John E. Ettlie

Organizational Integration and Process Innovation

Mechanisms for the successful adoption of process innovation were investigated. Since firms buy most new technologies for manufacturing operations, it is difficult for them to use these technologie...

Organizational Policy and Innovation Among Suppliers to the Food Processing Sector

In this study a model of the organizational innovation process, whereby context causes policy, which causes innovation, was tested and generally supported by data from 54 equipment and packaging suppliers to the food processing industry. Increasing organization size up to a point and an aggressive technology policy emerge as the two key variables in this model of organization and innovation.

Firm Size and Product Innovation

Abstract The linkage between firm size and product innovation has frequently been discussed by both researchers and other writers. John Ettlie and Albert Rubenstein report the results of a study which, by distinguishing between the incorporation of radical and incremental technology, attempts to resolve some of the controversy surrounding this issue. In particular, the authors hypothesize that up to a certain point, large firms with greater resources are more likely to commercialize radically new products successfully. Findings generally support this theory but refinements to the model are now possible. For example, firms with 1000 employees or less need not be excluded from radical product introduction if they resolve critical funding and research problems. This size-radicalness distribution is shaped like a fish hook or a claw. That is, up to about 1000 employees, there is no significant relationship between number of employees and radicalness of a new product. Between 1200 and 11,000 employees there is a significant, direct relationship. Finally, very large organizations (in excess of about 45,000 employees) are unlikely to introduce radically new products. Larger firms were significantly more likely to adopt ambitious new processing technologies in order to introduce these new products. Also, new product success was significantly predicted by the absence of finding problems in introducing the innovation and the degree to which the new product was a radical departure from existing practice.

Technology-Based New Product Development Partnerships

Hypotheses were developed to capture the dynamic capabilities that result from interfirm partnerships during the joint new product development (NPD) process — the ability to build, integrate, and reconfigure existing resources to adapt to rapidly changing environments. These capabilities, in turn, were proposed to have a positive impact on NPD performance outcomes: (a) proportion of new product success and (b) superior new product commercialization. In contexts where the locus of innovation is rapidly changing, the impact of interfirm NPD dynamic capabilities was hypothesized to be diminished in high-technology contexts, especially for buyers (original equipment manufacturers) and to a lesser extent for suppliers. Still, technology-based interfirm NPD partnerships were predicted to ultimately outperform low-technology ones in both NPD performance outcomes. Finally, information technology (IT) support for NPD was hypothesized to influence the interfirm NPD partnership’s dynamic capabilities. Using survey data from 72 auto company managers and their suppliers, the proposed model in which IT support for NPD influences the success of interfirm NPD partnerships through the mediating role of interfirm NPD partnership dynamic capabilities in high- and low-technology contexts was generally supported. The results shed light on the nature of technology-based interfirm NPD partnerships and have implications for their success. Theoretical and managerial implications are discussed.

Integrated design and new product success

Abstract Do integrated approaches to design promote the commercial success of new products? Data from 126 U.S. manufacturers were used to test five hypotheses in a structural model of integrated design approaches which go beyond concurrent engineering. New product success was significantly associated with market need understanding which incorporates information, significantly, from integrated design into new product development. Integrated design was found to be significantly associated with early-mover strategy, benchmarking best practices and, to a lesser extent, customized or proprietary hardware-software systems.

Locus of supply and global manufacturing

Interest in supply chain management has been escalating during the last decade. Using a large sample of durable goods firms located in all major regions of the world, we extend two theoretical perspectives, namely the resource‐based view and the transaction cost economics view of the firm, to better understand the issues behind global sourcing. Both theory extensions were supported in separate by statistically significant regression results. Then, pooling predictors to represent both models together, these measures independently increase the odds of predicting global sourcing. For example, building of a firm’s technological capabilities that was captured through the levels of its RD length of frozen schedules, directly related) also emerged as a significant predictor of the level of global sourcing undertaken by a firm. This suggests that firms have two alternative ways to globalize operations supply, and raises the interesting question of whether or not these two strategies might operate simultaneously.

ADEQUACY OF STAGE MODELS FOR DECISIONS ON ADOPTION OF INNOVATION

Although a large number of stage models of the adoption process have been proposed in the literature on innovation, there is little or no evidence that any of these models mirror the actual process by which decisions on adoption of innovation are made in organizations. In a study of 34 transportation innovations from six firms, a six-stage model of the adoption process (awareness, interest, evaluation, trial, adoption, implementation) adequately describes the decision-making sequence in about 60% of the cases. Where respondents recommend modification of this six-stage model it usually reflects the absence of the trial stage or the merging of the evaluation and trial stages. Discussion of results and suggestions for needed methodological refinements are also included.

What makes a manufacturing firm innovative

Executive Overview In the quest for improved competitive position and longevity, domestic manufacturing is undergoing significant transformation. Why then are some manufacturing firms more innovative in both new processing technologies and administrative practice? Part of the answer lies in the experience profile of general managers. The results of a study of domestic manufacturing plants undergoing modernization shows that firms that have CEOs with manufacturing experience also are significantly more likely to implement an aggressive manufacturing technology policy. That is these firms strive to be first to try out new methods and equipment, are more likely to actively recruit new technical talent or develop this talent in-house, are committed to technological forecasting, and make customers aware of how modernizing the firm will benefit them. An aggressive manufacturing technology policy can make a big difference when the company begins its transformation. CEOs take calculated risks when they have manuf...

Taking charge of manufacturing: how companies are combining technological and organizational innovations to compete successfully

Examines the managerial, organizational, and technological issues that manufacturing managers must understand to implement new technologies. Provides a sound strategy to help managers automate factories and manufacturing processes, improve design and manufacturing techniques, and increase market performance.

Environmental uncertainty and organizational technology policy

Reports a study of 54 organizations, 30 of which were nonservice firms. The purpose of the study was to evaluate various aspects of environmental uncertainty and their impacts on innovativeness (new products and processes). In a recursive, causal path model of the nonservice sample of firms, it was found significantly (p<;0.05) that the impact of a global measure of perceived environmental uncertainty on firm innovativeness is mediated by an aggressive technology policy and, in turn, the presence of a special equipment evaluation group in the organization, for major process innovations only. For minor process innovations, this global perceived uncertainty promoted adoption directly, as expected, with no mediated effects. In addition, it was found that specific causes of perceived uncertainty (competition, customers, and government regulation) have little or no influence on adoption of major process innovation and act to impede adoption of minor process innovations.