ranked third out of 25 specialty journals in that field (see RTM, MayJune 2004, pp. 5-6). The article reprinted here was originally published in 1997 and has been updated with
its author's 11 reflections. " It describes the product-technology road-mapping process developed at Philips
Electronics, which aimed at better integration of business and technology strategy and improvement of the
front end of the product creation process (the concept and idea phase). Teamwork, integral involvement by
the organization and good communication are essential characteristics of the process. Benefits include a
shared product-technology strategy and a cross-functional approach to product and technology planning and
vision building.
Grunwald R, Kieser A (2007) Learning to reduce interorganizational learning: An analysis of architectural
product innovation in strategic alliances. Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:369-391 There is
wide agreement in analyses of strategic alliances that, regardless of the purpose of the alliance, members of
the partner organizations should engage in intensive mutual learning to make the alliance a success. In
contrast to this view, the present article shows that in strategic alliances aimed at product innovations by
recombining partners' extant technologies, learning between specialists can be reduced considerably without
jeopardizing success. This is made possible through four interconnected mechanisms integrated into the
concept of transactive organizational learning (TOL): (1) modularization, which allows specialists of
different domains to develop modules to a large extent independently of each other and to concentrate
communication between themselves on the design of interfaces between modules; (2) storing of knowledge
in artifacts instead of in organizational members' memories; (3) localization of knowledge not present in the
project team but for which a need has arisen through transactive memory; and (4) knowledge integration by
prototyping (i.e., by repeated testing of modules and of interactions between modules until a satisfactorily
working end product is achieved). Although these four mechanisms reduce the need for corss-learing
between specialists of different domains, some common knowledge and some cross-learning between the
partners' specialists is still required. Case studies on four of SAP's strategic alliances for product innovation
with different partners lend empirical support to this study's concept. The article concludes with implications
for practice. Companies should find out whether the TOL mechanisms that reduce time to market are
present, to what extent their potential is exploited, and how well they work together.
Guerin S (2007) Management of technology: Managing effectively in technology-intensive organizations.
Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:97-98
Gwynne P (2007) Open innovation's promise and perils. Research-Technology Management 50:8-9
Gwynne P (2007) Predicting project performance. Research-Technology Management 50:5-7
Gwynne P (2007) Beware the perils of success. Research-Technology Management 50:7-9
Hall LA, Bagchi-Sen S (2007) An analysis of firm-level innovation strategies in the US biotechnology
industry. Technovation 27:4-14
This study examines factors that may affect innovation strategies and
performance of firms in the biotechnology industry. Specifically, differences between factors common to
firms with high R&D intensity and those to firms with low R&D intensity are investigated. Biotechnology
firms with relatively higher levels of R&D intensity attribute their innovation performance to research-based
innovation factors and strategies such as strengthening their own research capabilities, entering into research
collaborations with universities, industry leaders and other biotech firms, and licensing their technology.
These strategies can be summarized as alignment within the industry. Firms with relatively lower R&D
intensity have a hybrid focus-they invest in R&D but may also have products on the market. These firms
attribute their innovation performance more so to production-based innovation factors and strategies such as
gaining market access and maintaining connections with customers. Their strategy focuses on
competitiveness, marketing, and distribution channels, while not ignoring the importance of a strong
research base and the need to advance technologically. In a sense, strategies employed to achieve successful
innovation reflect the stage of innovation in which a firm is operating for a particular product or process.
Handfield RB, Lawson B (2007) Integrating suppliers into new product development. Research-Technology
Management 50:44-51
New product development is becoming increasingly risky, expensive and reliant
on disparate knowledge bases spread across multiple firms. Many organizations are devolping design
responsibility to their suppliers in order to meet these challenges, yet may lack appropriate knowledge of ''
best practice '' in managing supplier integration. For example, how to adjust their management practices to
the timing of supplier integration and the degree qfdesign responsibility award to suppliers. A survey of 134
global indusfrial to integrate trial organizations, and their efforts suppliers into their new product
development processes, shows that early assessment of supplier capabilities and,effective setting joint
technology goals can improve the 0 ness of NPD project teams, and lead to improved product design and
financial outcomes for the firm.
Harmancioglu N, McNally RC, Calantone RJ, Durmusoglu SS (2007) Your new product development
(NPD) is only as good as your process: an exploratory analysis of new NPD process design and
implementation. R & D Management 37:399-424
Given industry competitiveness, how do firms' new
product development (NPD) process designs differ when responding to an innovation mandate? How do
NPD design elements differ across firms when implementing NPD processes? These design elements are
strategic business unit (SBU) senior management involvement, business case content, customer interactions,
and cross-functional integration. What are the consequences of different combinations of NPD process
design elements for innovation productivity? We explore these questions via a collective case study of
newly implemented NPD process designs at three different SBUs of a major US-based international
conglomerate, I year after receiving the mandate to grow through innovation. Our analysis suggests that
industry competitiveness and firm characteristics influence the NPD process design as SBUs employ distinct
combinations of NPD design elements. The differential emphasis on design elements leads to variation in
process design and divergence in innovation productivity.
Haro-Dominguez MD, Arias-Aranda D, Llorens-Montes FJ, Moreno AR (2007) The impact of absorptive
capacity on technological acquisitions engineering consulting companies. Technovation 27:417-425
In
this study, the influence of absorptive capacity on the decisions about technological acquisitions is analyzed
on the basis of the impact on the firm performance. Such relationships are studied over a sample of 250
Spanish engineering consulting firms. The results obtained show that the degree of absorptive capacity
influences positively both external and internal acquisition types of technology. Both technological
decisions types influence organizational performance significantly and positive even though evidence shows
a significant and negative relation between these decisions.
Hart MA (2007) Innovation on demand: New product development using TRIZ. Journal of Product
Innovation Management 24:635-636
Hart MA (2007) Swarm creativity: Competitive advantage through collaborative innovation networks.
Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:407-408
Hart MA (2007) The long tail: Why the future of business is selling less of more. Journal of Product
Innovation Management 24:274-276
Hartung K, Moehrle MG (2007) Research and technological innovation. The challenge for a new Europe. R
& D Management 37:173-173
Harvey MG, Griffith DA (2007) The role of globalization, time acceleration, and virtual global teams in
fostering successful global product launches. Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:486-501 The
present article presents a conceptualization of how firms can respond to the issues of globalization and timebased competition through the use of virtual global teams to foster successful global product launches. It is
argued that by combining input, managerial, and transformation-based competencies effectively, the firm
can configure a repertoire of strategic choices (e.g., marketing plans throughout the product development
process) based on the national competitive environment, while at the same time being mindful of the need to
maintain consistency within the firm's intermediaries operations-both in product development and global
product launch. It is further argued that the linkages between globalization and time-based competition
necessitate managerial adjustments in decision frameworks to incorporate accelerated timescapes to
maximize effectiveness in global product launch. In an effort to capture the varying impact of time on global
decision makers a timescapes perspective is employed, where timescapes are analogous to landscapes
because they include the temporal features of socioeconomic events in a variety of socially constructed
contexts inclusive of timeframe, tempo, degree of path dependency, synchronization of events, sequence,
anticipation, and ubiquity. The recognition of timescapes accentuates the contextual complexity of
competition and creates the interface among events, environments, and individuals beyond the traditional
numeric concept of clock time, thus requiring modification of a manager's decision-making perspective.
Further, it is argued that due to the rapid pace of globalization, many multinationals in their global product
launches require that products, services, technical support, and prices throughout the world need to be
coordinated. To effectively accomplish this goal of coordination as an accommodation, firms and their
networks can form global virtual teams (i.e., culturally diverse, geographically dispersed, electronically
communicating work group of members, who think and act in concert with the diversity of the global
environment and intermediary needs-expectations) to enhance global product launch success. Lastly, it is
argued that the hypercompetitive global marketplace cannot be managed ex post due to the level of cognitive
complexity but must be managed ex ante by developing strategies capable of maintaining flexibility. To
accomplish the task of competing in a hypercompetitive landscape, management must understand and
incorporate a timescape of events that integrates the various perspectives of those involved in the global
product development and launch decision-making processes. Without a well-articulated perspective of social
time, managers will limit their ability to effectively coordinate global product development and launch
across markets, thus hindering the firm's ability to maximize returns.
He ZL (2007) The economics of the European patent system: IP policy for innovation and competition.
Innovation-Management Policy & Practice 9:88-89
Hebda JM, Vojak BA, Griffin A, Price RL (2007) Motivating technical visionaries in large American
companies. Research-Technology Management 50:70-70
Heirman A, Clarysse B (2007) Which tangible and intangible assets matter for innovation speed in start-ups?
Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:303-315
The launch of the first product is an important
event for start-ups, because it takes the new venture closer to growth, profitability, and financial
independence. The new, product development (NPD) literature mainly focuses its attention on NPD
processes in large firms. In this article insights on the antecedents on innovation speed in large firms are
combined with resource-based theory and insights from the entrepreneurship literature to develop
hypotheses concerning the antecedents of innovation speed in start-ups. In particular, tangible assets such as
starting capital and the stage of product development at founding and intangible assets such as team tenure,
experience of founders, and collaborations with third parties are considered as important antecedents for
innovation speed in start-ups. A unique data set on research-based start-ups (RBSUs) was collected, and
event-history analyses were used to test the hypotheses. The rich qualitative data on the individual
companies are used to explain the statistical findings. This article shows that RBSUs differ significantly in
their starting conditions. The impact of starting conditions on innovation speed differs between software,are
and other companies. Although intuition suggests that start-ups that are further in the product development
cycle at founding launch their first product faster, our data indicate that software firms starting with a beta
version experience slower product launch. The amount of initial financing has no significant affect on
innovation speed. Next, it is shown that team tenure and experience of founders leads to faster product
launch. Contrary to expectations, alliances with other firms do not significantly affect innovation speed, and
collaborations with universities are associated with longer development times.
Herring H, Roy R (2007) Technological innovation, energy efficient design and the rebound effect.
Technovation 27:194-203
Does technological innovation to improve the efficiency of energy-using
products and systems lead to lower energy consumption and hence reduced environmental impacts? The
answer given by economists since the mid-19th century is 'no'. This is because there are direct 'rebound' or
'take-back' effects caused by energy efficiency improvements that lower the implicit price of energy, often
leading to greater consumption. Also there are secondary or indirect effects of reducing energy costs through
efficiency in that consumers may buy more products and/or choose, larger, more powerful, more feature
laden models. Thus just promoting technical innovation to increase energy efficiency is unlikely to lead to
reduced energy consumption and emissions. Other policies such as taxation or regulation are required. As
well as setting the theoretical arguments concerning innovation and energy efficiency the paper outlines
results from an empirical research project, 'People-centred eco-design', which seeks to identify the key
influencing factors on consumer adoption and effective use of energy efficient products and systems. In
particular it aims to identify how consumers may avoid (or mitigate) rebound effects and how
manufacturers, service providers and government might design and promote such products to achieve their
optimal environmental benefits.
Hoegl M, Ernst H, Proserpio L (2007) How teamwork matters more as team member dispersion increases.
Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:156-165 Product development teams become increasingly
dispersed because innovative project tasks require the input of specialized knowledge at multiple locations.
Prior analyses indicate that as team member dispersion increases teams find it more difficult to perform
high-quality teamwork. Moreover, the literature has largely assumed that the performance effect of
teamwork in innovative projects would be driven by the nature of the project task and that this would be true
regardless of the degree to which team members were co-located. The present study argues, however, that
teamwork affects team performance more strongly as team member dispersion increases. Two main reasons
for this are discussed: (1) High-quality teamwork can leverage the increased knowledge potential of
dispersed teams; and (2) team leaders in more dispersed teams have little possibility to compensate lowquality teamwork through hands-on leadership. Responses from 575 managers, team leaders, and team
members of 145 new product development (NPD) projects in the software industry were used to analyze the
moderating effect of team member proximity on the relationship between teamwork quality and team
performance. Using regression analysis, support is found for the initial hypothesis that team member
dispersion moderates the relationship between teamwork quality and team performance, that is, that
increasing team member dispersion increases the positive impact of teamwork quality on team performance.
As such, the present analysis advances understanding of dispersed teams, showing that teamwork quality not
only is more difficult to achieve but also is more critical to team performance as team dispersion increases.
Furthermore, low-proximity teams can reach higher levels of effectiveness and efficiency than co-located
ones if they manage to achieve high levels of teamwork over distance. Thus, team dispersion may well be an
opportunity and should not just be regarded as a liability to be overcome or avoided. This research
recognizes that the vast majority of teams are neither perfectly co-located nor perfectly virtual. There are
many shades of gray between these two extremes, and various individual, team, task, and contextual
characteristics may have an effect on how decreases-however small-in geographical proximity affect the
process and performance of teams. Future research is encouraged to address such factors at different levels
of analysis aimed at providing managers with recommendations for dispersed teamwork.
Holstein WJ (2007) Protecting the company jewels in an unprotected country. Research-Technology
Management 50:14-16
Howard J (2007) CSIRO: Partnering for the future. Innovation-Management Policy & Practice 9:146-158
CSIRO was established in 1949 to provide research for industry and government to enhance Australia
economic development and international competitiveness. Over a period of almost 60 years CSIRO has
undergone a process of evolution and change. A substantial proportion of the Organisation research revenue
is now derived from external sources and there is a greater commitment to partnering and collaboration with
other public research agencies, universities, industry and government. More recently, CSIRO has adopted a
much greater strategic focus in nine key areas of research through the Flagships Program. The research
programme focus of the collaboration through Cooperative Research Centres has given way to a more
project-oriented approach through specific and targeted collaborations and joint ventures. These changes are
re-stating the role and focus of CSIRO in Australia national innovation system.
Huang CY, Shyu JZ, Tzeng GH (2007) Reconfiguring the innovation policy portfolios for Taiwan's SIP
Mall industry. Technovation 27:744-765
Since the year 2000, silicon intellectual property (SIP), which
can minimize the gap in 'design productivity' that exists with systems-on-chip (SOC), has become one of the
most important factors in the development of integrated circuit (IC) products in the SOC era. Although SIP
is very important for IC industry development, complicated business, technical as well as legal issues inside
SIP transactions have hindered successful transactions and the integration of SIPS into SOCs. Thus, webbased SIP e-Commerce mechanisms, called SIP Malls, have emerged, aiming to resolve complex SIP issues.
To maintain its leading position and competitiveness in the World's IC industry, as well as the value added
by SOC products in Taiwanese IC firms, the Taiwanese government has developed SIP Malls, using
innovation policy tools. However, the Taiwanese SIP Mall industry remains immature. No existing
Taiwanese SIP Malls generate a profit or account for a significant share of worldwide SIP transactions. This
research will develop an analytical framework for defining an innovation policy portfolio that aims to
develop Taiwan's SIP Mall industry, so that it will enhance the value added of SIP Malls and, thus, the
nation's competitiveness in the SIP and IC industries, something which already has become one of the
Taiwanese government's major concerns. The industry innovation requirements (IIRs) are summarized using
the Delphi method. Meanwhile, the major IIRs identified by Decision Making Trial and Evaluation
Laboratory (DEMATEL) are introduced. After the IIRs are derived, the relationships between the IIRs and
innovation policy tools are derived by Grey relational analysis (GRA). Then, the innovation policy tools are
clustered, based upon the Grey grades derived by GRA. Finally, reconfigured innovation policy portfolios
are presented for the Taiwanese government's policy definition. The results demonstrate that developing an
innovative policy portfolio that includes scientific, technical, educational, public enterprise, information,
legal and regulatory, financial, and taxation policy tools will be the most necessary step towards developing
Taiwan's SIP Mall industry.
Hurmelinna P, Kylaheiko K, Jauhiainen T (2007) The Janus face of the appropriability regime in the
protection of innovations: Theoretical re-appraisal and empirical analysis. Technovation 27:133-144
Profiting from rapid innovations plays a central role in the knowledge-based economy, and establishing an
effective appropriability regime can crucially facilitate this endeavor. It is not an easy task for strategic
management, however. The basic elements of appropriability, i.e., the very nature of knowledge (tacit vs.
codified) as well as the legal means (such as patents, copyrights, trademarks) could be seen as a doubleedged sword: they both increase the protection of intellectual capital, but on the other hand they also make
learning and the utilization of intangibles more challenging by decreasing the transferability of knowledge
within the company and the network to which it belongs. This also makes it hard to utilize knowledgerelated positive externalities. Additionally, the difficulty of transferring knowledge diminishes the
probability of creating profit-generating standards. In sum, managers' discretionary decisions to emphasize
either protection or knowledge sharing affect the boundaries of the appropriability regime. The purpose of
our study was to analyze the characteristics of the Janus-faced nature of the appropriability regime and to
focus on issues that have been overlooked so far by reviewing previous research and providing empirical
evidence from Finnish industry. The data collected among 299 companies reveals that the different
mechanisms within the appropriability regime have different effects on knowledge flows within companies,
on the benefits derived from positive network externalities, and on standardization.
