Reducing project related uncertainty in "the fuzzy front end" of innovation: A comparison of German and Japanese product innovation projects

In this paper, we are going to report on the results of an exploratory piece of research about the typical front-end-related activities in 28 innovation projects carried out by 14 German and 13 Japanese companies to reduce project uncertainty. In all cases we observed a range of activities to reduce project specific risks and revealed differences in the practice of innovation management in both the German and Japanese companies. We interviewed managers of 13 Japanese and 14 German enterprises concerning 14 Japanese and 14 German New Product Development projects. The focus of our research was the so called fuzzy front end ;, activities and typical deliverables in the innovation process which might be affected by front end management practice. Overall, in the case of the German as well as the Japanese projects, the uncertainties affected by the market or technology could successfully be reduced during the fuzzy front end and the majority of projects achieved their objectives and efficiency targets. Nevertheless, our study revealed differences in the way such uncertainties were reduced by the companies in Japan and Germany. Generally speaking, the 14 Japanese projects relied on a thorough planning, delegation of front end activities and strict controlling mechanisms to minimize deviations from front end specifications later in the innovation process and hence, achieved efficiency. In contrast, in the majority of the 14 German projects we could neither observe such a formal planning nor such an intensive controlling procedure supported by methods and tools as in the case of the Japanese projects. Instead, the companies in our German sample integrated relevant functions like R&D, marketing, sales, production or customer service from the beginning of the innovation process, usually already during the idea generation phase, to ensure that all critical information and perspectives were taken into consideration right from the beginning, to reduce uncertainties and later deviations as well as enhancing efficiency. Responsibilities were assigned during the fuzzy front end and rarely changed during the implementation of the project. --Fuzzy front end,innovation risk,uncertainty,idea generation,project selection,project planning,Japan,Germany

E-finance-lab at the House of Finance : about us

The financial services industry is believed to be on the verge of a dramatic [r]evolution. A substantial redesign of its value chains aimed at reducing costs, providing more efficient and flexible services and enabling new products and revenue streams is imminent. But there seems to be no clear migration path nor goal which can cast light on the question where the finance industry and its various players will be and should be in a decade from now. The mission of the E-Finance Lab is the development and application of research methodologies in the financial industry that promote and assess how business strategies and structures are shared and supported by strategies and structures of information systems. Important challenges include the design of smart production infrastructures, the development and evaluation of advantageous sourcing strategies and smart selling concepts to enable new revenue streams for financial service providers in the future. Overall, our goal is to contribute methods and views to the realignment of the E-Finance value chain. ..

The Impacts of Knowledge Interaction with Manufacturing Clients on KIBS Firms Innovation Behaviour

knowledge-intensive business services (KIBS), knowledge interaction, innovations systems

Managing resource constraints in firms

Small, new or foreign firms inherently have a lower likelihood of surviving in the market. Frequently, this is due to the existence of resource constraints, such as the liabilities of smallness, newness or foreignness. Consequently, to survive in the market, small, new or foreign firms need to find efficient ways to use their resources. Multiple ways to alleviate these problems have been discussed in the literature, which include digitalization, internationalization, or outsourcing relationships. The usage of digital technologies, entering foreign markets or partnering with established organizations have been found to have compelling advantages and, thus, are promising practices for small, new and foreign firms in overcoming those constraints. It is, however, surprising that little is known about relevant aspects of these practices. For instance, research has just begun to investigate the influence of digital technologies on small and new firms, misses to investigate the success factors in the internationalization of small, new and foreign e-commerce firms, or has not fully investigated methods to improve performance of small firms in outsourcing relationships. Drawing on extant research on digitalization, internationalization, and outsourcing this cumulative dissertation presents four research papers. Each paper contributes to fill existing research gaps in the respective literature. All papers investigate a particular type of small firm and examine potential ways to handle scare resources. Beyond the theoretical and practical contributions of each research paper, this dissertation in its entirety presents several implications for practitioners in small, new and foreign firms that will help them to overcome resource constraints. Furthermore, the thesis discusses implications for theory, limitations, and avenues for further research

