Does supplier involvement enhance financial performance? The encapsulation effects of product modularity and smartness

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yu Wang ◽  
Tao Jia ◽  
Jinliang Chen ◽  
Qiujun Chen

Purpose This study aims to explore the conditional relationships between supplier involvement and financial performance. From a problem-solving perspective, this study takes the focal firm as a problem-solving system. It is postulated that supplier involvement enhances financial performance by helping solve complex problems of new product development. Furthermore, product modularity and smartness are considered contingent factors to clarify the boundary conditions. Design/methodology/approach The ordinary least squares regression was conducted to test the hypotheses based on survey data from 136 high-tech firms in China. Findings Supplier involvement is positively related to financial performance. Product modularity weakens the impact of supplier involvement on financial performance. Furthermore, product smartness strengthens the negative influence of product modularity on the relationship between supplier involvement and financial performance. Originality/value This study combines supplier involvement with product attributes. It takes a problem-solving perspective to rethink suppliers’ roles in new product development as problem-solvers rather than resource holders. Furthermore, this study advances the encapsulation effects of product modularity and smartness to influence the supplier involvement–financial performance link.

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Wilert Puriwat ◽  
Danupol Hoonsopon

PurposeThis study is to compare the impact of organizational agility and flexibility on performance of each type of product innovation (radical vs incremental innovation). Additionally, the moderating effect of technological turbulence on the relationship between the two types of organization is examined.Design/methodology/approachBased on gaps in the existing literature, the survey data are collected from managers who are in charge of developing new products in three industries: food and beverage, chemical and machinery (N = 431). Confirmatory factory analysis is used to verify measurement items and regression analysis is used to test hypotheses.FindingsThe results show that organizational agility increases performance in radical innovation both in a certain situation and an environment with technological turbulence. In contrast, the impact of organizational flexibility is limited to increasing performance in both radical and incremental innovation performance in a certain situation.Originality/valueOur study extends the knowledge of organizational agility and flexibility in the domain of product innovation. Adaptation of organization to respond the technological turbulence will stimulate creativity of new product development teams to produce new useful ideas and transform these ideas to product innovation. The different types of organizing a new product development team to handle technological turbulence will provide different results in product innovation performance. In addition, the findings provide a recommendation on how the organization of a new product development team can improve performance in each type of product innovation under technological turbulence.


2017 ◽  
Vol 37 (10) ◽  
pp. 1366-1385 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hanna Bahemia ◽  
Brian Squire ◽  
Paul Cousins

Purpose This paper explores openness within new product development (NPD) projects. The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of breadth, depth and partner newness on product innovativeness and product competitive advantage. The authors also seek to examine the contingent effects of the appropriability regime. The authors make suggestions to academics and practitioners based on the findings. Design/methodology/approach The authors use a structured survey instrument producing an empirical analysis of 205 NPD projects in the manufacturing sector in the UK. The authors use an ordinary least squares regression model to test hypothesised relationships between openness (breadth, depth and partner newness), product innovativeness, product competitive advantage and the appropriability regime. Findings The authors find that each of the three dimensions of openness, depth, breadth and partner newness, have a significant but differing impact on product innovativeness. Specifically, the study indicates that breadth has a positive effect but only in the presence of a strong appropriability regime, partner newness has a direct positive effect, and depth a direct negative effect. The authors also find that product innovativeness has a positive impact on product competitive advantage. Research limitations/implications Further research should focus on replicating the findings in other countries, search for further moderating factors, such as the stage of the NPD process, and analyse the longitudinal impact of openness within NPD projects. Practical implications Organisations are encouraging managers to be more open in their approach to NPD. The authors’ findings suggest that managers need to think about the three dimensions of openness, breadth, depth and partner newness. Their engagement with each of these dimensions depends on the desired outcomes of the innovation project and the strength of patents. Originality/value The research extends the extant supplier involvement in new product development literature to examine the effect of up to 11 types of external actor in NPD projects. The authors test a new multi-dimensional measurement scale for the openness construct. The authors show that each dimension has a different relationship with product innovativeness.


2018 ◽  
Vol 27 (2) ◽  
pp. 158-171 ◽  
Author(s):  
Claudia Costa ◽  
Rita Coelho do Vale

Purpose This paper aims to analyze the implications of communicating customer involvement in the ideation and concept stage of new product development (NPD). This paper assesses the extent to which the awareness that a product was co-created jointly by company professional designers and consumers affects observer consumers’ attitudes toward the product and the company. While earlier research has mainly emphasized the positive and desirable consequences of consumer participation in NPD, the present set of studies shows that labeling products as having been co-created is not always valuable; rather, it is dependent on the level of perceived complexity of the products. Design/methodology/approach The hypotheses are tested in four experimental studies using several categories of product complexity (low, medium and high). The data have been collected on young adult samples, measuring the participants’ perceptions of a firm’s innovation ability and product purchase intentions. Findings The results suggest that there are benefits at the corporate level (higher perceptions of innovation ability) to inform the market about consumer involvement, particularly when consumers and company professionals work together. The findings also indicate that product complexity plays a critical role in translating the perceptions of greater corporate abilities (innovation) in purchase intention, and it is particularly beneficial for low-complexity products. Originality/value The previous research has mainly focused on the impact of involving consumers in firms and participating consumers; however, it has neglected the role of observer consumers. This study adds to the innovation literature by showing that the value of learning about other consumers’ involvement in firm NPD is not universally beneficial and that product complexity is a critical boundary condition.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jiajun Wu ◽  
Matthew O'Hern ◽  
Jun Ye