Hurmelinna-Laukkanen P, Puumalainen K (2007) Formation of the appropriability regime: Strategic and
practical considerations. Innovation-Management Policy & Practice 9:2-13
Facilitated by improved
networks and communication, knowledge spills over to competitors more easily than before, thus creating an
appropriability problem. Consequently, protection of intangibles calls for new approaches. Companies have
various means of protection at their disposal, but creating barriers against imitation also has another side to
it; transfer of knowledge in situations requiring knowledge sharing may be unintentionally obstructed. The
aim of this study is to increase understanding of how firms can balance knowledge protection and sharing so
as to benefit most from their knowledge assets. Thus, knowledge protection is approached through an
examination of the appropriability regime of a firm, and its formation among 299 firms.
Hurmelinna-Laukkanen P, Puumalainen K (2007) Nature and dynamics of appropriability: strategies for
appropriating returns on innovation. R & D Management 37:95-112 The appropriability regime represents
a combination of available and effective means of protecting intangibles and innovations, their profitability,
and the increased rents due to research and development. It has a central role in appropriating returns on
investment, but the nature of appropriability and the strategies for appropriation may not be fully known to
managers, or even to researchers. The aim in this study, therefore, is to categorise the appropriability regime
by extending, combining and complementing previous research. We also conducted a survey among 299
companies in order to determine the roles, availability, strength and efficiency of appropriability
mechanisms. Such mechanisms offer institutional protection in the form of intellectual property rights,
contracts and labour legislation, tacitness of knowledge, lead-time, practical secrecy and human-resource
management. As a result, we suggest a conceptual clarification of the appropriability regime, and offer
empirical evidence to increase understanding of the appropriation of returns on innovation.
Huston L, Sakkab N (2007) Implementing open innovation. Research-Technology Management 50:21-25
In "Connect & Develop Complements Research & Develop at P&G" (RTM, March-April 2002), Nabil
Sakkab described the company's then new strategy of using corporate intranet and "smart" reporting systems
to create what was essentially "a global lunchroom." Since then, P&G has advanced its "connect and
develop" strategy for open innovation to a point where a little over 50 percent of its pipeline and products in
the market have an external technology or an external C&D connection. This has not been achieved by
outsourcing R&D but, its developers say, by "insourcing creativity" and by fostering co-invention-based
interaction with outside resources, as opposed to the conventional transaction-based orientation. Moreover,
they see no reason why smaller companies cannot emulate P&Gs experience in developing an R&Dbuilding innovation capability based upon this new connections model.
Ireland DC, Hine D (2007) Harmonizing science and business agendas for growth in new biotechnology
firms: Case comparisons from five countries. Technovation 27:676-692
In seeking to Support the
longevity of firms in high technology industries, much research effort has been directed at understanding the
stages of growth and development of these firms. One industry regarded as vitally important to most
national economies is biotechnology. Although our knowledge of the growth of biotechnology firms remains
embryonic, we know that it is a multistage process requiring a changing blend of scientific and business
skills at points along a developmental path. In this paper data are presented from a multiple case study, in
which new biotechnology firms (NBFs) from five different countries were analyzed using in-depth
interviews with CEOs, supported by archival and observational research. A conceptual model is developed
from the literature which is further refined using the empirical evidence of the multiple case study. The
resultant model captures the temporal aspects of the tension between the science and business agendas as the
NBF traverses its commercialization pathways. The authors find that a common feature of successful NBFs
is their ability to harmonize the changing scientific and business agendas as the company progresses through
its development cycle.
Japal S, Jedidi K, Jamil M (2007) A multibrand concept-testing methodology for new product strategy.
Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:34-51
This article develops and tests multibrand concept
testing (MCT): a new model and methodology for concept testing and new product development strategy.
Methodologically, MCT provides two important advantages. First, by requiring respondents to provide a
constant-sum, multibrand measure of intention, the data-collection method eliminates most of the biases
inherent in scalar measures of intention. Second, MCT captures consumer heterogeneity by deriving
unobserved segments using a latent class approach. Managerially, MCT allows the firm to forecast the
impact of the new product introduction on the market shares of competing brands (including those marketed
by the firm) at both the aggregate and segment levels. Hence, the firm can use the results to measure
segment-specific cannibalization and switching effects; in addition, it can identify segment-specific adoption
patterns following the introduction of the new product. Importantly, the method allows the firm to choose
customized marketing mix strategies for different segments after allowing for the effects of competitive
retaliation following the new product introduction. MCT was tested using intentions data for a major
multibillion-dollar therapeutic prescription-drug category in the pharmaceutical industry. A few years ago, a
new competitor announced its imminent entry into the marketplace. Soon thereafter, the market leader
conducted a large-scale experimental study to predict the effects of the new product entry on the market
shares of extant brands in the marketplace and to determine the optimal marketing strategy for responding to
this new product entry. The internal and external validation analyses show that the proposed model
accurately forecasts the market shares of the entrant and the competing brands in the marketplace. The
results show that the leader's marketing mix has differential effects across segments. The market simulation
results show that to minimize the impact of the entrant on the leader's product line, the leader should use
customized message strategies for different segments. The results also show that the MCT methodology can
be used to identity the physician segments most likely to adopt the entrant's brand. In addition, MCT can be
used to determine those segments in which the leader will be particularly vulnerable to the entrant and the
corresponding losses of market share to the entrant.
Jelinek M (2007) Think, play, do: Technology, innovation and organization. Technovation 27:234-235
Kaplan AM, Schoder D, Haenlein M (2007) Factors influencing the adoption of mass customization: The
impact of base category consumption frequency and need satisfaction. Journal of Product Innovation
Management 24:101-116
Mass customization has received considerable interest among researchers.
However, although many authors have analyzed this concept from different angles, the question of which
factors can be used to spot customers most likely to adopt a mass-customized product has not been answered
to a satisfactory extent until now. This article explicitly deals with this question by focusing on factors
related to the base category, which is defined as the group of all standardized products within the same
product category as the mass-customized product under investigation. Specifically, this article investigates
the influence of a customer's base category consumption frequency and need satisfaction on the decision to
adopt a mass-customized product within this base category. A set of competing hypotheses regarding these
influences is developed and subsequently evaluated by a combination of partial least squares and latent class
analysis. This is done by using a sample of 2,114 customers surveyed regarding their adoption of an
individualized printed newspaper. The results generated are threefold: First, it is shown that there is a
significant direct influence of base category consumption frequency and need satisfaction on the behavioral
intention to adopt. The more frequently a subject consumes products out of the base category or the more
satisfied his or her needs are due to this consumption, the higher the behavioral intention to adopt a masscustomized product within this base category. Second, the article provides an indication that base category
consumption frequency has a significant moderating effect when investigating the behavioral intention to
adopt in the context of the theory of reasoned action and the technology acceptance model. The more
frequently a subject consumes products out of the base category, the more important will be the impact of
perceived ease of use mediated by perceived usefulness. Finally, this article shows that different latent
classes with respect to unobserved heterogeneity regarding the latent variables base category need
satisfaction or dissatisfaction have significantly different adoption behaviors. Individuals who show a high
level of need dissatisfaction are less interested in the ease of use of a mass-customized product than its
usefulness (i.e., increase in need satisfaction). On the other hand, subjects who have a high degree of base
category need satisfaction base their adoption decision mainly on the ease of use of the mass-customized
product. These results are of managerial relevance regarding the prediction of market reactions and the
understanding of the strategic use of product-line extensions based on mass-customized products. This work
provides an indication that base category consumption frequency and need satisfaction positively influence
the behavioral intention to adopt a mass-customized product. Hence, mass customization can be seen as one
way to deepen the relationship with existing clients.
Keizer JA, Halman JIM (2007) Diagnosing risk in radical innovation projects. Research-Technology
Management 50:30-36 Radical innovation projects are inherently risky. A number of in-depth case studies
have been carried out to identify the kinds Qf risk that are characteristic of this type of new product
development project. Two kinds of risk were identified. The first-unambiguous risk-was high for three basic
questions.1) Will the new product perform according to specifications (balance between the product
components and functional product format)? 2) Can we rely on our suppliers (quality and contract
arrangements)? 3) Will consumers adopt the new product (fit with standards and demands, and fit with
habits and user conditions)? The second kind of risk-ambiguous risk-included risks for which there were
strong differences qf'opinion concerning internal organization and project management. These results
provide guidelines that can help industrial R&D managers improve their companies' innovation capabilities.
Kennedy N (2007) CSIRO and Australian innovation: A business commentary. Innovation-Management
Policy & Practice 9:203-214 The Australian Business Foundation view of the role of CSIRO in Australia
innovation system is predicated on a shift in perception about what constitutes innovation. Innovation is the
smart application of knowledge to transform businesses, driven by market and customer demands, not just
by the commercialisation of intellectual property from science and research. This reinterpretation, based on
the Foundation own research, and its adoption necessitates a shift in Australia innovation policy from the
current emphasis on increasing the supply of science and research to one that supports the demand pull' of
business engagement with customers and markets. This wider angle on innovation policy maximises the
benefits to Australia in terms of productivity and economic development. It also serves to expand, not
diminish, CSIRO role as a catalyst for Australian innovation.
Kim C, Song J (2007) Creating new technology through alliances: An empirical investigation of joint
patents. Technovation 27:461-470
Why are some alliances more productive than others in terms of
creating new technology? Using a novel measure of alliance performance, that is, joint patents, this study
aims to tackle this question. Our results from the global pharmaceutical industry show that joint invention
has an inverted U-shape relationship with a path-dependent technology base, with the level of joint patents
initially increasing and then decreasing beyond a certain level of path dependence. The results also show
that joint patents are more numerous when the alliance partners have had prior ties with each other. Overall,
the finding suggests that creating new technology through alliances can be facilitated by ensuring the
positive side of absorptive capacity, while avoiding its downside.
Kingston G (2007) Innovation: The five disciplines for creating what customers want. Journal of Product
Innovation Management 24:502-503
Kingston G (2007) Leading project teams: An introduction to the basics of project management and project
team leadership. Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:280-281
Kingston G (2007) Quality management system handbook for product development companies. Journal of
Product Innovation Management 24:190-190
Kitanovic J (2007) The applicability of the concept of National Innovation Systems to transition economies.
Innovation-Management Policy & Practice 9:28-45
This article aims at gaining a deeper insight into the
structure of National Innovation Systems (NIS) in transition economies, which may allow for developing
policy recommendations that help to stimulate more systemic and effective NIS in these countries. A great
part of the existing studies focusing on NIS in less developed and transition countries argue that the specific
nature of the NIS and related problems in less successful countries in terms of technological development
and economic performance are different from developed countries. Therefore, we have to identify
approaches on analyzing innovation systems that do work in transition economies. The following questions
will be answered: Why is the NIS important for the economic development of a country? What are the
approaches of NIS that are applicable to the specific situation of transition countries? Refering to the fact
that a process-based : approach is appropriate to describe and analyze the innovation systems of countries in
transition: What are the most important types of knowledge and learning processes for these countries?.
Klein J (2007) Restructuring strategy: New networks and industry challenges. R & D Management 37:278280
Klein R (2007) Fast innovation: Achieving superior differentiation, speed to market, and increased
profitability. Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:93-95
Klein R (2007) Projects at warp-speed with Q(R)under-barPD: The definitive guidebook to quality rapid
product development, 9th ed. Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:93-95
Klein R (2007) Accelerated product development: Combining lean and Six Sigma for peak performance.
Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:93-95
Kleinschmidt EJ, de Brentani U, Salomo S (2007) Performance of global new product development
programs: A resource-based view. Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:419-441
Gaining a
competitive edge in today's turbulent business environment calls for a commitment by firms to two highly
interrelated strategies: globalization and new product development (NPD). Although much research has
focused on how companies achieve NPD success, little of this deals with NPD in the global setting. The
authors use resource-based theory (RBT)-a model emphasizing the resources and capabilities of the firm as
primary determinants of competitive advantage-to explain how companies involved in international NPD
realize superior performance. The capabilities RBT model is used to test how firms achieve superior
performance by deploying organizational capabilities to take advantage of key organizational resources
relevant for developing new products for global markets. Specifically, the study evaluates (1) organizational
NPD resources (i.e., the firm's global innovation culture, attitude to resource commitment, top-management
involvement, and NPD process formality); (2) NPD process capabilities or routines for identifying and
exploiting new product opportunities (i.e., global knowledge integration, NPD homework activities, and
launch preparation); and (3) global NPD program performance. Based on data from 387 global NPD
programs (North America and Europe, business-to-business), a structural model testing for the hypothesized
mediation effects of NPD process capabilities on organizational NPD resources was largely supported. The
findings indicate that all four resources considered relevant for effective deployment of global NPD process
capabilities play a significant role. Specifically, a positive attitude toward resource commitment as well as
NPD process formality is essential for the effective deployment of the three NPD process routines linked to
achieving superior global NPD program performance; a strong global innovation culture is needed for
ensuring effective global knowledge integration; and top-management involvement plays a key role in
deploying both knowledge integration and launch preparation. Of the three NPD process capabilities, global
knowledge integration is the most important, whereas homework and launch preparation also play a
significant role in bringing about global NPD program success. Tests for partial mediation suggest that too
much process formality may be negative and that top-management involvement requires careful focus.
Knudsen MP (2007) The relative importance of interfirm relationships and knowledge transfer for new
product development success. Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:117-138
The relationship
and network literature has primarily focused on particular partner types, for example, buyer-supplier
relationships or competitor interaction. This article explores the nature and relative importance of different
types of interfirm relationships for new product development (NPD) success. The underlying premise of the
study is that not only the type of interfirm relationships but also the combination of relationships are
important for NPD performance. The interaction with a specific type of partner is expected to influence
innovative performance by means of appropriate knowledge transfer. Varying needs for external knowledge,
and thus types of relationships, are observed depending on the particular stages in the NPD process, the
character of the knowledge base of the firm, and the industrial conditions. The absorption of external
knowledge is discussed using the degree of redundancy in knowledge, which is defined as the degree of
overlap in the knowledge base of the sender and the recipient of knowledge. Hence, the degree of
redundancy has direct implications for the ease and, hence, use of knowledge shared with an external
partner. The article is based on data from the Know for Innovation survey on innovative activities among
European firms, which was carried out in 2000 in seven European countries covering five industries. The
article explores the extent of use of external relationships in collaborative product development and finds
that customers are involved more frequently in joint development efforts. Second, the industry association of
the most important relationship is studied, and the results show that firms tend to partner with firms from
their own industry. The danger in this approach is that firms from their own industry tend to contribute
similar knowledge, which ultimately may endanger the creation of new knowledge and therefore more
radical product developments. The analyses combine the finding that relationships with customers are used
most frequently at both early and late stages of the product development process, with a second and more
contradictory finding that at the same time customer relationships have a negative impact on innovative
success. Moreover, the combination of customers, with both universities and competitors, has a significant
negative effect on innovative performance. The potential causes of this apparent paradox can be narrowed
down to two: (1) the average customer may be unable to articulate needs for advanced technology-based
products; and (2) the average customer may be unable to conceptualize ideas beyond the realm of his or her
own experience. Based on this evidence the article cautions product development managers to think
explicitly about what certain customers can contribute with and, more importantly, to match this
contribution directly with their own sense of what direction product development should go in the future.
Finally, the role of complementary as well as supplementary knowledge is investigated for innovative
success finding that sharing of supplementary knowledge with external partners in NPD leads to a positive
effect on innovative performance. The article is concluded by a discussion of the implication of this finding
for building knowledge within the firm and for selecting external partners for NPD.
Koc T, Ceylan C (2007) Factors impacting the innovative capacity in large-scale companies. Technovation
27:105-114
Product and process innovation is a key component in the success of industrial firms.
Therefore, this paper focuses on the main drivers of innovation in large-scale firms such as idea generation,
internal technological environment and technology acquisition/exploitation. This study examined 119 largescale firms in Turkey. The results indicate that firms focus on the technology strategy, idea quality, idea
generation, technology acquisition and exploitation rather than factors such as teamwork, learning
organization, management participation and delegation as the route to developing innovative capacity.
