Mohan V. Tatikonda

New service development: areas for exploitation and exploration

Abstract The management of new service development (NSD) has become an important competitive concern in many service industries. However, NSD remains among the least studied and understood topics in the service management literature. As a result, our current understanding of the critical resources and activities to develop new services is inadequate given NSD’s importance as a service competitiveness driver. Until recently, the generally accepted principle behind NSD was that “new services happen” rather than occurring through formal development processes. Recent efforts to address this debate have been inconclusive. Thus, additional research is needed to validate or discredit the belief that new services happen as a result of intuition, flair, and luck. Relying upon the general distinctions between research exploitation and exploration, this paper describes areas in NSD research that deserve further leveraging and refinement (i.e. exploitation) and identifies areas requiring discovery or new study (i.e. exploration). We discuss the critical substantive and research design issues facing NSD scholars such as defining new services, choice in focusing on the NSD process or performance (or both), and specification of unit of analysis. We also examine what can be exploited from the study of new product development to further understanding of NSD. Finally, we explore one important area for future NSD research exploration: the impact of the Internet on the design and development of services. We offer research opportunities and research challenges in the study of NSD throughout the paper.

Technology novelty, project complexity, and product development project execution success: a deeper look at task uncertainty in product innovation

This paper applies the construct of task uncertainty to study relationships between product development project characteristics and project outcomes. The authors characterize product development projects in terms of their technology novelty and project complexity levels. This characterization is based on product development literature and organizational information processing theory. They hypothesize that technology novelty and project complexity characteristics contribute to project task uncertainty and are in turn associated with project execution outcomes. A cross-sectional survey of 120 new product development projects for assembled goods was employed to test relationships between project characteristics and project success. Success measures include achievement of individual project goals, such as technical performance, unit-cost, time-to-market and overall achievement of project goals.

Successful execution of product development projects: Balancing firmness and flexibility in the innovation process

Abstract This paper investigates project management methods used during the execution phase of new product development projects. Based on prior field observations, organizational theory and product development literature, we pose hypotheses regarding the effectiveness of the project execution methods of formality, project management autonomy and resource flexibility. A cross-sectional survey sample of 120 completed new product development projects from a variety of assembled products industries is analyzed via hierarchical moderated regression. We find that the project execution methods are positively associated with project execution success. Further, these methods are effective singly and collectively, suggesting that firms can “balance firmness and flexibility” in product development via appropriate execution methods. Surprisingly, the effectiveness of these methods is not contingent on the product or process technology novelty inherent in a given development project. The findings suggest that firms should adopt high levels of these approaches, and that a variety of projects can be managed using broadly similar project execution methods. The findings also suggest limitations on the application of organizational information processing theory to the context of product development projects. Directions for additional theory development are outlined.

Product Technology Transfer in the Upstream Supply Chain

This article addresses the transfer of new product technologies from outside the firm for integration into a new product system as part of a product development effort. Product technology transfer is a key activity in the complex process of new product development and is the fundamental link in the technology supply chain. Product technology transfer too often is dealt with in an ad-hoc fashion. Purposeful management of the product technology transfer process leads to more effective transfers in terms of timeliness, cost, functional performance, and competence building. Better management of product technology transfer gives firms access to a greater variety of new technology options, improves a firm’s ability to offer significantly differentiated products, deepens the firm’s competitive competencies, and positively influences sustained product development success. The central objective of this article is to gain insight into product technology transfer so that companies can manage this process more successfully and so that researchers can investigate this critical activity further. This article describes the technology supply chain as a unique form of a supply chain that poses a set of managerial challenges and requirements distinguishing it from the more traditional component supply chain. Because a single product technology transfer project is the fundamental piece in the technology supply chain, understanding this piece well is key to leveraging the extended technology supply chain and to improving overall product development performance. This article integrates literatures on new product development, supply chain management, and technology management and builds on organizational theory to present a conceptual model of determinants of product technology transfer success. The core proposition is that product technology transfer effectiveness is greatest when companies carefully match (or ‘‘fit’’) the type of technology to be transferred (the ‘‘technology uncertainty’’) with the type of relationship between the technology supplier and recipient (the ‘‘interorganizational interaction’’). A quite detailed framework characterizing technology uncertainty along the dimensions of technology novelty, complexity, and tacitness is presented to help in assessing the challenges associated with transferring a particular product technology. This article also considers detailed elements characterizing the interorganizational interactions between the technology source and recipient firms. This helps firms consider the appropriate means to facilitate the interfirm process of technology transfer. Overall, this article provides practical insight into characterizing technologies and into improving the product technology transfer process. This article also provides a strong theoretical foundation to aid future research on product technology transfer in the technology supply chain.

