Johan Frishammar

Inbound Open Innovation Activities in High-Tech SMEs: The Impact on Innovation Performance

Prior studies suggest that open innovation activities positively influence innovation outcomes in large firms. However, few studies have investigated the implications of small and medium‐sized enterprises’ (SMEs) adoption of open innovation. We address this research gap by investigating the effects of four inbound open innovation activities on innovation performance of SMEs. In doing so, we draw on data from 252 high‐tech SMEs. Our results reveal that different open innovation activities are beneficial for different innovation outcomes. For instance, technology sourcing is linked to radical innovation performance, whereas technology scouting is linked to incremental innovation performance. These findings hold several important theoretical and practical implications.

Open Innovation and the Stage-Gate Process: A Revised Model for New Product Development

This article explores how firms can benefit from opening up the new product development process by integrating the principles of open innovation with the Stage-Gate process. It examines the potential opportunities of employing the principles of both inbound and outbound open innovation within new product development at a firm in the upstream oil & gas industry. A practitioner-oriented work model, named the open Stage-Gate model, can exploit the advantages of “openness. “This model allows explicit consideration of import and export of know-how and technology through gate evaluations and also enables firms to continuously assess their core capabilities and business model. The application of this model can assist firms in capturing value from both internal and external technology exploitation in increasingly open innovation processes.

The role of market orientation and entrepreneurial orientation for new product development performance in manufacturing firms

Abstract The overall purpose of this article is to examine the relationships between two strategic orientations and performance in new product development. The first orientation considered is market orientation; the second one considered is entrepreneurial orientation, which reflects a firm’s propensity to innovate, to be proactive, as well as its willingness to take risks. Drawing upon a sample of 224 mid-sized manufacturing firms, multiple regressions with and without interaction terms were used for testing seven hypotheses. The results show that a market orientation and innovativeness were positively related to performance in new product development, while proactiveness and risk taking show no such relationship. The results also show that neither product characteristics nor environmental characteristics moderate these relationships. In terms of implications, our results suggest that contradictory and to some extent paradoxical capabilities are needed to increase performance in new product development, and that the different components of an entrepreneurial orientation do not impact new product development performance equally.

Beyond Managing Uncertainty: Insights From Studying Equivocality in the Fuzzy Front End of Product and Process Innovation Projects

Previous research has shown uncertainty reduction to be critical in the fuzzy front end of the innovation process, but little attention has been given to the equally important concept of equivocality, although it is a defining characteristic of many front-end projects. To address this research gap, this paper report the results from a longitudinal, multiple case study of four large companies oriented to both product and process innovation. First, our results show that both uncertainty and equivocality is more effectively reduced in successful front-end projects than in unsuccessful ones. Second, the negative consequences of equivocality appear more critical to front-end performance than the consequences following uncertainty. Third, our results show that uncertainty and equivocality are reduced sequentially in successful projects and simultaneously in unsuccessful projects. Finally, uncertainty and equivocality takes longer time to reduce in process innovation projects than in product innovation projects, which is a consequence of the systemic nature of process innovation. Altogether, these findings provide strong implications for managing front-end projects more proficiently.

From Preliminary Ideas to Corroborated Product Definitions: MANAGING THE FRONT END OF NEW PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT

Front-end activities largely influence the outcomes of new product development processes, because it is here that firms create new ideas, give them direction, and set them in motion. We show that the front end can be understood as comprising three core activities: idea/concept development, idea/concept alignment, and idea/concept legitimization, which allow firms to create corroborated product definitions. This article provides important implications for managers interested in front-end management. It devotes specific attention to the differences between incremental and radical front-end development and to the front end in the light of increasingly open innovation processes.

Equipment supplier/user collaboration in the process industries: In search of enhanced operating performance

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to provide theoretical insight and practical guidance on how both process firms and equipment manufacturers can address the challenges posed by collaboration during the operational stage of the process technology/equipment life cycle.Design/methodology/approach – Motives and driving forces for entering collaborative projects far from always converge, and while some projects require deep and long‐lasting relationships, others call for pure transactions and arms‐length relationships. The questions of why, when and how collaboration should take place and be organised and managed are addressed and discussed in the light of the literature on technology diffusion and technology transfer, and supplemented by ideas from industry professionals.Findings – A tentative list of potential pros and cons has been compiled to serve as an embryo for further creation of a more complete set of expected outcomes with a view to developing a firm benchmarking instrument for establishing ne...

Open innovation in process industries: a lifecycle perspective on development of process equipment

The development and installation of new process equipment in production plants typically requires strong collaboration among a process firm and various equipment suppliers. While incentives to collaborate often are strong, close collaboration also poses significant problems, throughout the lifecycle of process equipment. The purpose of this article is to explore the problems and opportunities faced by process firms and their equipment suppliers throughout the lifecycle stages of collaborative development projects. This paper combines literature on open innovation, collaborative development and buyer-supplier relationships. Empirically, we draw on a large number of interviews in a dual case study of two process firms. Our results show that strong collaboration is neither positive nor negative in general. Rather, opportunities, problems, and collaboration intensity are strongly contingent on the specific stage in the lifecycle of process equipment. Our findings underscore the managerial and theoretical importance of a lifecycle perspective on the development of process equipment, since significant overlaps and interconnections exist across different stages.

Managing Information In New Product Development: A Conceptual Review, Research Propositions And Tentative Model

Many studies in new product development (NPD) single out the use of information (especially market information) as a key predictor of NPD performance, but knowledge is lacking about what type of information is needed in each phase of the NDP process to enable high NPD performance. Based on a literature review and a pilot case study, this article increases the understanding of managing information in NPD. It is argued that the capability of managing information consists of three components: acquiring, sharing, and using information. By focusing on three different phases of the NPD process, 11 propositions regarding which information, information sources and means of cross-functional integration patterns that are most important to high NPD performance have been derived in each respective phase. In addition, the article also discusses antecedents and consequences of managing information. The article concludes with implications for managers, identifies limitations and proposes an agenda for further research into this area.

Managing Process Development: Key Issues and Dimensions in the Front End

Beyond the traditional focus on product innovation, prior research and practical examples from a variety of industrial settings underscore the importance of the early phases of process development and process innovation. Despite the potential for large cost savings and efficiency gains, however, little is known about what firms actually do in the early design and concept creation phases of process development, and what guides their subsequent formal process development efforts. By means of a longitudinal multiple case study of four large companies, we bridge this gap by conceptualizing a ‘process definition’. This process definition includes a process concept and is the ‘process equivalent’ of a product definition. Our analysis shows that firms create such process definitions through iterative trial-and-error processes, in which experiments, environmental scanning, and administrative planning constitute key methods for uncertainty reduction. Mainstream theory on product definitions fails to account for the key dimensions of a process definition. On the contrary, dimensions such as the understanding of production needs, assessment of product consequences, a thorough implementation plan and early anticipation of intended outcomes, constitute key dimensions of a successful process definition. These findings are particularly relevant to process development managers, plant managers, and others interested in process development and management of production processes.

The dark side of the entrepreneurial orientation and market orientation interplay: A new product development perspective

This article examines the dark side of the entrepreneurial orientation–market orientation interplay, and introduces consumer learning to the research stream. In a sample of 206 mid-sized manufacturing firms, the study shows that entrepreneurial orientation has a positive impact on new product development performance, but the effects are reduced when firms simultaneously implement a market orientation philosophy. While having both an entrepreneurial orientation and market orientation philosophy may hinder new product development performance, the article examines how a high market orientation may help reduce consumer learning and enhance the adoption of radical new products.