Kodama M (2007) Innovation and knowledge creation through leadership-based strategic community: Case
study on high-tech company in Japan. Technovation 27:115-132
In this paper, the author wishes to
present a basic framework in which the integration of various organizational boundaries between
heterogeneous organizations both inside and outside a corporation creates new knowledge. This paper
describes a detailed case study involving joint new product and service development of a mobile multimedia
system by NTT DoCoMo,a mobile communication carrier in Japan, and Mitsubishi Electric, a large
electrical appliances manufacturer. This case study illustrates the dynamism in which new knowledge is
created by simultaneously promoting the forming of a horizontally integrated network among strategic
communities between the two corporations including customers and a vertically integrated network among
strategic communities with the corporation. The synthesizing capability of the leadership-based strategic
communities comprising leaders inside the networked strategic communities enabled NTT DoCoMo and
Mitsubishi Electric to build new business models aimed at customers and achieve successful new product
and service development.
Kodama M (2007) Innovation through boundary management - a case study in reforms at Matsushita
electric. Technovation 27:15-29 In fiscal 2001, Matsushita electric, a traditional Japanese manufacturer of
general electrical appliances, recorded the largest loss in its history. Then, following drastic structural
reforms, the company's business results experienced a rapid V-shaped recovery. By transforming its product
development strategy from the old technology-led type to a customer-led type and implementing farreaching organizational reforms, Matsushita emerged as a global leader in the field of digital household
appliances. The source of Matsushita's new product development capability was founded on the formation of
a number of strategic communities (SCs), which represent the organizational boundaries within and outside
Matsushita Group companies, and the organizational integration of these SCs. In this paper, the author uses
a detailed case study to describe the mechanism of boundary management that enabled Matsushita electric to
simultaneously establish a new market position and achieve competitively advantageous capability in the hitech field of digital appliances by balancing vertically integrated SCs and horizontally integrated SCs.
Koners U, Goffin K (2007) Learning from postproject reviews: A cross-case analysis. Journal of Product
Innovation Management 24:242-258
Every new product development (NPD) project should not only
deliver a successful new product but also should generate learning for the organization. Postproject reviews
(PPRs) are recognized by both practitioners and academics as an appropriate mechanism to stimulate and
capture learning in NPD teams. However, relatively few companies use PPRs, and those that do use them
often fail to do so effectively. Although they are widely perceived to be a useful tool, empirical research on
how PPRs are typically organized and the learning that results is limited. The present article addresses this
gap in the extant knowledge and describes five in-depth case studies, which were conducted at leading
companies in Germany. A detailed investigation was made of how PPRs are conducted and of the type of
learning that can result. Three main sources of data were used for each case: company documentation, indepth interviews with managers responsible for NPD, and observation of an actual PPR. The different data
sources enabled extensive triangulation of data to be conducted and a high degree of reliability and validity
to be achieved. The analysis enabled a number of key characteristics of the way PPRs are managed to be
identified. Various characteristics of PPRs influence their utility, such as the time at which they take place
and the way discussions are moderated. In addition, the data show that participants in the discussions at
PPRs often use metaphors and stories, which indicates that PPRs have the potential to generate tacit
knowledge. Interestingly, the data also show that there are various different ways in which metaphors and
stories appear to stimulate discussions on NPD projects. Based on the cross-case analysis, a wide range of
implications are identified. Researchers need to investigate PPRs further to identify how they can generate
tacit and explicit knowledge and support project-to-project learning. The generation of tacit knowledge in
NPD is a topic that particularly needs further investigation. The research also led to a range of
recommendations for practitioners. Companies need to strongly communicate the purpose and value of
PPRs, to run them effectively to stimulate the maximum possible learning, and to disseminate the findings
widely. PPRs have the potential to create and transfer knowledge amongst NPD professionals, but, as they
are seldom currently used, many companies are missing an important opportunity.
Krishna VV (2007) Large public research systems: India's CSIR, the CNRS in France and the CSIRO.
Innovation-Management Policy & Practice 9:192-202
During the last decade and a ha, the impact of
globalisation and liberal economic policies has moved beyond the market and financial institutions to
penetrate the social institution of science. In varying forms, these trends have led to new national science,
technology and innovation policies, particularly influencing public research systems (government funded
large science organisations and universities) towards commercialisation of scientific research. Public
research systems the world over have recently created varying institutional forms to foster intellectual
property regimes, efficient technology transfer offices, public-private partnerships and networks steering
scientific research and innovation towards market-oriented goals. Scientific research is no longer legitimised
merely as a consumption factor or 'public good' linked to attaining social and economic goals but is
increasingly driven by market forces and international trade and is evaluated on the basis of science as a
market good' This article explores some of the changes experienced by public sector research bodies,
focusing on the CSIR, India and drawing comparisons with CSIRO and the CNRS, France.
Ku KC, Gurumurthy CK, Kao HP (2007) Inter-firms collaboration of joint venture in IC foundry business.
Technovation 27:296-305
In order to increase their capacity and competitiveness in the global market,
more and more companies tend to enter strategic alliances with each other in the past decade. This paper
describes a collaborative method for IC foundries industry to help managers and decision makers better cope
with the dynamic relationship and related issues that can occur during joint ventures between two or more
enterprises. The collaborative view analyzes different types of joint venture and modes of cooperation in the
IC foundry industry that enhance efficiency and increase the possibility of success. Competitive and
collaborative relation issues of stakeholder management in IC foundry business chain will also be discussed
in this research. This paper's aim is to use the IC foundry as a case to explore the key of success from the
new joint ventures game.
Ku KC, Kao HP, Gurumurthy CK (2007) Virtual inter-firm collaborative framework - An IC foundry
merger/acquisition project. Technovation 27:388-401
This study proposes a novel virtual collaborative
framework to assist in analyzing and designing logistical processes for inter-firm merger/acquisitions in the
IC foundry industry. To elucidate the different but correlated issues when developing the framework,
enterprise ontology theory is adopted to deal with knowledge-sharing problems involving merger/acquisition
partners. Additionally, several analytical methods, including collaborative production lifecycle chain
diagram, process chain diagram and unified modeling language (UML), are utilized for analyzing issues at
different levels to design a virtual prototype for mergers/acquisitions.
Kuckertz A (2007) Applying e-commerce in business. Technovation 27:156-157
Kucuk SU, Krishnamurthy S (2007) An analysis of consumer power on the Internet. Technovation 27:47-56
The industrial revolution was to manufacturers what the digital revolution is to consumers. What we are
seeing today is a renegotiation of the relationships between companies and consumers, and a fundamental
recasting of conventional marketing in favor of the consumer. This study, therefore, discusses consumer
power in marketing theory and analyzes consumer power sources and changing power dynamics with case
studies. Finally, it contributes to theory by investigating power dynamics in each stage of the consumer
decision-making process.
Larson CF (2007) 50 years of change in industrial research and technology management. ResearchTechnology Management 50:26-31 Industrial R&D has undergone major changes since 1958, when IRI's
journal, Research-Technology Management (RTM) was first published. These changes include industry's
growing investment in R&D, the composition of its human resources, and techniques for effective
management, organization, and leadership of the R&D enterprise. The current trend toward globalization of
markets, manufacturing and R&D is leading to rapid growth in collaborative efforts to conduct R&D with
other firms, universities and government labs. Future changes, enabled by new information technologies,
will be even more dramatic-and rapid.
Larson CF, Whiteley RL (2007) Industrial research institute's 9th annual r&d leaderboard. ResearchTechnology Management 50:17-22
Lee C, Chen WJ (2007) Cross-functionality and charged behavior of the new product development teams in
Taiwan's information technology industries. Technovation 27:605-615
This paper examines how crossfunctionality and charged behavior influence new product development (NPD) project performance of
product development teams. Through literature review and questionnaires completed by 133 NPD teams at
information technology (IT) firms in Taiwan, this paper determined that NPD project performance is
positively correlated with cross-functionality and charged behavior, and the relationship between charged
behavior and project performance is positively moderated by innovation degree. Additionally, crossfunctionality is negatively correlated with charged behavior. This paper contributes to team innovation
literature by examining the effect of cross-functionality on charged behavior at a team level revealing that
when innovation is enhanced, the effect of employee attitudes and behaviors on development performance is
stronger than the effect of functional diversity. This indicates that senior managers and team leaders must
manage effectively personal communication that is useful for recognizing and reconciling their different
perspectives and understanding each other to generate a sense of commitment, joy, excitement, and
cooperative behavior. We recommend that future research utilize different data sources (e.g., team members,
external managers, and even customers) and other "objective" measures of performance, including profits, to
examine the effects of cross-functionality and charged behavior on new service development performance.
This is then used to assist scholars and IT industries in developing innovation management strategies.
Lee S, Kang S, Park Y, Park Y (2007) Technology roadmapping for R&D planning: The case of the Korean
parts and materials industry. Technovation 27:433-445
A technology roadmap (TRM) is a management
tool to support strategic and long-term R&D planning. Providing a framework to link business to
technology, it is especially useful for, and thus has been widely used in, current R&D management strategies
that focus on markets and customers. In spite of this popularity, the fact that only few practical guidelines
are offered towards building TRM makes it appear to have limited flexibility in terms of building process
and final outputs. To overcome these limitations and facilitate tile spread of TRM technique, we focus on
the TRM for R&D purposes, and propose a systematic process and detailed procedures with inputs/outputs
for building TRM. We also attempt to integrate existing management tools with the TRM process. The
proposed framework is applied to the R&D planning process of a government program managed by the
Korea Industrial Technology Foundation. While the report is specific to the parts and materials industry, the
proposed framework can be generalized to other industries, and we anticipate our paper will shed light on
the processes of establishing R&D strategy, coordinating R&D programs and setting priorities among R&D
projects.
Lee YG, Song YI (2007) Selecting the key research areas in nano-technology field using technology cluster
analysis: A case study based on National R&D Programs in South Korea. Technovation 27:57-64
In the
early 21st century, Korean government issued a policy recommendation that Korean public research
institutes should select strategic research fields to concentrate their resources, based on a careful review of
the various strategic R&D factors. The government has emphasized the "selection and concentration"
strategy for the efficient use of R&D resources and as a way to increase the national competitiveness of
Korea. This paper suggests a method, a "Technology Cluster Analysis," for selecting the strategic research
areas, mainly targeting large, multi-disciplinary and long-term programs. The technology cluster analysis
groups near technologies together based on key indicators. In this study, the method is applied to national
R&D programs in the nano-technology field. Fifty-six nano-technologies are analyzed and grouped into
three main clusters based on the survey data from 180 experts. Technological distances and correlations
among individual technologies are depicted by hierarchical dendrogram. Three main clusters in nanotechnology field are found and termed nano-materials, nano-devices, and nano-bio. These three clusters are
expected to be the core technology clusters in nano-technology field in South Korea.
Leenders R, van Engelen JML, Kratzer J (2007) Systematic design methods and the creative performance of
new product teams: Do they contradict or complement each other? Journal of Product Innovation
Management 24:166-179
Can organizations exert control and provide structure for NPD activities while
at the same time encouraging and managing creative performance? Any new product development (NPD)
project requires some level of creative effort. In new product development, creative performance is of
preeminent importance. Most NPD projects are executed with the NPD team as the organizational nucleus.
As a result, managing creativity in NPD thus implies managing the creativity of NPD teams. Besides having
to manage creative performance, companies are generally also concerned with improving the efficiency and
effectiveness of the NPD process. Modern NPD projects therefore have the need for an approach that can be
planned, optimized, and verified. As a consequence, systematic design methods have become widely used in
NPD. In this article conceptual model is developed of the effect of modern design methodology on the
creative performance of NPD teams. First, it is argued that the effect of systematic design methodology on
NPD team creativity is mediated by the communication patterns of the NPD team. It is then proposed that
four principles underlie modern design methodology: hierarchical decomposition, systematic variation,
satisficing, and discursiveness. These principles affect NPD communication by, respectively, influencing the
establishment of subgroups, the frequency of communication, the level of agreement or disagreement in the
team, and the level of centralization of communication. Next, arguments are presented of how each of these
four communicational characteristics shapes the creative performance of NPD teams. This second part of the
conceptual model is tested empirically. This is done by studying the communication patterns in 44 NPD
teams, employing social network analysis tools. These patterns of communication are then related to teamlevel creative performance through a set of regression analyses. The main conclusion of the article is that the
design principles work together and need to be considered as an integrated whole: the creative performance
of NPD teams can only effectively be managed by using and aligning all four of them.
Lehtonen M (2007) Management of technology: Key success factors for innovation and sustainable
development. Technovation 27:320-321
Lepkowski W (2007) Engineers, academics, policymakers argue offshoring pros and cons. ResearchTechnology Management 50:2-5
Lepkowski W (2007) Telecom experts seek solutions fop corporate research decline. Research-Technology
Management 50:2-4
Leskovar-Spacapan G, Bastic M (2007) Differences in organizations' innovation capability in transition
economy: Internal aspect of the organizations' strategic orientation. Technovation 27:533-546 With regard
to innovations, Slovenia is as an example of transition economy lagging behind the most developed
economies. To have more insight into the reasons for this situation, the purpose of the research was to find
out whether strategic orientation of Slovenian companies is supported by important internal capabilities
which enable them to achieve innovation success and sustained competitive advantage. Statistical analysis of
empirical data from Slovenian companies shows that companies with innovation-strategic-orientation are
not significantly more successful in many aspects regarding their innovation capability and sustained
competitive advantage compared to companies with quality- and cost-strategic-orientation. Also internal
organizational capabilities represented in this research by organizational culture, entrepreneurship and
market orientation are only slightly more supportive in companies declaring innovation-strategic-orientation
compared to other two strategic groups. Therefore only a small number of companies with innovation
strategy could be compared to companies in other developed countries as regards their innovation capability,
sustained competitive advantage and their internal organizational capabilities. Based on the findings from
this research, both academics and managers in companies are encouraged to find more efficient ways to
intensify science-industry cooperation in order to improve the use of concepts and practices that could,
increase innovation in Slovenian companies.
Leten B, Belderbos R, Van Looy B (2007) Technological diversification, coherence, and performance of
firms. Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:567-579
Technological diversification at the firm
level (i.e., the expansion of a firm's technology base into a wide range of technology fields) is found to be a
prevailing phenomenon in all three major industrialized regions,-the United States, Europe, and Japanprompting the term multitechnology corporation. Whereas previous studies have provided insights into the
composition of technology portfolios of multitechnology firms, little is known about the relationship
between technological diversification and firms' technological performance. Against a backdrop of the
technology and innovation management literature, the present article investigates the relationship between
technological diversification and technological performance, taking into account the moderating role of
technological coherence in firms' technology portfolios. Hereby, technological coherence is defined as the
degree to which technologies in a technology portfolio are technologically related. To measure the
technological coherence of portfolios, a measure of technological relatedness of technology fields is
constructed based on patent citation patterns found in 450,000 European Patent Office (EPO) patent grants.
Two hypotheses are presented here: (1) Technological diversification has an inverted U-shaped relationship
with technological performance; and (2) technological coherence moderates the relationship between
technological diversification and technological performance positively. These hypotheses are tested
empirically using a panel data set (1995-2003) on patent portfolios pertaining to 184 U.S., European, and
Japanese firms. The firms selected are the largest research and development (R&D) actors in five industries:
pharmaceuticals and biotechnology; chemicals; engineering and general machinery; information technology
(IT) hardware (i.e., computers and communication equipment); and electronics and electrical machinery.
Empirical results, obtained by fixed-effects negative binomial regressions, support both hypotheses in the
present article. Technological diversification has an inverted U-shaped relationship with technological
performance. Technological diversification offers opportunities for cross-fertilization and technology fusion,
but high levels of diversification may yield few marginal benefits as firms risk lacking sufficient levels of
scale to benefit from wide-ranging technological diversification, and firms may encounter high levels of
coordination and integration costs. Further, the results show that the net benefits of technological
diversification are higher in technologically coherent technology portfolios. If firms build up a
technologically coherent diversified portfolio, the presence of sufficient levels of scale is ensured and
coordination costs are limited. At the same time, technologically coherent diversification puts firms in a
better position to benefit form cross-fertilization between technologies. The present article clearly identifies
the important role of technological coherence in technology diversification strategies of firms.
Lewi PJ, Smith A (2007) Successful pharmaceutical discovery: Paul Janssen's concept of drug research. R &
D Management 37:355-362
During the past decade pharmaceutical research has become increasingly
dependent on processes, stage gating and market orientation. The result has been a shift of attention from the
individual researcher, patient and physician to hierarchical management structures. While the latter may
work well in incremental innovation, such structures are far from optimal for fostering the type of
environment that most often leads to breakthrough research. The authors describe here, from personal
experience, the success factors of one of the most productive research enterprises that the. pharmaceutical
industry has known. Janssen Pharmaceutica was founded and directed by the late Dr Paul Janssen, whose
life and work are described in brief. His style of management can be characterized as people-oriented in
contrast with the more common process-oriented style of organizing research. Janssen's concept rested on
giving maximal freedom to competent and trusted researchers while continuously probing their activities
and focusing their efforts towards achievable goats. Rather than give a formal description of this unique
concept, the authors describe a typical day in Janssen's laboratory. Dr Janssen, although being a world-class
scientist and entrepreneur, only occasionally published about the factors that contributed to his success.