PurposeThis study examines the influence of different user innovator mindsets on new product development (NPD) performance. The current research explores the relative impact of a product-focused user innovator mindset vs a customer-focused mindset on feedback volume and feedback diversity and investigates the effect of each type of feedback on product improvement and product diffusion.Design/methodology/approachThis study examines these relationships using two distinct types of data. Data on user innovator mindset, feedback characteristics and user innovator improvisation were obtained via an online survey. Archival data on NPD performance measures were acquired directly from an online research database, and results were obtained using confirmatory factor analysis.FindingsThe authors find that while neither type of user innovator mindset directly influences NPD performance, user innovators, who are highly customer-focused, have a significant advantage in sourcing knowledge from users in the form of a higher volume of feedback and more diverse feedback. In turn, feedback volume appears to positively influence product improvement, while feedback diversity positively influences product diffusion. Finally, the effect of both types of feedback on product improvement is enhanced for user innovators who are highly improvisational.Originality/valueThis research highlights the important role that customer focus plays in directly obtaining knowledge from customers (i.e. customer feedback) and the effects of that feedback on NPD performance. This study provides evidence that a user innovator's interest in accurately understanding the needs of their peers improves their access to external knowledge and enhances their innovation efforts.


2020 ◽  
Vol 32 (10) ◽  
pp. 3271-3293
Author(s):  
Mesbahuddin Chowdhury ◽  
Girish Prayag ◽  
Vidya Patwardhan ◽  
Nischal Kumar

Purpose Using social capital theory, this study aims to investigate internal social capital (ISC) and external social capital (ESC) as determinants of knowledge sharing intention (KSI) and new product development (NPD) in high-end restaurants. Design/methodology/approach A theoretical model is developed and tested using data collected from 523 respondents (owners/proprietors, partners and managers) from high-end restaurants in Karnataka, India. Partial least square structural equation modeling is used to analyze the data. Findings The results suggest that ISC has a significant and positive influence on ESC. This highlights the important role of ISC in building ESC. While ISC has a positive relationship with KSI, ESC has no influence on KSI. KSI has a positive effect on NPD. Practical implications Restaurant managers and owners should invest time and resources in building ISC by nurturing relationships with employees and partners. Encouraging and rewarding collaborative behaviors internally will facilitate the development of external relationships. Results also suggest the existence of an optimum level of knowledge sharing with external partners in restaurants. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study to examine the relationship between ISC and ESC, and test the effects of both KSI and NPD in high-end restaurants.


2019 ◽  
Vol 37 (1) ◽  
pp. 33-49 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Robey ◽  
Karl Hellman ◽  
Isabelle Monlouis ◽  
Kenneth Nations ◽  
Wesley J. Johnston

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to study two aspects of new product development (NPD) success – the impact of learning and the impact of structure – are studied. Design/methodology/approach A multiple case study method within a single setting consisting of in-depth interviews of two teams that developed successful, award-winning products and two teams that developed unsuccessful products. Findings Case 1: flexibility and expertise permitted learning and radical redefinition of the product mid-project and commercial success. Case 2: flexibility enabled adding expertise which was instrumental in success, iterating permitted optimizing pricing. Case 3: flexibility led to focusing on technical issues to the exclusion of commercial viability. Case 4: flexibility led to skipping market definition and partnering with a particular customer whose situation was idiosyncratic. Cross-case analysis: flexibility in teams with both technical and commercial expertise yielded success. Flexibility permitted teams consisting of narrow experts to invest development resources in products with insufficient market. Research limitations/implications This paper argues that the right balance between structure and flexibility is dependent on the level of expertise of the members of the NPD project teams. However, getting this balance right is not a sufficient condition for NPD success. The cases were theoretically blocked to develop theoretical insight, but additional cases are needed for a strong test of theory. Practical implications The more experienced team members are, the more the project benefits from flexibility. Conversely, an inexperienced team will benefit from a more structured process. Projects require iteration. The dichotomy between structure and flexibility is false: the most expert teams benefit from some structure. The most inexperienced teams must employ flexibility to learn. Originality/value The analysis combines the virtues of the stage-gate school and the flexibility school previously thought mutually exclusive.