Understanding International Product Strategy in Multinational Corporations through New Product Development Approaches and Evolution

International product strategy regarding global standardisation and local adaptation is one of the challenges faced by multinational corporations (MNCs). Studies in this area have tested the antecedents and consequences of standardisation/adaptation, but lack a new product development (NPD) perspective. In this study, we explore how product standardisation/adaptation is determined in the NPD context. Through a qualitative case study of four MNCs, we found three NPD approaches: multi-local, adaptation-based and platform-based. We analysed the advantages and challenges of each approach. In addition, we reveal how the factors (development of information and communication technology, competition pressure, brand awareness and technical capability) could influence the choice of a certain NPD approach. We draw implications on the paths to ensuring full leveraging of the benefits of a platform-based approach

External knowledge sourcing from startups:An analysis of the pre-collaboration phase

As digitalization has caused major changes within various traditional industries, firms are forced to explore new technological paths and access knowledge beyond their boundaries. This dissertation focuses on knowledge provided by startups. Besides introducing search approaches and successful search strategies to identify startups, this work also provides insights into how corporations may become attractive partners for startups. In addition, the quality of startup ideas is compared with ideas originating from established suppliers. Finally, this dissertation examines the implications of engaging with startups

Architectural Innovation Capability and Performance: The Moderating Role of Absorptive Capacity

Knowledge processing capabilities including knowledge creation and absorptive capacity are required to renew a firm’s knowledge stock. These capabilities keep firms abreast of technological and market changes as they enable a proactive approach in responding to these changes. An outdated knowledge stock and the overlooking of changes in external knowledge are destructive in today’s competitive environment; firms in these circumstances risk being caught in competency traps and rigidities. Hence, knowledge exploitation has an indispensable role in enhancing innovation. This thesis focuses on architectural innovation which is the capability to reconfigure products’ components and so create novel products. It requires the creation of new architectural knowledge while reserving the component knowledge. Although this innovation capability relies profoundly on creating new architectural knowledge, it is also important that firms are competent in absorbing external knowledge. Although the literature on new product development performance captures innovation as a prerequisite of performance, it is yet unclear how architectural innovation capability affects performance. Therefore, this thesis explores the interaction effect of architectural innovation capability and absorptive capacity on firms’ performance. Although knowledge creation coined with organisation’s absorptive capacity drive innovation, the innovation literature over the last two decades emphasises integrating knowledge from external sources, particularly from lead users. Lead users’ contribution to product quality is one of the under-researched areas. In addition to the dearth of empirical research, quality was measured by experts’ judgment; it is possible that this judgment may be a biased evaluation of quality compared with a quantitative scale devoted to measure quality. To overcome the previous research’s limitation in measuring quality, this research examines how lead users’ integration promotes product quality as measured using a validated scale. The developed theoretical framework links knowledge creation with architectural innovation capability; at the same time it explores the interaction effect of architectural innovation capability and absorptive capacity on new product development performance. Furthermore, the theoretical model captures the effect of lead users’ integration on development time and product quality. Empirical findings, based on primary data collected from 196 UK manufacturing companies show that, knowledge creation modes (socialisation and internalisation) have a positive effect on enhancing architectural innovation capability. Also, absorptive capacity interaction with architectural innovation capability affects financial performance. Assimilation and transformation strengthen innovation’s impact on performance, while exploitation weakens this effect. Finally, the analysis shows that the integration of lead users positively affects development speed and product quality. Overall, this study contributes to the literature on knowledge processing capabilities by suggesting that knowledge creation is one of the underlying capabilities needed for innovation. In addition, this research contributes to the sheer amount of literature on absorptive capacity, by suggesting that different capacities have different effects on innovation and performance. The major value added by this research relates to architectural innovation capability; the findings suggest that both knowledge processing capabilities and absorptive capacity affect the capability to create new linkages between product components and technologies