Rather he preferred to explain his concept of organizing around competent people and continuous critical
questioning in the form of metaphors. Four of his typical metaphors are discussed here in some detail.
Finally, the authors try to answer three frequently heard objections to the actual validity of this concept.
Liao SH, Hu TC (2007) Knowledge transfer and competitive advantage on environmental uncertainty: An
empirical study of the Taiwan semiconductor industry. Technovation 27:402-411 This study investigates
the inter-relationships among environmental uncertainty, knowledge transfer, and competitive advantage.
Based on 176 subjects from the R&D and manufacturing department of 56 Taiwan semiconductor
companies, this paper implements a structural equation model to test the research framework and
hypotheses. It finds that knowledge transfer could develop semiconductor firms' core competence and then
build their own competitive advantage. In addition, this study considers that environmental uncertainty is a
vital factor during knowledge transfer. Research results indicate that the partially mediated model shows
good model fitness for this relationship. In addition, the relationship between environmental uncertainty and
knowledge transfer is negative, and knowledge transfer and competitive advantage have a positive
relationship. This means that environmental uncertainty could hinder knowledge transfer and lead
semiconductor firms to develop knowledge by themselves. Therefore, knowledge transfer to semiconductor
firms is very important for technological and knowledge management activity in this rapidly changing
industry environment.
Lichtenthaler U, Ernst H (2007) External technology commercialization in large firms: results of a
quantitative benchmarking study. R & D Management 37:383-397
External technology
commercialization (ETC), i.e., the commercialization of technological knowledge exclusively or in addition
to its application inside the firm, has recently become a broader trend. However, this increase in outward
technology transfer, e.g., by means of technology licensing, has been insufficiently reflected by academic
research. Thus, we lack a detailed understanding of the evolution and the current scope of ETC, which
represents an important component of technology portfolio management. Moreover, our insights into the
functions of ETC and into firms' strategies, processes, and structures for managing ETC are limited. To
address these research deficits, we present the results of a questionnaire-based benchmarking study in 154
medium-sized and large European firms spanning multiple industries. Thus, this article is among the first
studies that provide quantitative empirical evidence for the current scope and management of ETC. After an
introduction and theoretical considerations, the research design is described. Subsequently, the results of the
survey are presented. In the final section, theoretical and managerial implications are discussed, and
opportunities for further research are pointed out.
Linton J (2007) Unsolicited Advice on getting published and the publishing process. Technovation 27:1-3
Linton JD (2007) MOT TIM centres of global research 2006. Technovation 27:491-500
Linton JD, Embrechts M (2007) MOT TIM journal rankings 2006. Technovation 27:91-94
Linton JD, Morabito J, Yeomans JS (2007) An extension to a DEA support system used for assessing R&D
projects. R & D Management 37:29-36
This paper describes an extension to the data envelopment
analysis (DEA) support system that has been used for the assessment, rating, and ranking of diverse
portfolios of research and development (R&D) projects at Lucent Technologies. The approach is illustrated
through its application to a large portfolio of R&D projects considered by Lucent's Advanced Technologies
Group. The method proceeds by first stratifying the portfolio into comparably efficient groups of projects
through the construction of a series of efficient DEA frontiers, and then by lexicographically ranking each
project within these groups relative to DEA-based contextual attractiveness measures calculated from the
different partitions. The advantages to this approach are provided not only from the perspective of the
specific project rankings that are produced but also from the broader managerial insights that can be derived
from any resulting differences between officially sanctioned, quantitative decision-making procedures, and
the quality of the decisions that have actually been made by managers.
Llor A (2007) Delay from patent filing to technology transfer: A statistical study at a major public research
organization. Technovation 27:446-460
An analysis is given of the statistical distribution of the delays
between patent filings and their corresponding transfer agreements in a major public research organization,
the Commissariat l'Energie Atomique (CEA) in France, over the 1985-2004 period. These 'patenting to
transfer delays" (PTDs) display four main features: (i) for agreements on isolated patents, the (truncated)
log-normal distribution of PTDs has a geometric mean of 3.7 years 14% with a standard deviation defined
by a factor 2.6 above and below mean; (ii) the mean geometric PTD increases with the number of patents
involved in the agreements; (iii) more surprisingly, mean geometric PTDs appear independent of the
originating divisions of CEA, covering very diverse technical fields, and also display insignificant
evolutions over 20 years, despite the advent of several major technological shifts; (iv) at variance with
unsupported claims found in the literature, license revenues appear uncorrelated to the corresponding PTDs.
Implications of the observed trends on innovation management at micro- and macro-economic level are also
considered. The quasi-invariance of mean PTDs over 20 years may be due to the dominance of external
human and economic factors during patent to transfer. It is conjectured that similar conclusions could be
reached in other public research organizations in tile world, the factors affecting this incubation delay being
"universal."
Lu LYY (2007) Protecting intellectual property rights. Research-Technology Management 50:51-56
Intellectual property rights (IPR) protection is a big concern for multinational corporations (MNCs) deciding
where to locate their overseas R&D units. The top management team of an MNC must know the techniques
of protecting the firm's valuable innovation in a country with weak IPR protection. Unfortunately, few
studies in the literature address this topic. A case study of three Taiwanese IT firms that have intensive R&D
activities in mainland China, examines the techniques they have adopted to protect their valuable IPR. These
techniques encompass legal mechanisms, secrecy, lead time, and complementary capabilities.
Lubango LM, Pouris A (2007) Industry work experience and inventive capacity of South African academic
researchers. Technovation 27:788-796
The inventive capacity of South African universities and
researchers is investigated through analysis of university patent applications. Patent applications to the South
African Patent office from 1996 to 2006 are used as an indicator of inventive capacity. The investigation
determines, for the first time, patenting activities of local universities at the South African Patent Office for
the past 10 years and it identifies the performance of faculties and departments. We suggest that patent
analysis of local patent offices in developing countries provides a more comprehensive picture of inventive
activity than the analyses in the main patent offices in USA and Europe. The assertion that industrial
experience affects the inventiveness of academic staff is also investigated. The study finds that most
inventors or co-inventors held at least one position in industry, or in some cases, specialized parastatals
(non-university institutions) prior to patent application. The study supports the idea that experience and the
professional trajectory of scientists through migration from industry to university leads to an increase of
researchers' scientific and technical human capital which is convertible into high performance or inventive
capacity. We argue that this linkage is valid equally in developed and developing countries (like South
Africa) and that universities internationally wishing to improve their entrepreneurial character should aim to
employ academic with industrial prior experience.
Lyne MB (2007) Research institutes have become industry partners. Research-Technology Management
50:42-48
Industrial research institutes used to be government-financed organizations with mandates to
advance industrial technology and improve economic competitiveness. Good R&D people were assembled
and expected to contribute to the welfare of industry and society without having any clear link to business
needs and strategy. Today, institutes have evolved into market-driven hybrids paid for value delivered to
industry while still receiving a portion of their funding from public sources. They are strongly networked to
enhance the probability of finding rapid and cost-effective solutions to technical problems brought to them
by industry. The handling of technology transfer to industry and associated intellectual property rights has
been facilitated by model contracts and master alliance agreements, and modern industrial institutes use
web-based tools to speed identification of new technologies with high potential, to gauge potential value of
those technologies to member companies, and to establish a project strategy that will lead to defensible JP.
Maccoby M (2007) Mobilizing the minds of research/technology managers. Research-Technology
Management 50:65-67
Maccoby M (2007) Developing research/technology leaders II. Research-Technology Management 50:75-76
Maccoby M (2007) Developing research/technology leaders. Research-Technology Management 50:65-67
MacGregor SP (2007) Working virtually: Challenges of virtual teams. Journal of Product Innovation
Management 24:95-97
Makri M, Lane PJ (2007) A search theoretic model of productivity, science and innovation. R & D
Management 37:303-317
Building on macroeconomic research on technology searches in response to
diminishing technological opportunities, we develop an industry-level search theoretic model of
productivity, knowledge sources, and innovation. We argue that increasing the use of science in technology
development increases the novelty of ideas in the innovation search distribution and thus increases the
likelihood of finding productivity improvements. We also propose that this relationship will hold outside the
traditional science-based industries (pharmaceuticals, chemicals), and that there is no similar relationship
between productivity and non-science patents. Random effect analyses of 32 US manufacturing industries
during 1985-1997 support these hypotheses.
Malik K (2007) Knowledge management: An integrated approach. R & D Management 37:495-495
Mangani A (2007) Technological variety and the size of economies. Technovation 27:650-660
Several
empirical studies show that the size of an economy affects the number of fields where it is technologically
active (technological variety). In this paper I "quantify" the relationship between the countries' economic
size and technological variety by using European patent data. Thus, technological variety can be
distinguished from technological intensity. I find that technological variety accounts for about 40% of the
higher number of patent applications made by larger and richer economies. However, the size/variety
relationship is more robust than the wealth/variety relationship. The empirical results regarding
technological activity resemble those on international trade and may be interpreted combining different
theories.
Mankin E (2007) Measuring innovation performance. Research-Technology Management 50:5-7
Mankin E (2007) New products start by viewing future. Research-Technology Management 50:5-7
Mann L, Marshall RJ (2007) Teams in CSIRO: Reorganising for national research imperatives. InnovationManagement Policy & Practice 9:136-145 CSIRO is the pre-eminent Australian research organisation. In
this paper, we discuss how CSIRO, with its new focus on Flagship research, collaborative research, and
'theme and stream' research, faces some major challenges. In our analysis of teams at CSIRO we draw on
statements made by CSIRO leaders about team function and importance. We also draw on empirical
evidence from studies of CSIRO teams over the past decade for insights into how they are performing and
some of their principal characteristics. This provides a point of departure for discussing, the challenges
ahead. The paper also touches on the psycho-social challenges of working in Research and Development
(R&D) teams, particularly those that cross discipline and organisational boundaries. We look at some design
features of CSIRO teams, such as long tenure and practices used to support team formation and
development. Our evidence shows a Positive profile of CSIRO teams on leadership, resources, and team
dynamics and a high level of trust. The Organisation attention to training its project teams is an important
factor in its ability to meet its goals and will become increasingly important as it moves from 2007 to the
matrix structure needed to conduct large scale programmatic research of national significance.
Marceau J (2007) The knowledge tree: CSIRO in Australia's innovation systems. Innovation-Management
Policy & Practice 9:98-112
Marceau J, Turpin T (2007) Innovation agents and innovation tracks: CSIRO research scientists and their
peers. Innovation-Management Policy & Practice 9:125-135
Ultimately it is people who innovate; these
innovators are often scientists and technologists. This paper presents data from a 2003-4 study of careers
followed l by research scientists working in areas of traditional strength in Australia agriculture, earth
sciences, life sciences and medical sciences. Carried out via the web and targeted to scientists who were
publishing in journals located in the Web of Science, the study received usable responses from 515 research
scientists covering principally country of education, field of research, five major positions held and
motivations for changing jobs, salaries, time spent on research as careers progressed. Respondents were
working largely in the public sector, mostly in higher education but with a significant sub-sample working in
Commonwealth agencies, notably the CSIRO. The paper presents the experience of the general population
of respondents and compares it where possible with that of CSIRO.
Martin MJ (2007) University perspective on commercialization of IP. Research-Technology Management
50:13-16
OVERVIEW: Sourcing innovation externally and being able to collaborate are the keys to
success in the '' flat world '' that Thomas Friedman has written about. The challenge continues to be how to
identify and bring together the right resources to tran transform technology into a form that will enjoy a
soceital and economic ben fit-bridging acadenmic and the for-profit communities. If businesses expect to be
competitive in a flat world, they need to understand how universities develop technology and transfer that
technology to society.
Matthews M (2007) Capability building and risk management in commercialisation: Lessons from the
Radiata experiments. Innovation-Management Policy & Practice 9:170-180
This paper examines the
wider lessons to be obtained,from the story of the CSIRO-related start-up company, Radiata Inc. It shows
how CSIRO's sustained trans-disciplinary capability-building efforts in radio-astronomy helped to produce a
generation of electronic engineers well-versed in cutting-edge integrated circuit design and development
who were also able to work effectively in commercial environments. Collaboration between radioastronomers and engineers continued to develop via joint CSIRO-Macquarie University work examining
wireless Local Area Network solutions based on mathematical techniques used in radio-astronomy and
utilising state-of-the-art chip design methods. This work culminated in the formation of Radiata Inc. and its
subsequent acquisition by Cisco Systems in 2001, to be followed by Cisco withdrawal from wireless chip
development in 2004. The paper considers the wider implications of this story, highlighting the importance
of trans-disciplinary capability-building to increasing the odds of success in the risky process of innovating.
It concludes that CSIRO should continue to develop its options-based approach to valuing R&D outcomes in
order to better demonstrate the ways in which capability-building, can generate improved odds of success in
innovation for a wide range of businesses - provided that they have access to the skilled staff generated by
this type of 'rounded' training related to basic research.
Mawhinney L (2007) Working with your CFO. Research-Technology Management 50:15-17
Medcof JW (2007) CTO power. Research-Technology Management 50:23-31
Those who aspire to
strategic leadership as Chief Technology Officers must look beyond their roots in technology and develop
their careers in light of the realities of how decisions are made in top management teams. Research on
upper-echelon leadership suggests that CTOs who aspire to significant strategic influence should build their
power bases on general business savvy, strong personal relationships in networks inside and outside the firm
and, in some cases, on their ownership position in the firm. Research showing that executive decisionmaking is often informal, based on personal relationships and frequently involving people from outside the
firm, suggests that these bases can be more important than the traditional cornerstones of a CTO's power:
technological expertise and organizational position power. The leadership style of the CEO can also
significantly enhance or detract from a CTO's ability to influence firm strategy.
Mehta S, Peters LS (2007) Outsourcing a core competency. Research-Technology Management 50:28-34
Data from contract research organizations (CROs) and pharmaceutical companies reveal an increasing
amount of outsourcing of biostatistics in clinical trials. However, a surprising number of projects involve
practices identified as "never outsource" and of "key importance to grow' and retain" by the pharmaceutical
statistics directors. The sharing and outsourcing of these big pharma "best practices" with the CROs is an
advantage for smaller competitors, particularly as related to analysis methods and protocols that are likely to
be accepted by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Over time, an accumulation of critical resources and
tacit knowledge could allow the CRO to eventually become a new type of independent competitive player in
the drug development process.
Menzel HC, Aaltio I, Ulijn JM (2007) On the way to creativity: Engineers as intrapreneurs in organizations.
Technovation 27:732-743
Organizations often hide creativity and talent. This paper describes how to
make engineers active in the field of intrapreneurship within large firms where they often are employed in
R&D. This development is seen, in Europe at least, most desirable by the companies today. Technology has
an extensive impact on the society and economy nowadays, and it is important to study how technological
innovations appear and who is behind them. Entrepreneurship and organizational intrapreneurship are, in
many cases, the basis of technological innovations and firm renewal. Engineers are the company's special
professional workforce that has the role to produce and develop innovations. Since the world of high-tech
companies needs the cooperation of many experts, engineers must be able to cooperate well with other fields
of expertise such as marketing, research and development as well as external suppliers and service
providers. Also, innovations today often ask not only for unique technical knowledge but also social
knowledge to make these innovations meaningful. In this sense, social innovation parallels technical
innovation. Thus, in this paper we explore the origins of the intrapreneurship capacity in engineering
settings of hightech firms, thereby concentrating on three issues: Who is the intrapreneur and the engineerintrapreneur in particular? What kind of managerial and organizational support is required to facilitate the
intrapreneur's upcoming? What are the educational and work related consequences for practical
intrapreneurship tool development?
Merrfield B (2007) Strategic collaborations - Essence of survival. Research-Technology Management 50:1014
Meyer MH (2007) The fast path to corporate growth: Leveraging knowledge and technologies to new
market applications. Research-Technology Management 50:69-70
Miles I (2007) Research and development (R&D) beyond manufacturing: the strange case of services R&D.
R & D Management 37:249-268
The share of business research and development (R&D) expenditure
stemming from the services sector of the economy has been growing rapidly in many (though not all) OECD
countries, according to official statistics. The same data sources also indicate, however, that services
contribute less to R&D than would be expected given their large shares of employment and output in
national economies. In part, incomplete sampling of services in R&D surveys may lead to some
underestimation of their R&D activity, but this is unlikely to account for their apparently poor performance.