2014 ◽  
Vol 34 (6) ◽  
pp. 722-749 ◽  
Author(s):  
Uwe Gross

Purpose – Short-term problem solving during production launch may result in extended lead times and increased overall costs of new product development, thereby reducing the overall profitability of a new product. While the previous literature suggests formalized procedures and systematic problem solving approaches, empirical analyses indicate improvised, non-systematic, and ad hoc responses actually being used in firms’ real world problem solving processes. The purpose of this paper is to explain the role of such non-systematic approaches for the efficiency and effectiveness of problem solving processes during production launch. Design/methodology/approach – The paper empirically explores the impact of improvisational problem-solving behavior on a firm's production launch efficiency and on the success of new products. Moreover, the paper investigates the moderating role of technology familiarity, project complexity, and the number of occurring problems during production launch. Findings – The paper finds evidence for a positive curvilinear effect of improvisational problem-solving behavior on new product success and production launch efficiency. Additionally, the paper finds that improvisation is especially reasonable in complex and familiar projects or in the case of many unplanned changes during production launch. Research limitations/implications – The study provides evidence for the relevance of routinized and improvisational behavior during production launch. Practical implications – Improvisational behavior decreases the performance of the production launch and the financial performance of a new product in the case of frequent product changes or complex projects. Originality/value – For the first time behavioral theory is applied to the phenomenon of production launch and problem solving.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Adriana Andrea Amaya ◽  
Wann-Yih Wu ◽  
Ying-Kai Liao

PurposeAlthough previous studies noted the importance for organizations in establishing an innovation strategy, few have examined innovation orientation as a multidimensional knowledge configuration. Therefore, this study draws on the valuable theoretical underpinnings of the resource-based view and information processing theory to examine the mechanism through which an organization's innovation orientation (IO) and team unlearning (TU) can impact new product development (NPD) success.Design/methodology/approachA causal model was developed in order to analyze the role of innovation orientation and team unlearning on NPD success. This proposed model and several hypotheses were gauged using data from 255 NPD team members from Taiwanese high-tech and traditional companies.FindingsThe results indicate that both IO and TU relate to outcomes. Specifically, this study demonstrates that it is insufficient that firms simply establish the configurations needed to enhance their IO and TU, firms also need to find out the correct mechanism to enhance NPD success. The relationships between IO, TU and NPD success were fully mediated by team information processing.Originality/valueThis report sheds light on the importance of innovation orientation and team unlearning in today's NPD process and uncovers the underlying mechanism through which IO and TU contribute to NPD success. It also offers precise advice for the assessment of management of team information-processing to boost the performance of new products.


Author(s):  
Fan Yang ◽  
Huiying Zhang

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to empirically examine the underlying impacts of customer orientation on new product development (NPD) performance. Further, this study investigates the moderating effect of top management support (TMS) on the customer orientation-performance relationship.Design/methodology/approachThis study as a unique approach has classified customer orientation into three sub-dimensions: customer focus, customer involvement and communication with customers. And the NPD performance is explored both from financial and nonfinancial aspects.FindingsBased on a sample of 366 high performance manufacturing firms across ten countries, the obtained results of hierarchical moderated regression analyses reveal that customer focus, customer involvement and communication with customers have significantly positive effects on both financial and nonfinancial performance of NPD; TMS positively moderates the relationship between multiple dimensions of customer orientation and NPD performance.Practical implicationsThe research extends the customer orientation literature by describing three dimensions of customer orientation and empirically testing their effects on NPD performance. This study also contributes to a deep understanding of the influence factors of NPD performance, both from the financial and nonfinancial aspects. The proposed framework provides a fine-grained analysis to help us understand in what way the customer orientation is linked to performance outcomes.Originality/valueThis study is innovative because it seeks to make a contribution to existing literature from a theoretical perspective by investigating the sub-dimensions of customer orientation and moderating role of TMS.


2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 333-349 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chonlatis Darawong

Purpose This paper aims to examine the impact of dynamic capabilities of new product development (NPD) team on project performance, including efficiency and effectiveness. Design/methodology/approach Data were collected from NPD team members who have worked on radical new product projects in large manufacturing firms in Thailand. Respondents represented different departments, including research and development (R&D), quality control, production and marketing. These individuals worked in a wide range of large manufacturing industries with an average of more than 500 employees. These industries include food, automotive, auto parts and electric and electronics products. Findings The results indicate that NPD team with sensing, learning and integrating capabilities can increase project effectiveness. In addition, teams with high learning, integrating and coordinating capabilities will enhance project efficiency. Research limitations/implications First, the research findings may not be generalizable in all aspects to other industries. Second, the use of cross-sectional data in this study may not be appropriate for testing causal relationships among constructs. Third, although the samples of this study were from a wide range of functional areas, the majority were R&D personnel. Practical implications To improve project effectiveness, project managers should consider investing in information technologies that provide a wide range of information sources, such as business research databases and academic journals. To improve project efficiency, the managers can establish both formal and informal activities during NPD projects. These social activities can provide opportunities for team members to physically meet and adjust their personal behavior to get along with each other. Originality/value These findings provide a wider picture of the beneficial role of dynamic capabilities of NPD teams toward project performance, including efficiency and effectiveness.


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