Strategic and Operational Management of Supplier Involvement in New Product Development: a Contingency Perspective

This paper examines how firms succeed to leverage supplier involvement in product development. The paper extends earlier work on managing supplier involvement by providing an integrated analysis of results, processes and conditions both at the level of individual development projects and the overall firm. Following a multiple-case study approach with theoretical sampling, the study is carried out by examining eight projects in which four manufacturers from different industries involve multiple suppliers. The findings suggest that successful supplier involvement is dependent on the coordinated design, execution and evaluation of strategic, long-term processes and operational, short-term management processes and the presence of enabling factors such as a cross-functional oriented organization. The required intensity of these processes and en

Managing supplier involvement in new product development:A multiple-case study

Existing studies of supplier involvement in new product development have mainly focused on project-related short-term processes and success factors. This study validates and extends an existing exploratory framework, which comprises both long-term strategic processes and short-term operational processes that are related to supplier involvement. The empirical validation is based on a multiple-case study of supplier collaborations at a manufacturer in the copier and printer industry. The analysis of eight cases of supplier involvement reveals that the results of supplier–manufacturer collaborations and the associated issues and problems can best be explained by the patterns in the extent to which the manufacturer manages supplier involvement in the short term and the long term. The results of this study reveal that the initial framework is helpful in understanding why certain collaborations are not effectively managed yet conclude that the existing analytical distinction among four different management areas does not sufficiently reflect empirical reality. This leads to the reconceptualization and further detailing of the framework. Instead of four managerial areas, this study proposes to distinguish between the strategic management arena and the operational management arena. The strategic management arena contains processes that together provide long-term, strategic direction and operational support for project teams adopting supplier involvement. These processes also contribute to building up a supplier base that can meet current and future technology and capability needs. The operational management arena contains processes that are aimed at planning, managing, and evaluating the actual collaborations in a specific development project. The results of this study suggest that success of involving suppliers in product development is reflected by the firm's ability to capture both short- and long-term benefits. If companies spend most of their time on operational management in development projects, they will fail to use the leverage effect of planning and preparing such involvement through strategic management activities. Also, they will not be sufficiently able to capture possible long-term technology and learning benefits that may spin off from individual projects. Long-term collaboration benefits can only be captured if a company can build long-term relationships with key suppliers, with which it builds learning routines and ensures that the capability sets of both parties are aligned and remain useful for future joint projects

Managing Supplier Involvement in New Product Development: A Multiple-Case Study

Existing studies of supplier involvement in new product development have mainly focused on project-related short-term processes and success-factors. This study validates and extends an existing exploratory framework, which comprises both long-term strategic processes and short-term operational processe

Factors that Determine the Extent of Business Process Standardization and the Subsequent Effect on Business Performance

Business process standardization is the activity of unifying different variants of a family of business processes. While the positive effects of business process standardization are well-described, it is often undesirable to fully unify different variants due to cultural, legal, or operational reasons. Consequently, a decision has to be made about the extent to which a family of business processes should be standardized. However, little is known about the factors that drive that decision. This paper fills that gap, by presenting factors that drive the extent to which business processes can be standardized, performance properties that are influenced by business process standardization, and relations between these concepts

The purchasing manager's index as a predictor of economic change

Van kosten- naar waarde orientatie in ketensamenwerking. Gaat Inkoop in de Verkoop

The purchasing manager's index as a predictor of economic change

Arjan van Weele, betoogde in Utrecht dat elke crisis leidt tot verdergaande specialisatie van bedrijven. In dat proces zijn vier fasen te herkennen: (1) van local naar global sourcing; (2) van local naar global manufacturing; (3) van local naar global servicing; (4) van local naar global research & development. Anders gezegd: bedrijven gaan steeds meer uitbesteden, dus neemt het inkoopaandeel toe en wordt inkoopmanagement een steeds belangrijker kritische succesfactor. Hierdoor wordt inkoop ook van voortdurend groter belang voor het welvaren van de economie. Over maatschappelijke verantwoordelijkheid van inkoop gesproken… Bij goed inkoopmanagement hoort een abonnement op de PMI. Want wat de toekomst gaat brengen, staat geschreven in de PMI, aldus Van Weel