This paper draws on an analysis of existing statistical sources, and on interviews and workshops with service
firms' managers. It finds difficulties associated with the ways in which R&D has been operationalised in
survey questions. Examination of survey questionnaires suggests that the formulation of these questions,
focusing on technological R&D and ruling out much social scientific R&D, disproportionately reduces the
reporting of R&D by service firms. But beyond this, the R&D concept itself has some problematic features
where it comes to documenting innovation in service firms. This was investigated through a programme of
interviews and workshops with service firms, where a lack of familiarity with the R&D concept and R&D
management practices was found to be commonplace. R&D performance and innovation activities vary
across services of different sorts, even though most service subsectors appear to be low R&D investors. It is
thus important to examine services' innovation patterns and processes, to establish what types of R&D-like
activity are underway in these subsectors. While some modification in R&D measurement would be
desirable to capture services' activities, effort to understand the non-R&D elements of services innovation is
also important - for management and for policy (given that governments are seeking to create R&D
incentives and targets for services and other sectors). There are grounds for expecting (a) services' share of
business R&D to continue to grow; (b) this share to continue to be well below what would be expected from
the prevalence of services in economic activity, and (c) for many services' innovation to continue to rely
heavily on sources that are not directly associated with R&D.
Miles I (2007) e-development toward the knowledge economy: Leveraging technology, innovation and
entrepreneurship for 'smart' development. R & D Management 37:277-278
Minagawa T, Trott P, Hoecht A (2007) Counterfeit, imitation, reverse engineering and learning: reflections
from Chinese manufacturing firms. R & D Management 37:455-467 In a previous paper, we developed an
alternative perspective on product imitation and innovation. In this paper, we explore some of our research
questions using empirical data gathered in China. While we do not condone counterfeit activities, we
explore the role of counterfeiting, imitation and learning from the perspective of Chinese manufacturers and
provide insight from a small number of key informants about the motives and incentives for non-consensual
acquisition of technology and their views on what Western firms should be doing to counteract the threat to
their technological advantage. In this paper, we argue that where companies use the technology property of
others to develop their own technology capability without the consent of the other party (non-consensual
acquisition of technology), firms should consider whether there are opportunities for collaboration before
resorting immediately to the legal tools at their disposal to enforce intellectual property rights and seek
financial recompense from infringers without due consideration of the learning, new product development
and innovation context. We believe that the findings from our case studies can make a significant
contribution towards a better understanding of non-consensual acquisition of technology in an innovation
context. In particular, the information gained from the key informants provides their perspective on the
causes of non-consensual acquisition of technology and their views and recommendations of how companies
affected by this behaviour might be able to better handle this problem.
Mitchell GR (2007) Instill the entrepreneurial mindset. Research-Technology Management 50:11-13
Mitchell GR, Hamilton WF (2007) Managing R&D as a strategic option. Research-Technology
Management 50:41-50 2007 is Research-Technology Management's 50th year of publication. To mark the
occasion, each issue reprints one of RTM's six most frequently referenced articles. The articles were
identified by N. Thongpapanl and Jonathan D. Linton in their 2004 study of technology innovation
management journals, a citation-based study in which RTM ranked third out of 25 specialty journals in that
field (see RTM, May-June 2004, pp. 5-6). The article reprinted here was originally published in 1988 and
has been updated with its authors' "reflections." Addressing the overuse of ROI and related investment
criteria in knowledge-intensive situations, the article was one of the first to observe that R&D programs
directed toward strategic positioning paralleled the use of call options on stocks. It urged managers to
recognize that R&D spending was directed at creating options for the corporation's downstream investment
and to take into account the potential impact of this perspective on their R&D strategy.
Miyazaki K, Islam N (2007) Nanotechnology systems of innovation - An analysis of industry and academia
research activities. Technovation 27:661-675
Nanotechnology promises significant improvements of
advanced materials and manufacturing techniques, which are critical for the future competitiveness of
national industries. This paper is concerned with the sectoral innovation system in nanotechnology in a
global perspective with an aim to understand worldwide developments in nanotechnology research from its
emerging stage. The research highlights cross-country comparisons, actors and institutions in the innovation
system based on quantitative method (bibliometrics and tech mining). The authors present also the varying
involvement of academia, public research institutions and commercial companies in relevant research by
finding main research contributors, discourse development, as well as clusters or knowledge networks of
affiliations and countries. The research findings show that the significant output of commercial companies in
Japan and the United States is different from the situation in the European Union, where the relevant
scientific activities are dominated by academic and government research institutions. The research reveals
the learning patterns of nanotech innovation structure for the science pole. The findings can be particularly
useful for forming technology strategies, science and technology policies by revealing strengths and
weaknesses of the emerging innovation system in nanotech, existing country-level competencies and
differences.
Montoya PV, Zarate RS, Martin LAG (2007) Does the technological sourcing decision matter? Evidence
from Spanish panel data. R & D Management 37:161-172
This paper extends previous analysis of the
choice between internal and external R&D to consider the effect of this decision on productivity. Existing
empirical research confirms that there is a positive relationship between technological assets and firm
performance. However, few works have attempted to identify whether the technological sourcing decision
taken by the firm affects productivity. The main finding of this paper is that the technological strategy
developed by the firm does affect productivity. This issue is particularly novel as it incorporates the
technological sourcing decision taken by the firm. The results we obtain indicate that the technological
sourcing decision affects the relationship between technological capital and productivity. Thus, our findings
suggest that the decision between internal and external R&D matters.
Moultrie J, Clarkson PJ, Probert D (2007) Development of a design audit tool for SMEs. Journal of Product
Innovation Management 24:335-368
There is strong evidence of the importance of good design to
company success. However, it is apparent that despite this evidence, design skills are often marginalized in
small and medium-size enterprises (SMEs). This article presents a design audit tool that captures good
design principles in a form accessible to industry. Previous audit approaches have focused extensively on the
management of new product development (NPD). In this research, the audit tool is based on process
maturity principles and explicitly targets the design related activities in NPD-specifically in small firms. The
design audit has been developed iteratively by application in action research mode and is supported by
evidence from literature and exploratory cases. This inductive development enabled the generation of a
robust audit tool through intervention in small firms to improve design practices. The resulting audit tool is
designed for use in a multifunctional workshop setting. Typical outputs from application include the
generation of action plans for improvement in future performance. This audit tool is based around a model
of good design that explicitly distinguishes between management and design related activities in NPD. The
audit tool has succeeded in encouraging managers to pay greater attention to the design related elements of
NPD. This complements the satisfaction of managerial goals typically emphasized in many NPD processes.
Mudambi R, Mudambi SM, Navarra P (2007) Global innovation in MNCs: The effects of subsidiary selfdetermination and teamwork*. Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:442-455
The ability of
multinational corporations (MNCs) to leverage their innovation competencies across globally dispersed
subsidiaries is an increasingly valuable source of competitive advantage. As multinational enterprises turn to
foreign subsidiaries for research and development (R&D) and product development, questions arise
regarding the most effective organizational structures for global innovation. Although organizational
conditions that satisfy the needs for self-determination and teamwork have long been considered intrinsic
motivators, past research has not analyzed the consequences of intrinsic motivators on global innovation.
The basic research question is this: In globally dispersed subsidiary R&D units, what organizational
conditions and motivators are associated with the highest knowledge output? A sample of 275 globally
dispersed R&D subsidiaries were studied from 1995 to 2002. Data were collected from a postal survey, field
and telephone interviews, and secondary sources. Subsidiary self-determination and teamwork were found to
have a significant effect on knowledge output, as objectively measured by patent citations. Subsidiary selfdetermination on inputs such as sourcing and hiring, and self-determination on outputs such as marketing
and product development, emerged as positive determinants of knowledge generation in R&D subsidiaries.
In addition, interteam cooperation and intrateam cooperation were significant determinants of knowledge
generation by subsidiaries. These findings highlight the importance of self-determination, teamwork, and
cooperation to knowledge creation and innovations. Managers face the tough challenge of how to motivate
globally dispersed knowledge workers to conduct research that will generate knowledge and will strengthen
firm performance. The results provide theoretical and practical insights on how MNCs can leverage their
innovation competencies across foreign R&D subsidiaries.
Mulenburg G (2007) Leading teams. Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:410-411
Mulenburg G (2007) Managing projects. Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:410-411
Mulenburg G (2007) Running meetings. Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:410-411
Nelson RR (2007) Discovering Schumpeter: Creative destruction evolving into 'Mode 3'. R & D
Management 37:496-496
Nieto MJ, Santamaria L (2007) The importance of diverse collaborative networks for the novelty of product
innovation. Technovation 27:367-377
Competition today is driving firms to introduce products with a
higher degree of novelty. Consequently, there is a growing need to understand the critical success factors
behind more novel product innovations. This paper theoretically and empirically analyzes the role of
different types of collaborative networks in achieving product innovations and their degree of novelty. Using
data from a longitudinal sample of Spanish manufacturing firms, our results show that technological
collaborative networks are of crucial importance in achieving a higher degree of novelty in product
innovation. Continuity of collaboration and the composition of the collaborative network are highly
significant dimensions. Collaboration with suppliers, clients and research organizations-in this order-have a
positive impact on the novelty of innovation, while collaboration with competitors has a negative impact.
The greatest positive impact on the degree of innovation novelty comes from collaborative networks
comprising different types of partners.
Nissing N (2007) Would you buy a purple orange? Research-Technology Management 50:35-39
The
theory of inventive problem solving (TRIZ) is a widely accepted methodology of inventive concept
generation that emphasizes predictive methods and evolutionary trends. Strategic inventing is a
complementary tool for concept generation that places more emphasis on differentiation and patent
protection. Traditional product development techniques and the Law of Ideality focus on the improvement
of functional benefits and the reduction of associated negatives. In contrast, the primary advantage of
strategic inventing is the establishment of a competitive advantage based on a strong patent positionregardless of whether or not there are functional benefits. The following article includes a comparative
example of concept generation using these two techniques.
Nuvolari A (2007) Knowledge and competitive advantage: The coevolution of firms, technology and
national institutions. Technovation 27:414-415
O'Shea RP, Allen TJ, Morse KP, O'Gorman C, Roche F (2007) Delineating the anatomy of an
entrepreneurial university: the Massachusetts Institute of Technology experience. R & D Management 37:116
In many universities, heads, administrators and faculty seek to increase the propensity to engage in
commercialization of research activity through the spinoff of new companies. The highly complex
mechanism of spinoff generation is typically considered the result of either the characteristics of individuals,
organizational policies and structures, organizational culture, or the external environment. Explanations of
spinoff activity have in the main focused on only one of these dimensions at a time. In this paper we
integrate these four dimensions of academic entrepreneurship to develop a more systemic understanding of
spinoff activity at the university level. Using the case of Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), a top
spinoff generator in the United States, a systemic analysis is presented. We identify the inter-related factors
that have contributed to successful academic entrepreneurship in MIT. We argue that MIT's success is based
on the science and engineering resource base at MIT; the quality of research faculty; supporting
organizational mechanisms and policies such as MIT's Technology Licensing Office; and the culture within
MIT faculty that encourages entrepreneurship. However, to understand why MIT has developed these
resources and organizational mechanisms, it is necessary to understand the historical context and emergence
of MIT, and in particular the historical mission of the university, the role of key individuals and university
leaders in supporting this mission, and the impact of past success at commercialization activity. Finally, we
suggest that MIT's success needs to be understood in the context of the local regional environment. We
argue that university administrators and academics can learn from the case of MIT, but that efforts at
transposing or replicating single elements of MIT's model may only have limited success, given the interrelated nature of the drivers of spinoff activity.
Oakey R (2007) Clustering and the R&D management of high-technology small firms: in theory and
practice. R & D Management 37:237-248 Much of the policy assistance for high-technology small firms
(HTSFs) over recent years has been directed at encouraging their research and development (R&D)
collaboration through local networking and technology transfer. Following a consideration of why HTSFs
are formed, and how they perform R&D in order to cope with the competitive environment, this paper
explores the value of external collaborative R&D to internal R&D management, inside geographically
concentrated incubators, science parks or clusters. It is concluded that, although R&D collaboration with
external partners occurs in limited instances, much HTSF R&D is highly confidential, competitive and
wholly internalised. This tendency, as far as it relates to R&D management, is significant in that it
minimises the likelihood that local management collaboration between co-located firms will improve the
performance of R&D projects.
Pal SS (2007) The innovation killer: How what we know limits what we can imagine and what smart
companies are doing about it. Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:633-635
Paladino A (2007) Investigating the drivers of innovation and new product success: A comparison of
strategic orientations. Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:534-553
The notion of producing
innovations and achieving new product success has received a great deal of attention. Though many have
investigated these effects in marketing and various fields within management, there has been little crossfertilization between fields of study to explain the basis for this superior performance. Though research has
examined the resource-based view (RBV) and market orientation individually, none has evaluated and
compared their effect on firm innovation and new product success in one study. Furthermore, although
empirical work has been conducted between market orientation and organizational learning, comparatively
less research has been conducted to evaluate the relationship between organizational learning and the RBV
to examine their combined effects on a firm's ability to innovate and succeed. Subsequently, the purpose of
the present article is to investigate whether a focus on the customer (i.e., market orientation) or the firm (i.e.,
RBV) will drive the ability to (1) innovate within the firm and (2) succeed in terms of new product success,
financial performance, market share, and customer value. The present article examines the relationship
between organizational learning and the RBV and market orientation. It presents an empirically testable
framework that investigates the relationship that RBV and market orientation have with performance
outcomes. Data were collected from 249 senior executives. LISREL was applied to evaluate the
relationships. Confirmatory factor analysis and related techniques were applied to assess the robustness of
the measures used. Findings show that organizational learning is strongly associated with market orientation,
which in turn impacts various performance outcomes including customer value. The RBV had a significant
relationship with new product success. These results suggest that managers seeking innovation and new
product success should focus less on the provision of customer value. Instead they should look toward
developing their resources within the firm, including investing in human resources, to ultimately provide
value to the firm. Findings indicate that this unique offering-innovations-will have an indirect effect on
customer value and financial performance. In contrast, those in pursuit of positive financial performance and
customer value should focus on the development of market orientation. Even though this will not necessarily
lead to the development of innovative processes and new product success according to the present study, this
approach may lead to a greater market share in the long term. This article reviews theoretical and managerial
implications in more depth, providing an impetus for further research.
Pallister JG, Wang HC, Foxall GR (2007) An application of the style/involvement model to financial
services. Technovation 27:78-88
This study was designed to empirically investigate Foxall's [1995.
Cognitive styles of consumer initiators. Technovation 15(5), 269-288] style/involvement model in a new
context of the financial product market by using a random sample of 308 UK consumers. To build greater
understanding of the style/involvement model, which proposed that consumer choice is shaped by adaptiveinnovative cognitive style [Kirton, M., 1976. Adaptors and innovators-a description and measure. Journal of
Applied Psychology 61(5), 622-629] and product-domain involvement [Zaichkowsky, J.L., 1985. Measuring
the involvement construct. Journal of Consumer Research 12(3), 341-352], the opportunity was taken to
examine the usefulness of an alternative measure of innovativeness [Hurt, H.Y. et al., 1977. Scale for the
measure of innovativeness. Human Communication Research 4(1), 58-65], which correlates with the KAI
[Kirton, M.J., 2003. Adaption-Innovation in the Context of Diversity and Change. Routledge, London] that
was used to develop this style/involvement model. Further, instead of testing the innovations of new health
food [Foxall, G.R., Bhate, S., 1993a. Cognitive styles and personal involvement of market initiators for
'healthy' food brands: implications for adoption theory. Journal of Economic Psychology 14(1), 33-56] or
new computer software [Foxall, G.R., Bhate, S., 1993b. Cognitive style and use-innovativeness for
applications software in home computing: implications for new product strategy. Technovation 13(5), 311325], established products of four financial products: (1) pensions; (2) life assurance; (3) mortgages; (4)
savings and investment were investigated. These products not only contrast with the targets of Foxall's
[1995] earlier researches, but are of intrinsic interest in view of the extent of strategic change and product
development which characterize the contemporary financial services industry. Findings indicated that even
within a broadly defined product category like financial services, consumers vary significantly. Buyers of
mortgages and pensions were highly involved adaptors, whilst buyers of life assurance were less-involved
adaptors. Buyers of savings and investments, however, were highly involved innovators.
