Managing Open Innovation in New Product Development Projects: A Contingent Perspective

Author(s):  
Hanna Bahemia ◽  
Brian Squire
2018 ◽  
Vol 7 (4.7) ◽  
pp. 97
Author(s):  
Reza Gheshmi ◽  
Hugo Zacro ◽  
Frederic Marimon

This study examines how project complexity in low technology-intensive small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) contribute in implementation of open innovation practices, during their new product development projects. The main focus of this paper is to investigate the critical role of complexity in the project level to identifying the compatibility of those external sources involved in NPD. The low technology-intensive sector in Spain were chosen as a target context, there were many innovative SMEs operating in these industries and because these sectors were going through significant changes. Four external knowledge sources, Universities, suppliers, customers and competitors and four open innovation practices, Community, Platform, Partnership and seller-buyer agreement, in the new product development were identified. The study shows that in SMEs, project complexity plays an important role in selecting the external source and implementation of open innovation practices. The main conclusion of the study is that the external collaboration in new product development projects is determined by different dimensions of project complexities and in projects with different type of complexity, the SMEs follow different external knowledge sources and open innovation practices. The study results imply that SMEs benefit from opening up their innovation process in the new product development projects. The firms in this study employed a blend of strategies that is more compatible with dimensions of project complexity. They collaborated actively with different external knowledge source and different modes of collaboration, when they have determination of different dimensions of project complexity. Also, the study extends understanding of the strategic use of open innovation in SMEs by demonstrating how SMEs balance the risk of project complexity built on new product development and the benefit of creating a wider capability base with partnerships. 


2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
pp. 213
Author(s):  
Harry Jeong ◽  
Seunggu Lee ◽  
Kwangsoo Shin

As the aging population increases, the need for new product development (NPD) for elderly-friendly food packaging is also increasing. Through the use of consumer research, this study derived the following problems when elderly people use food packaging: “The contents easily overflow when holding the container”, “It is hard to pour”, “Remnant remains after pouring”, and “It is hard to use a straw”. To address these problems, this study applied the following principles of TRIZ: principle 1 (segmentation) and principle 22 (blessing in disguise). In order to materialize the improvement plan, this study developed an elderly-friendly pouch-based packaging from the perspective of universal design. This study shows that it is possible to use the TRIZ technique in the NPD of food packaging, and that it is possible to secure commercial competitiveness from the view of universal design. This study is expected to serve as a starting point for further study on the NPD of elderly-friendly food packaging.


2017 ◽  
Vol 21 (5) ◽  
pp. 1035-1052 ◽  
Author(s):  
David T. Rosell ◽  
Nicolette Lakemond ◽  
Lisa Melander

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore and characterize knowledge integration approaches for integrating external knowledge of suppliers into new product development projects. Design/methodology/approach This paper is based on a multiple, in-depth case study of six product development projects at three knowledge-intensive manufacturing firms. Findings Firms make purposeful choices to devise knowledge integration approaches when working in collaborative buyer – supplier projects. The knowledge characteristics of the supplier input guide the choice of either coupling knowledge sharing and combining across firms or decoupling knowledge sharing (across firms) and knowledge combining (within firms). Research limitations/implications This study relies on a limited number of case studies and considers only one supplier relationship in each project. Further studies could examine the challenge of knowledge integration in buyer – supplier relationships in different contexts, i.e. in relation to innovation complexity and uncertainty. Practical implications Managers need to make choices when designing knowledge integration approaches in collaborative product development projects. The use of coupled and decoupled approaches can help balance requirements in terms of joint problem-solving across firms, the efficiency of knowledge integration and the risks of knowledge leakage. Originality/value The conceptualization of knowledge integration as knowledge sharing and knowledge combining extends existing perspectives on knowledge integration as either a transfer of knowledge or as revealing the presence of pertinent knowledge without entirely transmitting it. The findings point to the complexity of knowledge integration as a process influenced by knowledge characteristics, perspectives on knowledge, openness of firm boundaries and elements of knowledge sharing and combining.


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