Parker MJ (2007) Time strategies, innovation and environmental policy. Technovation 27:233-233
Paulson AS, O'Connor GC, Robeson D (2007) Evaluating radical innovation portfolios. ResearchTechnology Management 50:17-29 Radical innovation in large firms is a risky endeavor, exacerbated by,
high levels of uncertainty and long cycle times. Moreover, management lacks evaluation tools that are
appropriate for the degree of ambiguity of the information available from these hypes (of Projects. Add to
this the difficulties of managing in the context of the large firm where manyprocesses are tuned toward
repetition and continuous improvement, and it becomes clear that commercialization of radical innovation
(RI) is a difficult proposition at best. portfolio managers will almost invariablity; build a team, learn
appropriate processes, clarify, their mandate within the company, generate intial projects, and begin to
enrich their portfolios, only; to have their efforts cancelled out due to anunsatisfactory financial return. The ''
what have you done for me lately ?'' question plagues these groups, and ends zip costing the company
investment resources in opportunities that are never leveraged. Having an evaluation tool to assess the
relative values of projects within the context of the entire radical innovation portfolio, and to track changes
in the relative value of the portfolio over time, can help RI portfolio inanagers articulate their contribution to
the conipany's growth strategy and can aid in innovation strategydevelopinent.
Penton HR, Pitcher WH (2007) IRI group advises on BP spin-off. Research-Technology Management 50:78
Perry M (2007) Seeing trees and forests: A comparative evaluation of business clusters and national industry
associations in the New Zealand forest sector. Innovation-Management Policy & Practice 9:46-61
This
paper examines the perceptions of a sample of enterprise managers in the New Zealand forest products
industry about the respective contributions of cluster groups and national industry associations. Enterprise
managers are found to view these forms of association as complementary rather than as one being clearly
superior to the other. This suggests that business development can benefit from the existence of both forms
of association with individual enterprises matching participation with their current development needs.
Government.. support to collective associations should be based on prior investigation of the gaps in
business support rather than on prior Judgements about the superiority of one form of association. This
evidence is considered significant in the context of the present prioritising of clusters to the neglect of
national industry associations.
Pichler R (2007) Agile retrospectives. Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:505-506
Pitkethly RH (2007) Intellectual property management in R&D collaborations: The case of the service
industry sector. R & D Management 37:496-498
Porter A (2007) Now "tech mining" can enhance R&D management. Research-Technology Management
50:15-20
Pries F, Guild P (2007) Commercial exploitation of new technologies arising from university research: startups and markets for technology. R & D Management 37:319-328
The creation of start-up firms is an
important method of commercializing new technologies arising from R&D at universities and other research
institutions. Most research into start-ups presumes that these firms develop products or services. However,
start-ups may operate through markets for technology by selling or licensing rights to use their technology to
other firms - typically established firms - who develop and sell new products or services based on the
technology. In this study of 57 public start-up firms created to commercialize the results of university
research, we find evidence that (1) operating through markets for technology is a common approach to
commercialization, (2) start-ups that operate in markets for technology can be effectively distinguished in
practice from start-ups operating through product markets, and (3) there are substantive differences in the
business activities of firms depending on whether they operate through product markets or markets for
technology.
Probert DR (2007) Structured creativity: Formulating an innovation strategy. R & D Management 37:92-93
Pykalainen T (2007) Model for profiting from software innovations in the new era in computing.
Technovation 27:179-193 The purpose of this paper is to create a new model for describing conditions for
profiting from software innovations in the software industry. Proprietary software is threatened by the
popularity of open source software (OSS), which challenges the traditional business models that have relied
on proprietary technologies and closeness. OSS has strongly impacted on the software industry; as a result,
the appropriateness of traditional business models should be questioned and alternative models sought. This
leads to exploration for a new model to evaluate the conditions for profiting from software. The proposed
model includes three dimensions: technology, complementary assets, and ideology.
Radeka K (2007) Naked conversations: How blogs are changing the way businesses talk with customers by
robert scoble and shel israel. Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:632-633
Radeka K (2007) The Toyota product development system: Integrating people, process and technology.
Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:276-278
Radosevic S (2007) Technological change and economic catch-up. The role of science and multinationals. R
& D Management 37:174-177
Rasmussen B (2007) Is the commercialization of nanotechnology different? A case study approach.
Innovation-Management Policy & Practice 9:62-78
Nanotechnology is the latest in a series of general
purpose technologies (GPT), earlier examples of which, have transformed household life, industry structure
and firm performance. This paper traces the development to date of one of the first uses of nanotechnology
to synthesise a new drug. Using an innovation systems framework, the paper compares the
commercialisation process of this drug with that typically employed by a biotechnology company, to explore
differences arising from the novel nature of the underlying technology. The study finds that the
commercialisation process, followed by the company developing the drug, conforms substantially to the
empirical literature on biotechnology commercialisation. However it departs in two important ways. One is
the absence of venture capital involvement and the second is the failure to date to form an alliance with a
major pharmaceutical company. The evidence suggests that while both reflect factors that relate to
conditions in the Australian market, the novel nature of the technology may he an issue in the latter.
Ringo T (2007) IBM explores new frontiers in collaborative innovation. Research-Technology Management
50:6-7
Roberts EB (2007) Managing invention and innovation. Research-Technology Management 50:35-54
2007 is Research-Technology Management's 50th year of publication. To mark the occasion, each issue will
reprint one of RTM's six most frequently referenced articles. The articles were identified by N. Thongpapanl
and Jonathan D. Linton in their 2004 study of technology innovation management journals, a citation-based
study in which RTM ranked third out of 25 specialty journals in that field (see RTM May-June 2004, pp. 56). The article reprinted here was Number I on their list. Published it? 1988 and updated now with its
author's "reflections," the article surveyed what had been learned about the management of invention and
innovation during the previous 50 years since the Industrial Research Institute's founding in 1938. Following
a discussion of definitions of the invention and innovation process, it focused on three major dimensions of
the process: staffing, structure and strategy. Taken together, their improved management was found to
contribute critically to achieving successful institutionalized innovation.
Rodriguez-Repiso L, Setchi R, Salmeron JL (2007) Modelling IT projects success: Emerging methodologies
reviewed. Technovation 27:582-594
IT projects are different from and potentially more difficult than
other engineering projects as they are characterised by high complexity and high chances of project failure.
Therefore, it is important to identify those Critical Success Factors (CSFs) which increase the chances for
project success. This paper reviews three emerging methodologies for identifying, classifying and evaluating
CSFs in IT projects: Critical Success Chains (CSC), Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) and Fuzzy Cognitive
Maps (FCM). These three methodologies are compared; their advantages, disadvantages and limitations are
analysed with the objective to provide decision-makers concerned with the success of an IT project with an
understanding which will help them to identify the most suitable methodology in view of the project
specifics and circumstances.
Rose C, Cronin J, Schwartz R (2007) Communicating the value of your intellectual property to wall street.
Research-Technology Management 50:36-40
Companies and their shareholders stand to benefit from
consistently developing and promoting their intellectual property portfolios with a structured IP story. An IP
story shows how a company developed IP that supports important products and technologies, with clear
linkages from the market opportunities to patents. Companies that follow this approach stand to 1) support
higher stock prices, given the incredibly high value placed on intangibles in today's market, 2) maximize
return on investment in their IP by supporting strategic technologies that are linked to market needs, and 3)
lead the corporate world with best-in-class IP management.
Rush H, Bessant J, Hobday M (2007) Assessing the technological capabilities of firms: developing a policy
tool. R & D Management 37:221-236
The development of technological capabilities results from an
extended learning process and external policy agents can play an important role in its development. This
paper outlines trends in governmental and non-governmental policy initiatives and the use of concepts such
as capability and absorptive capacity, which are positioned within generic-staged models of capability
maturity. This paper describes the development of a technology capability assessment/audit tool that has
been designed to help locate firms within four archetypes based upon their level of maturity on nine key
dimensions of the management of technology. The tool is intended to help bridge the gap between our
theoretical understanding of the principles of technology management and policy practice - allowing policy
makers to design mechanisms that focus resources in areas of greatest need through the appropriate selection
of policy mechanisms and the targeted design of policy. The use of this tool in field experiments is described
along with the implications for policy making.
Ryan JC, Hurley J (2007) An empirical examination of the relationship between scientists' work
environment and research performance. R & D Management 37:345-354
This research is an empirical
examination of the relationship between organizational characteristics and scientific research effectiveness.
A sample of research-active scientists (N = 295) from 25 biological and chemical science university research
departments took part in this study. Data were collected using the Organizational Culture Survey (Glaser et
al., 1987), which measures six organizational characteristics of the research environment. Organizational
characteristics are analysed across a measure of departmental research performance. Results support the
hypothesis that specific characteristics of the organizational environment are related to research
performance. The implications of these findings for the existing literature and the future management and
organization of scientific research departments are discussed.
Sakkab NY (2007) Growing through innovation. Research-Technology Management 50:59-64 Innovation
has always been a marriage of what's needed with what's possible. Originally, "what's possible " was about
technology, but at Procter & Gamble today it's about creating and delivering a superior experience for the
consumer. And that comes from truly understanding consumer needs. This requires a new kind of R&D
leader, someone who combines imagination and worldwide knowledge with action, and, in addition, is an
inspirational individual who exhibits curiosity and courage, practices collaboration, asks the right questions,
and is able to "communicate the dream."
Salomo S, Weise J, Gemunden HG (2007) NPD planning activities and innovation performance: The
mediating role of process management and the moderating effect of product innovativeness. Journal of
Product Innovation Management 24:285-302 The aim of this study is to investigate the effects of planning
and control on the performance of new product development (NPD) projects. It is hypothesized that (1)
thorough business planning at the beginning of a project creates a basis for proficient project and risk
planning,; (2) the proficiency of project planning, risk planning, and process management activities each
improves innovation performance directly; (3) the relationship of planning and success is mediated by
process management; and (4) the strength of these relationships is moderated by uncertainty, as determined
by the degree of innovativeness. To test the hypotheses, data from 132 NPD projects were collected and
analyzed. A measurement model was used to establish valid and reliable constructs, a path model to test the
main effects, and a multiple-moderated regression analysis for the moderator hypotheses. The results
suggest that the proficiency of project planning and process management is important predictors of NPD
performance. Specifically, project risk planning and goal stability throughout the development process are
found to enhance performance significantly. Business planning proves to be an important antecedent of the
more development-related planning activities such as project planning and risk planning. Additionally, the
results lend support to the hypotheses regarding the mediating role of process management in the planningperformance relationship. Project planning and risk planning support the quality of process management and
thus impact NPD performance indirectly. Only to a limited extent are the strengths of these relationships
moderated by the degree of innovativeness of the NPD project.
Sandulli FD (2007) CD music purchase behaviour of P2P users. Technovation 27:325-334 During the last
years music sales had sharply declined. According to the recording industry, one of the reasons for this
decline is the development of peer-to-peer (P2P) networks. The main goal of this research was to establish a
relationship between consumer attitudes and the P2P music consumption proportion. We identified a set of
characteristics of P2P networks that could explain the proportion of P2P music compared to Compact Disc
(CD) music and we observed on a sample of 4060 Spanish P2P users the impact each of those characteristics
had on the CD-purchasing behaviour of these users. Results show how price, assortment and discovery of
the P2P music consumption process were related to higher proportions of P2P music.
Sankaran JK, Mouly VS (2007) Managing innovation in an emerging sector: the case of marine-based
nutraceuticals. R & D Management 37:329-344 Biotechnology is turning a traditionally low-tech industry
(food) into a high-tech industry (functional food/nutraceuticals). There is a real need to enhance managerial
understanding by clarifying the nature of innovation processes in the functional food industry, including the
role of research and development (R&D) and collaboration. The present investigation focuses on a particular
segment of the functional food industry, viz. marine-based nutraceuticals. We find that various hurdles
thwart the fullest realization of the business potential of marine bio-actives in the pharmaceutical space.
However, the innovation of commercially viable marine-based nutraceuticals/cosmeceuticals; is yet possible
if the extraction route for supply is a feasible fallback option, should industrial-scale synthesis prove elusive.
Effectiveness in innovation is facilitated by the collaboration of various disciplines including epidemiology,
traditional/folkloric medicine, aquaculture/fermentation, natural products chemistry, toxicology, and
relevant strands of medical, pharmacological, and clinical research. In this regard, the interdisciplinary field
of ethno-pharmacology rises to prominence. Universities and government research institutes may be well
positioned to drive such collaboration and reap the benefits from problem definition in addition to problem
solving. Toward this end, the findings from the present study are integrated into a phased approach toward
the innovation of commercially viable marine-based nutraceuticals that is targeted at entrepreneurs in this
field.
Santos-Vijande ML, Alvarez-Gonzalez LI (2007) Innovativeness and organizational innovation in total
quality oriented firms: The moderating role of market turbulence. Technovation 27:514-532
This paper
analyses the contribution of TQM implementation to the firms' innovative culture and their overall
innovation effort in the technical and administrative organizational domains. The research seeks to
contribute to a further understanding, under different market turbulence conditions, of the TQM-innovation
relationship and the interactions between the organization's innovativeness and the intensity and newness of
the innovations adopted. The findings indicate that TQM strongly influences firm's innovative culture and
higher administrative innovation levels with a greater degree of incorporated novelty, whereas the mediating
role of innovativeness is required for TQM to achieve this impact on technical innovation. These
relationships significantly vary under different levels of market turbulence, but results reinforce the
consideration of TQM as an appropriate resource to foster innovativeness and organizational innovation.
The study provides an unexpected result as innovativeness does not influence administrative innovations,
which seem to be ultimately determined by TQM. Finally, the findings provide empirical support regarding
the coordinated development in practice of technical and administrative innovations.
Scinta J (2007) Industrial research institute's R&D trends forecast for 2007. Research-Technology
Management 50:17-20
Seidel VP (2007) Concept shifting and the radical product development process. Journal of Product
Innovation Management 24:522-533
Radical product development projects, which are undertaken to
create new categories of products, present significant challenges to development teams. In such settings
existing formal processes may be limited or inappropriate, and objectives may be ambiguous and changing.
The generation of a novel product concept early in the process can play an important role in guiding
development teams, but the process by which teams later change concepts, as may be required within radical
contexts, has merited further research. This study investigated how teams change novel product concepts
after initial generation, employing an inductive case-study method drawing from 51 interviews with
members of six radical development projects. The empirical results found that concepts were described in
terms of concept components-elemental descriptive forms that included verbal stories, verbal metaphors, and
physical prototypes. When changes were required to concepts due to new technical or market information,
rather than reconsider the overall concept through iteration to earlier product definition stages, teams shifted
individual concept components, with a new component replacing a component of similar descriptive form.
Over half of concept components observed across cases came after the initial generation of concepts in later
elaboration and shifting. Contrary to expectations, development teams maintained reference not only to the
revised concept but also to the deferred original concept. The case of a novel electronic book development
project is used to illustrate the process, along with evidence of concept shifting across cases. The detailed
findings expand our understanding of how formal processes may be augmented in radical innovation settings
and how concepts are actually used by development teams in changing circumstances.
Shenhar AJ, Dvir D (2007) Reinventing project management: The diamond approach to successful growth
and innovation. Research-Technology Management 50:68-69
Simpson D (2007) New product forecasting: An applied approach. Journal of Product Innovation
Management 24:406-407
Skold M, Karlsson C (2007) Multibranded platform development: A corporate strategy with
multimanagerial challenges. Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:554-566
Product platforms
have become a principal fundament and a prerequisite for pro. table product development in almost every
industry today. Since platforms have a desirable potential to reduce development and production costs, there
is an extensive bulk of knowledge describing underlying platform principles and challenges. But the vast
majority of the identified challenges are based on single firms and brand contexts, which imply that previous
findings might not be applicable when platform development involves several brands, here called
multibranded platforms. In the present article it is therefore suggested that there is lack of knowledge
describing managerial challenges of multibranded platform development. To be able to capture such a
strategy that holds certain complexity and unknown dimension, an explorative and longitudinal field study is
supposed to achieve the. nest insights into a yet incompletely documented phenomenon. Because of the
field-study approach, findings from the study are theoretically validated in relation to existing knowledge
from other contributions. To start developing a multibranded product platform development framework, the
present study identifies three distinctively different strategic forces that must be handled in such
multibranded platform development: ( 1) the creation of a common architecture; ( 2) accomplishing product
differentiation within an expanded and multibranded product scope; and ( 3) corporate responsibility in the
transition from single- branded to multibranded platform development. Three dimensions of managerial
challenges are identified. The first is technology management challenges, which deal with commonalization
in terms of the development of common multibranded architectures. The major challenge to achieve
architectural commonalization is that no individuals from any brand have the proper multibranded
architectural knowledge. Instead, multibranded architectures must evolve from the beginning and be
founded on a new and expanded brand scope. Architectural commonalization also includes elements of
unlearning since previous experiences have little relevance. The second challenge is brand management
challenges and deals with brand differentiation in terms of portfolio management. Differentiation is an effect
of increased diversification that particularly challenges brands of opposite generic competitive strategies.
The third challenge dimension is called corporate management challenges and deals with the combination of
the two others. From a corporate management perspective, it seems important to provide new organizational
structures that support and combine interests of technology and brand management. Finally, multibranded
platform development is a corporate strategy that affects business units and functional units thoroughly.
Smith D (2007) China's 15 year science and technology plan. Research-Technology Management 50:70-70
Smith DJ (2007) The politics of innovation: Why innovations need a godfather. Technovation 27:95-104
Innovation is closely linked to the development of technology. Hence it is often assumed that when an
innovation fails it is the technology that is at fault. While this may be true in many instances, there are
occasions when it is not the technology that is at fault, rather, it is managerial and organisational aspects that
cause problems and lead to failure. Studies have shown that individuals who take oil specific roles can play
an important part in avoiding these problems. These roles include the technological gatekeeper, the product
champion and the sponsor/coach. In addition to these roles, this paper argues that there is another, namely
that of godfather. With this role a highly respected, senior figure within an organisation provides support
that is critical in ensuring the project overcomes the hurdles that lie in the path of any major new
development. The nature of the godfather role is explored through three case studies. These provide
examples of the role and show how it can facilitate the innovation process.
Smith PG (2007) Dragons at your door: How Chinese cost innovation is disrupting global competition.
Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:630-632
Smith R (2007) Making innovation pay: People who turn IP into shareholder value. Journal of Product
Innovation Management 24:503-505
Smith R (2007) Intellectual property for managers and investors: A guide to evaluating, protecting and
exploiting IP. Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:408-410
Smith R (2007) Dragons at your door: How Chinese cost innovation is disrupting global competition.
Research-Technology Management 50:70-71
Smith R (2007) What CTOs do. Research-Technology Management 50:18-22
The Chief Technology
Officer position has been adopted by a wide variety of industries that are seeking to leverage technology
within products and services. The position calls for an operational executive who can make important
strategic decisions that impact the competitive position of the company. However, little research has been
done to define the CTO's responsibilities, methods of evaluating the person's performance, and the skills that
he or she should bring to the office. This paper identifies five dominant patterns of the CTO position, labeled
the Genius, Administrator, Director, Executive, and Advocate. These patterns are useful in understanding
the diversity within the position and in matching a CTO from a specific pattern to a business with unique
issues to be addressed.
Smith R (2007) The disruptive potential of game technologies. Research-Technology Management 50:57-64
Modern computer gaming technologies initially provided low-end capabilities for a small niche within the
simulation industry. However, over time they improved to the point where they became more powerful than
many of the established tools in the field. This disruption is following the well-established innovation model
that was put forward by Harvard professor Clayton Christensen. Game technologies provide significant
advantages in industries like training, education, communication, and data analysis. The disruptive potential
of these technologies will spur the growth of new types of companies and threaten the positions of
established leaders in a number of industries.
Smith R (2007) Open business models: How to thrive in the new innovation landscape. ResearchTechnology Management 50:68-68
Smith R (2007) Reader replies to: "Materials research takes early retirement," July-August 2006, pp. 56-57 Outsourcing core business functions. Research-Technology Management 50:68-68
Smith R, Sharif N (2007) Understanding and acquiring technology assets for global competition.
Technovation 27:643-649
Technology assets play a crucial role in enabling the competitiveness of
companies in most industries. Several authors have proposed models that illustrate the role of these assets
during different phases of a company's development. In this paper, we develop a model that shows the
important role of technology, human expertise, organizational structure, and information assets in
positioning a company for global competition. This model integrates earlier work by Christensen and
Overdorf [2000. Meeting the challenge of disruptive change. Harvard Business Review], Leonard-Barton
[1992. Core capabilities and core rigidities: A Paradox in new product development. Strategic Management
Journal, 13, 111-126], Sharif [1995. The Evolution of technology management studies: Technoeconomics to
technometrics. Technology management: Strategies and applications for practitioners, 2(3), 113-148], and
Subramaniam, Youndt, [2005. The Influence of intellectual capital on the types of innovative capabilities.
Academy of Management Journal, 48(3), 450-463] to show the similarities that hide behind the unique
terminology presented in these earlier works. In this paper, we attempt to clearly identify the types of
technology assets that a company must acquire and apply in order to be successful in the marketplace.
Numerous authors have talked about the importance of managing technologies and "weaving streams of
technology" without explicitly defining these technologies. We suggest that managers must consider much
more than just traditional R&D and the acquisition of new equipment that represent "hard technology".
Rather, a manager must leverage the power of humanware, technoware, inforware, and orgaware. Further,
we suggest that each of these plays a dominant role during a different phase of a company's lifecycle. As an
asset moves from a dominant position to a supporting position, it moves from a differentiating competency,
to an operational capability.
Song M, Berends H, van der Bij H, Weggeman M (2007) The effect of IT and co-location on knowledge
dissemination. Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:52-68
Due to the increasing globalization
of businesses, new ideas for innovation need to be disseminated rapidly both within and across different
departments and divisions. Frequently, ideas and information are dispersed over globally distributed
organizations or team members. As a result, the exchange of knowledge has become not only very important
for innovation but also highly complex. To facilitate this knowledge exchange, electronically mediated
interactions are growing rapidly, replacing traditional face-to-face communications. However, literature
provides contradicting results regarding the effectiveness of computer-mediated communication (CMC)
versus face-to-face communication. This study attempts to reconcile differences in the literature on the
benefits of CMC technologies and co-location. Focusing on knowledge dissemination in technology
development processes in high-technology firms, the study investigates the relative impact of CMC
technologies and co-location of research and development (R&D) staff, as well as the mutual interaction
between them. The present article hypothesizes that CMC technologies and co-location of R&D staff have a
positive impact on knowledge dissemination. Further, it is hypothesized that it is more favorable to co-locate
R&D staff than to invest in CMC technologies and that the effects of co-location and CMC interact
negatively. These hypotheses are tested using empirical data collected from 277 high-technology firms in
the United States, and the results are generalized by conducting the same test on data from 125 hightechnology firms in the Netherlands. Tests are conducted in a real-world setting, differing from previous
comparative studies that mainly used laboratory experiments. Empirical results support the main effects of
CMC technologies and co-location of R&D staff on knowledge dissemination. Other empirical results
contradict conventional wisdom. Investing in CMC technologies is found to be favorable over co-locating
R&D staff for knowledge dissemination. Moreover, the two communication channels strengthen each other.
The discussion section presents the contours of a firm-level theory on communication infrastructures and
knowledge dissemination, focusing on the scope and the heterogeneity of knowledge dissemination, which
may explain these initially surprising results. From the arguments it follows that the choice for investment in
eo-location or CMC technologies depends on the scope of knowledge dissemination that has to be
facilitated. Furthermore, the conclusion is made that effective knowledge dissemination requires a balanced
investment in co-location and information technologies to be able to deal with the heterogeneous but
interdependent types of knowledge dissemination.
Spencer RW (2007) Innovation by the side door. Research-Technology Management 50:10-12
Swain DO (2007) Achieving R&D leadership. Research-Technology Management 50:60-65
Getting
talented engineers and scientists to take appropriate risks is one of the keys to building a more innovative
organization. Boeing has worked to accomplish this over the past nine years by emphasizing educational
opportunities, recognition programs, challenging work assignments, sharing the lessons learned, and
communication that is "frequent, open and honest." Organizationally, Boeings Phantom Works has been its
catalyst for innovation across the company, providing technology to the business units and learning from
them at the same time. One of the many learnings is that good ideas are found mostly outside the
organization; hence, Boeing has established listening posts and partnerships around the world. But above all,
it is leadership that leads the way to business success.
Szwejczewski M (2007) Operations management: A strategic approach. Technovation 27:489-489
Tatum D (2007) Innovating the development of innovation. Research-Technology Management 50:15-18
Disruptive innovations increasingly originate in private sector emerging growth firms-or gazelles, as they
are commonly called. Unfortunately, managers of large corporations find it difficult to replicate the unique
ecosystem that spawns the rapid innovation driven by these companies. The difficulty might be resolved by
inserting professional equity investors and their existing portfolio companies into the product launch
equation with a set of institutionalized, predetermined rules that corporations and private equity investors
could use to meet their mutual objectives. In this way, a large corporation might use the gazelle ecosystemincluding the private equity sponsors that invest in it-to speed delivery of the corporation's own internal
R&D ideas.
Tessarolo P (2007) Is integration enough for fast product development? An empirical investigation of the
contextual effects of product vision. Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:69-82
Research into
development time performance hay suggested that integration-both internal, adopting cross-functional
organizational structures for development, and external, involving customers and suppliers in the processcan be a powerful driver when it conies to compressing cycle times and enhancing development punctuality.
Some recent studies have also highlighted the compelling role of product vision to obtain high performances
with product development. What these studies seem to suggest is that product vision guarantees the right
goals and clarity of direction that integration mechanisms need to quickly develop new products and to stay
on the development schedule. However, past studies have rarely considered or measured product vision as a
construct and explicitly; tested whether or not product vision acts (is a contingent factor in determining the
relationships between the aforementioned organizational drivers and development time. This research study
maintains that product vision is crucial to pushing organizational drivers toward increased development
efficiency. To find theoretical support for this position and to define a reference framework for the study,
previous literature was analyzed. In the framework, both internal and external development integration are
assumed to be positively related to time performance; however, these relationships are moderated by product
vision. The model was then tested empirically on an international sample of 157 firms to verify and to obtain
empirical support for the hypothesized relationships. The results confirm the importance of external
integration in achieving better time performance. However, the influence of this driver on cycle time can
also be increased by the presence of a very well-defined product vision. The relationship between internal
integration and time performance is more complex. Though it seems to slow, down the process as a single
factor, its interaction effect with product vision. is in fact positive. These results have several managerial
implications. First, externally integrated development can greatly improve time performance; however, the
best results in terms of acceleration can be obtained when there is a well-defined product vision.
Furthermore, product vision is essential in the case of internal integration: A cross-functional process alone
would not be enough for development acceleration in the absence of product vision. Hence, managers
interested in obtaining high time performances should accompany the adoption of integration mechanisms
with increased attention to sharing clear objectives and directions with all those-both inside the firm (i.e.,
team members and functional representatives) and outside the firm (i.e., customers and suppliers)-involved
in development and as well as throughout the firm.
Thieme J (2007) PERSPECTIVE: The world's top innovation management scholars and their social capital.
Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:214-229
Using 959 articles reflecting the work of 1,179
scholars, this study ranks the world's top scholars in innovation management (IM) on the basis of the
number of research articles published across 14 top academic journals in technology and innovation
management, marketing, and management between 1990 and 2004. Twenty-three scholars have at least eight
articles in this period. Michael Song has the most (31), followed by Robert Cooper, Roger Calantone,
William Souder, and Elko Kleinschmidt, who have published at least 17 articles in the 15-year period.
Surprisingly, the list of schools that either trained or currently employ these top scholars is quite different
from Linton's (2004) recent ranking of the top business schools in the management of technology. Guided
by social capital theory, the present study analyzes the embeddedness characteristics of IM scholars to
determine the extent to which social capital explains scholarly productivity. A current controversy in the
social capital literature is the embeddedness characteristics that create social capital. On the one hand, the
closure perspective argues that social capital results from strong relational ties with others in a dense, local
neighborhood of actors who are relatively disconnected from others. On the other hand, the brokerage
perspective argues that social capital is created when actors have relational ties that span these dense, local
neighborhoods. The findings in the present study support both perspectives. Furthermore, the results suggest
that strategic orientation is a contingency variable that clarifies the conditions in which closure- or
brokerage-based embeddedness is appropriate. Specifically, scholars pursuing an entrepreneurial publication
strategy are more productive when their relational embeddedness is consistent with the brokerage
perspective of social capital creation, whereas scholars pursuing a focused publication strategy are more
productive when their relational embeddedness is consistent with the closure perspective of social capital
creation. The results have implications for both the IM scholar community and the social capital literature.
Whether IM scholars are pursuing an entrepreneurial strategy that capitalizes on emergent knowledge across
various theories and perspectives or pursuing a focused strategy by concentrating on gaining deep
understanding of a specific stream of research, there are many avenues and opportunities for improving
publication performance through the formation of new social capital. Finally, the empirical support for the
contingency variable strategic orientation is consistent with recent speculation that both perspectives are
important and suggests that future work should focus on further identification and clarification of
contingency factors associated with them.
Thorburn L (2007) Spinning along: CSIRO's knowledge business. Innovation-Management Policy &
Practice 9:159-169
This paper addresses the development of CSIRO's intellectual property
commercialisation from its beginnings in 1949 to 2006. The paper focuses on spinoff companies in
commercialisation and the particular drivers, both economic and policy-based, that have led to particular
patterns of commercialisation and spinoff formation over the years. Trends are analysed in three main
periods, which correspond with particular policy approaches to CSIRO by its owner, the Australian
Government: 1949-1983 (science focused, ad hoc commercialisation, little or no overt government
influence); 1984-1996 (organisational commercialisation policies emerge, government sets external earnings
targets); and 1996-2006 (more sophisticated organisational management of commercial interactions,
government involvement in broad research priority setting and extensive grant schemes). Case studies
illustrate the themes discussed. Successful commercialisation by CSIRO will require continuation of the
careful approach to commercialisation that has evolved in the last 5-6 years.
To PL, Liao CC, Lin TH (2007) Shopping motivations on Internet: A study based on utilitarian and hedonic
value. Technovation 27:774-787
Electronic commerce has been growing rapidly. Although. business-toconsumer electronic commerce has created new opportunities for businesses, questions about consumer
shopping motivations toward Internet shopping versus conventional shopping continue to persist. The
purpose of this study is to investigate the Internet shopping motivations from both utilitarian and hedonic
perspectives. The differential effects of these dual motivations on both search intention and purchase
intention are examined. An integrated model of shopping motivations on the Internet is proposed. A
structural equation model is developed to test the casual effects between variables. The study finds that
utilitarian motivation is a determinant of consumer intention to search and intention to purchase. Hedonic
motivation has a direct impact on intention to search and indirect impact on intention to purchase. While
these dual motivations have significant effects, utilitarian motivation is the strongest predictor of intention to
search and intention to purchase. Utilitarian motivation is influenced by convenience, cost saving,
information availability, and selection; hedonic motivation is influenced by adventure, and authority and
status. The study serves as a basis for the future growth of Internet marketing.
Todt O, Gutierrez-Gracia A, de Lucio IF, Castro-Martinez E (2007) The regional dimension of innovation
and the globalization of science: the case of biotechnology in a peripheral region of the European Union. R
& D Management 37:65-74
This article presents the results of an analysis of the relationship between
public sector research and industry development in the field of biotechnology in a peripheral region of the
European Union: the Region of Valencia (Spain). It contributes empirical data on the delocalized impact of
research-industry relations in a globalized economy. It also uncovers a gap between a relatively welldeveloped public research sector in biotechnology and a weak biotechnology industry. The analysis raises
questions as to the role of the concept of predominantly local knowledge communities in regional innovation
systems, as well as the model of linear technological development, both of which exert an important
influence on decision making in research and development (R&D) and innovation. A high level of R&D is
shown to be a necessary condition for stimulating innovation, but does not suffice. Rather, R&D must be
integrated with a number of different actions to correct deficiencies in the regional innovation system.
Trokhan PD (2007) An inventor's personal principles of innovation. Research-Technology Management
50:32-41 Virtually all businesses set stretching growth goals. While the strategies on how to achieve those
goals vary greatly, one underlying theme remains constant: game-changing innovation at all levels and
across all functions and disciplines is essential. While there are no prescriptive checklists that guarantee
success, efforts driven by personally derived innovation principles increase the probability that meaningful
advances will occur. Every individual in the organization should be encouraged to develop such principles
and then routinely exhibit what the author calls constructively deviant behavior. The author outlines ten
fundamental principles that have guided his 34 years of upstream R&D work at Procter & Gamble.
Trott P (2007) The management of technology and innovation: A strategic approach. R & D Management
37:379-380
Tsai KH, Wang JC (2007) Inward technology licensing and firm performance: a longitudinal study. R & D
Management 37:151-160
Inward technology licensing (ITL) is often viewed as an important strategy
adopted by firms to achieve innovation. However, relatively limited research has focused on evaluating the
contribution of ITL to firm performance. The gap is all the more surprising since the benefits of external
technology acquisition on innovation output have been emphasized in a lot of the literature. This study
therefore sets out to investigate the extent to which the investment of ITL by firms affects their performance.
In view of the relative abundance of data on variables for a longitudinal investigation, this analysis
concentrates on the electronics-manufacturing industry. The longitudinal sample allows this examination to
control the more extraneous effects and to provide more convincing evidence for examining the relationship
of ITL and firm performance. A total of 341 Taiwanese electronics-manufacturing firms balanced over the
period from 1998 to 2002 is taken as the analytical sample. The basic statistics indicate that acquiring
technology externally shows an increasing tendency within the firms. The analyses, from the least square
dummy variable method, reveal that ITL per se does not provide a significant contribution to firm
performance; however, the positive impact of ITL on their performance increases with the level of the firms'
internal research and development (R&D) efforts. Both the checks for robustness and the split-sample
analyses validate the results. The findings not only highlight the importance of internal R&D efforts but also
suggest that firms had better use ITL as a complement rather than a substitute of internal R&D for their
competence.
Tubbs M (2007) The relationship between r&d and company performance. Research-Technology
Management 50:23-30
In setting R & D budgets, many companies compare their R & D intensity with
that of the average intensity for global companies in their sector using an R & D scoreboard. However, it's
important to define the sector or subsector for this purpose carefully since unduly broad sector definitions
have led to misleading conclusions. Moreover, R & D is only one of the investments that should be
compared in this way-both Capex and market development can be as or more important for some sectors.
Competitive advantage can also be gained by increasing R & D at the start of a recession or downturn when
competitors may be decreasing R & D; a number of companies have shown that this boosts the relative
advantage of the company's products and services and hence leads to increased sales and market
capitalization in the subsequent upturn.
Upstill G, Spurling TH (2007) Adjusting to changing times: CSIRO since the 1970s. InnovationManagement Policy & Practice 9:113-124 CSIRO, Australia largest public research agency, has changed
appreciably over the past three decades as the social, economic, political and technological environment has
changed. In this paper, we address five areas of change, namely the nature of the Organisation research, its
research funding allocation, its patterns of collaboration, the way it transfers technology and its role in the
national innovation scene. We look at some of the pressures leading to change and at the implications of our
analysis for the future. CSIRO is no longer the dominant player in Australian science and innovation as
other players, notably in the higher education sector, have grown and, despite its undoubted importance as a
reservoir of scientific talent and its major scientific and commercial achievements, much uncertainty about
its national role remains.
Vang J (2007) The spatial organization of the news industry: Questioning assumptions about knowledge
externalities for clustering of creative industries. Innovation-Management Policy & Practice 9:14-27 The
importance ascribed to knowledge externalities for understanding the spatial organization of industries (i.e.
clustering) is increasingly being exposed to critical theoretical and empirical scrutiny. This research has not
yet spilled over into studies of creative industries. This paper is concerned with reducing this omission by
making an empirically based assessment of the importance of respectively knowledge internalities and
externalities for the spatial organization of the news industry. The paper documents how the identified
spatial organization can complement the existing literature on the importance of knowledge externalities for
clustering of creative industries.
Von Zedtwitz M (2007) High-tech industries in China. R & D Management 37:380-381
von Zedtwitz M, Ikeda T, Gong L, Carpenter R, Hamalainen S (2007) Managing foreign R&D in China.
Research-Technology Management 50:19-27
China has become one of the most desired locations in
which to do R&D. However, it has little innovation of its own, and intellectual property protection is weak.
This raises questions: Is China R&D more hype than reality? Do cost advantages really outweigh the risk of
losing technology to Chinese competitors? Lessons learned from managing R&D in China show that in
order to avoid the typical pitfalls of managing R&D in a developing country, any China-based R&D must be
part of an overall China strategy and must also be part of a global R&D effort.
Walwyn D (2007) Finland and the mobile phone industry: A case study investment from government-funded
research and of the return on development. Technovation 27:335-341 The sudden and dramatic growth of
the mobile phone manufacturing sector in Finland is an interesting case study for science and technology
(S&T) policy analysts. Mostly on account of the rapidity of this growth against a relatively static situation
for the other subsectors, the Finnish economic data over the period 1990-2001 can be used without
ambiguity to quantify the return of an initial public sector research and development (R&D) expenditure on
the growth of a sectoral economy. Although it is apparent from the data that this economic success story is
to some extent now running out of steam, the returns to date for all the participants have been astonishing.
Using the Patterson-Hartmann model, which has been developed to link company-level R&D expenditure
with product revenue, it is shown that government has managed to achieve a multiplier effect of about 66 on
its initial R&D expenditure through initially a leveraging of business R&D expenditure (at a level of 1:3)
and then the translation of the latter into an increase in gross domestic product (GDP) (at a level of 1:22).
These figures are extraordinarily high, even in comparison to the multipliers obtained by large private sector
companies. The keys to the success were both the vision and foresight of the Finnish R&D community, who
identified cell phones as a major growth opportunity, the sharing of risk by the various role players
(government, universities and industry) as can happen in an efficient national system of innovation, and
finally a sustained commitment to R&D by the industry leaders. The latter has now reached a level of 3.5%
of GDP (2005), which makes Finland a global leader in R&D expenditure (as a percentage of GDP). The
lessons for developing countries such as South Africa, which are moving towards higher levels of R&D
expenditure but within a resource constrained context, are apparent.
Wang TY, Chien SC (2007) The influences of technology development on economic performance - The
example of ASEAN countries. Technovation 27:471-488 In this paper, we propose a research framework
to discuss the relationships between technology development (TD) and economic performance (EP) for The
Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries. A lot of researchers have in the past focused on
technology transfer, technology acquisition, and technology management in this region. Though some
researchers have discussed the relationships between information and communication technology (ICT) and
economic growth in developed countries, seldom have studies been conducted to consider the issue of the
influences of TD on EP in developing and less-developed countries. In this study, a cluster analysis on TD
achievements is used to distinguish the different patterns of such influences in the ASEAN area. Variations
between TD and EP are detected using the rank correlations and strategic grid methods. The first method
explains the matching levels between each sub-category; the second method divides the TD performance
into four types (fitting type, retuning type, inadequate type, and ignoring type), thus, explains the relative
performance of ASEAN countries we studied. All of the survey data are compared with those from
International Monetary Fund (IMF), World Bank (WB), and Asia Development Bank (ADB) databases and
are thus confirmed to be factual. The results show that most of the sub-categories of TD in pattern I
countries (Singapore, Malaysia, and Brunei) exhibit positive correlations with those of EP (except the
information technology sub-category). Singapore and Malaysia (of the fitting type) perform at a higher level
on both TD and EP relative to other ASEAN countries. In contrast, all sub-categories of TD in pattern 2
countries (Thailand, Indonesia, Philippines, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, and Vietnam) show lower or
negative correlations with the domestic economy and government efficiency sub-categories EP. Finally, this
research can provide ASEAN countries with a roadmap on how to move from pattern 2 to pattern I and how
to shift from being of the ignoring type to the fitting type in the future.
Whalen PJ (2007) Strategic and technology planning on a roadmapping foundation. Research-Technology
Management 50:40-51 Growth through innovation requires not only good technical ideas but alignment of
priorities between all the functions responsible for successfully developing and commercializing the idea.
The ability to create, modify and maintain this alignment as business conditions change, new opportunities
arise, and new capabilities are developed can mean the difference between capturing the benefits of being a
market leader versus a market follower. Roadmapping has emerged as a best practice, particularly for large,
global organizations, in providing the framework for technology strategy creation and management where
cross-functional alignment and integration are key requirements. By employing road mapping from an
enterprise perspective, where key functions in the business "own" their individual strategies which are fully
integrated as needed to meet business priorities, an organization can fully exploit its entire spectrum of
capabilities to drive growth.
Whitney DE (2007) Assemble a technology development toolkit. Research-Technology Management 50:5258
technology-based company strives to sustain the flow of new product concepts and technologies that
fuel its growth. Managing the technology development process involves tools of a diffrent trade. While the
operations manager may focus attention on plant productivity to improve financial margins, the technology
of effectiveness department manager's focus is on the qfprocesses intended to cultivate that which does not
exist. The Technology Development Model describes technology development as a system of processes
uniquely) within the technology manager's realm. The Technology Development Toolkit is the product of
research for tools and techniques proposed or.found.fective by practitioners in the R&D field. These are
tools used in the firont end qfthe innovation process, involving the creation and development of ideas and
opportunities intoftasible concepts,for new product development.
Willemstein L, van der Valk T, Meeus MTH (2007) Dynamics in business models: An empirical analysis of
medical biotechnology firms in the Netherlands. Technovation 27:221-232 In this paper, business models
of Dutch dedicated biotechnology firms (DBFs) that are active in the field of medical biotechnology are
examined. The focus is on the dynamics in business models within the. Dutch population and the
mechanisms that generate these dynamics. Furthermore, we propose a value-added sequence of the business
model of a firm over time and examine if this sequence is found in the population of the Dutch DBFs. We
focus on the business models at founding and the shifts that occurred in these business models afterwards.
Therefore, data on a survey completed by 80 Dutch DBFs was used together with longitudinal data on shifts
in business models of four case studies. We show that both the generation of new firms, due to shifts in the
dominating business model at founding over time, and shifts in business models after founding contribute to
the dynamics in business models within this population.
Wolff MF (2007) Forget R&D spending - Think innovation. Research-Technology Management 50:7-9
Wolff MF (2007) The management of research when research-technology management was born. ResearchTechnology Management 50:21-25
The first issue of RTM, then Research Management, featured case
histories of research from National Cash Register, Westinghouse Electric and Atlas Powder. Subsequent
1958 issues carried reports from General Electric, General Motors, Corning Glass, Goodyear Tire and
Rubber, Hercules Powder, RCA, American Cyanamid, Esso Standard Oil, Esso Research and Engineering-
and the first Presidential science adviser, James R. Killian. From a time when Sputnik and Univac captured
the science headlines, they provide insights into the management of scientists and engineers that remain
surprisingly relevant today.
Wonglimpiyarat J (2007) Management and governance of venture capital: A challenge for commercial bank.
Technovation 27:721-731
Venture capital (VC) improves the nation's innovative capacity by making
investments in early stage businesses that offer high potential but high risk. This paper is concerned with the
venture investment fund programmes in Thailand. In particular, the study describes and analyses the VC
management of the Small and Medium Enterprise Development Bank of Thailand (SME Bank), the bank set
up to help small businesses realise their entrepreneurial potential. Currently, SME Bank is gearing towards
helping technology-based businesses create new innovations. The role of technology financing is the great
challenge for SME Bank as the bank needs to garner the integrated financial and entrepreneurial support as
well as a network of alliances. The paper proposes the model of VC management for changing the
innovative environment to create the tech economy. Innovative initiatives at SME Bank would be useful for
economies in other developing countries to launch programmes supporting the diffusion and
commercialisation of innovations.
Wonglimpiyarat J (2007) Venture capital financing in the Thai economy. Innovation-Management Policy &
Practice 9:79-87
This paper is concerned with the management of venture capital financing in the Thai
economy. It presents Small and Medium Enterprise Development Bank of Thailand (SME Bank) activities
in support of the generation of new business and innovations. Being the bank for technology-based
businesses to increase the nations innovation capacity is the great challenge for SME Bank as the bank needs
to garner the integrated financial and entrepreneurial support as well as a network of alliances. The paper
proposes the model of venture capital management for changing the innovative environment to create the
tech economy. Innovative initiatives at SME Bank would be useful for economies in other developing
countries to launch programmes supporting the diffusion and commercialisation of innovations.
Wu HL, Lin BW, Chen CJ (2007) Contingency view on technological differentiation and firm performance:
evidence in an economic downturn. R & D Management 37:75-88
Although the importance of strategy
for firm performance has been studied, little evidence has been offered regarding this linkage in hostile
environments characterized by a lack of exploitable market opportunity and fiercer competition. This study
aims to examine the viability of strategic postures of technological differentiation in such a setting using
data from 1,054 samples across 32 industries in 30 countries during 2001-2002, when global economies
suffered a downturn. The empirical results show that differentiation-oriented firms underperformed
efficiency-oriented ones during this period. However, in the face of deteriorating market conditions, a
strategic orientation toward technological differentiation, in concert with an internal commitment to R&D
investment or external munificence toward technological opportunity, yields better performance. Finally,
this study finds that firms with tight coupling between differentiation and efficiency outmaneuver those with
a pure strategy or no strategy at the time of an economic downturn.
Wu MC, Yen SH (2007) Pricing real growth options when the underlying assets have jump diffusion
processes: the case of R&D investments. R & D Management 37:269-276
Numerous previous studies
have demonstrated that research and development (R&D) investments can be evaluated by a real growth
options approach. However, few studies have constructed evaluating models which consider the important
R&D characteristics, including uncertainty regarding the project value, investment cost, and jump diffusion
processes. The contribution of this study is not only to derive a model for evaluating R&D investments to
conform to these key characteristics of R&D activities but also to build a real option pricing method that is
more general than comparative important models, such as the theoretical papers of Black and Scholes
(1973), Merton (1976), and Fischer (1978), and the application paper of Brach and Paxson (2001). This
study also presents sensitivity analyses which illustrate the dynamic relationship between the real growth
option value and the project value, investment cost, and main jump parameters. Hopefully, the results of this
study can provide a useful reference for managers, and help them make better evaluations of R&D
investments.
Wyatt S (2007) Internationalizing the Internet: The co-evolution of influence and technology. Technovation
27:319-319
Yeniyurt S, Townsend JD, Talay MB (2007) Factors influencing brand launch in a global marketplace.
Journal of Product Innovation Management 24:471-485 The purpose of this study is to explore the factors
that influence the launch of brands into new markets in a global environment. Although multiple streams of
literature exist with respect to the entry of brands into new markets and the diffusion of new brands within
and across markets, the process of launching products and brands globally over time has received relatively
limited attention. To address this issue, this study incorporates multiple indicators of activities that can
contribute to experiential learning relevant for launching brands in a global marketplace. Market uncertainty
and experiential learning provide a conceptual foundation for the development of relevant hypotheses, which
are tested in the context of the global automotive industry from 1981 to 2004. A discrete time event history
analysis with time-varying independent variables is employed to estimate the effects of the independent
variables on the probability of a brand being launched in a specific market. The global brand launch
observations are extracted from a proprietary dataset containing the global dispersion of automotive brands
including 22 countries of origin and 42 countries of brand entry. The sample yields 50,572 spells, derived
from 99 companies, 173 brands, and 700 market entries. The results of this study contribute to the literature
in a variety of ways. Market attractiveness positively influences the propensity of a brand to be launched
into a new market. This supports the idea that potential demand conditions are an important managerial
consideration in product introduction decisions. The results reveal significant effects with respect to the role
of psychic distance and experiential learning. Brands are reluctant to launch into countries that are culturally
and economically less similar to the home market. Yet firms tend to place a lower degree of emphasis on
factors of cultural distance when launching brands into larger markets, and global experience enables
companies to overcome the uncertainties associated with launching brands into international markets that are
economically distant. The results also suggest that companies are more likely to introduce additional brands
in markets where they already have a presence. Overall, global dispersion and geographic scope, coupled
with local market knowledge facilitate the launch of brands globally. From a managerial perspective, this
study suggests companies should focus on acquiring both local and global experience to facilitate the launch
of products and brands in the global marketplace.
Yoshida PG (2007) Rising china faces challenges to national innovation goals. Research-Technology
Management 50:2-5
Zwerink R, Wouters M, Hissel P, Kerssens-Van Drongelen I (2007) Cost management and cross-functional
communication through product architectures. R & D Management 37:49-64
Product architecture
decisions regarding, for example, product modularity, component commonality, and design re-use, are
important for balancing costs, responsiveness, quality, and other important business objectives. Firms are
challenged with complex tradeoffs between competing design priorities, face the need to facilitate
communication between functional silos, and want to learn from past experiences. In this paper, we present
a qualitative approach for systematically evaluating the product architecture of a product family, comparing
the original architecture objectives and actual experiences. The intended contribution of our research is
threefold: (1) to present a framework that brings together a diverse set of product architecture-related
decisions and business performance; (2) to provide a set of metrics that operationalise the variables in the
framework, and (3) to provide a workshop protocol that is based on the framework and the metrics. This
workshop aims to improve cross-functional communication about the product architecture of an existing
product family, and it results in practical improvement actions for future architecture design projects.
Experiences with this approach are reported in pilots with Philips Domestic Appliances and Personal Care,
and Philips Consumer Electronics.