A typology of project-level technology transfer processes

Abstract This paper develops a conceptual typology of inward technology transfer (ITT), which explicitly considers technology transfer at the project, rather than the firm, level of analysis. Building on extant technology management literature and the organizational theories of information processing and interdependence, we carefully characterize the three dimensions of the typology: the technology uncertainty of the technology that is transferred, the organizational interaction between the technology source and recipient, and transfer effectiveness. Appropriate matches of technology uncertainty and organizational interaction result in four archetypal cases called “transfer process types”, which represent the most effective approaches to technology transfer. Real-life examples of effective and ineffective matches are presented, and implications of the typology for future research and practice are discussed.

An Empirical Study of Platform and Derivative Product Development Projects

Abstract Many firms now realize the importance of planning product families and product platforms. However, little research addresses planning and execution of different types of projects within a product family platform series. This study investigates project characteristics, development challenges, typical outcomes, and success factors for product development projects at different locations in the product family spectrum. “Platform” projects result in products that initiate a new product family platform for a company. “Derivative” projects result in products consisting of extensions to an existing product family platform. Data on 108 new product development projects from a variety of assembled products industries were collected via a detailed survey and analyzed. Findings indicate that: (1) platform and derivative projects differ in project task characteristics (including the amount of new technology development undertaken and project complexity) and market newness; (2) platform and derivative projects generally do not differ in terms of project success (achievement of project objectives, level of company satisfaction, and perceived customer satisfaction) or smoothness of project execution; (3) both platform and derivative projects generally are executed in similar ways; (4) certain managerial approaches (including contingency planning, project-based evaluation of personnel, and overlap of design and manufacturing engineering) are associated with higher project execution success for both platform and derivative projects; and (5) use of interdependent technologies and novel project objectives are associated with project execution failure for platform projects. The results suggest that firms can continue to employ a single product development management process for both platform and derivative projects, as long as modest customization of the process is made for the given project type. Completely different management processes are not required. In all, the results presented in this article suggest specific managerial actions companies can take to significantly improve product development success.

External technology integration in product and process development

This paper empirically examines the process of acquiring technology from a source, external to the firm, and incorporating it into a new product or operational process under development. We refer to this key activity in product and process innovation as external technology integration. This paper develops a conceptual model of external technology integration based on organizational information processing theory and a wide range of technology management literature. Field interviews were conducted to evaluate the validity of the model across diverse settings. Our results indicate general support for the conceptual model. We close with a discussion of the implications of this study for both theory and practice.

Manufacturing process flexibility revisited

Purpose – To provide an update on a paper published in 1987 in IJOPM.Design/methodology/approach – Provides an assessment and update of “An agenda for research on the flexibility of manufacturing processes”.Findings – Gerwins seminal work added welcome rigor to a concept, manufacturing flexibility, which had gained prominence during the previous decade. Finds that many of Gerwins insights have stood the test of time. A number of things have changed since that time, but others have remained much as they were. Machines have become more capable and computer‐based controls have improved machine and process flexibility, but the character of that flexibility has remained very much the same.Originality/value – Revisits Gerwins conceptualization of manufacturing process flexibility and subsequent progress in understanding it.

Time Management in New Product Development : Case Study Findings

Abstract Rapid time-to-market for new products has been recognized as a critical capability for manufacturers aiming to succeed in an arena of time-based competition. This paper summarizes findings from seven case studies on the management of the time dimension in new product development projects. Challenges to achieving rapid time-to-market are identified, and directions for future research on product development projects are addressed.

Adoption and implementation of group technology classification and coding systems: insights from seven case studies

Abstract Results are reported from an empirical study of classification and coding (CC) system usage among manufacturers. The investigation, selection, justification, implementation and operation of CC systems by six user firms are presented in case study form. A case history of a former CC system user is also presented. User characteristics and experiences are compared and analysed across the seven cases. The paper concludes with managerial and research implications regarding CC system selection, justification, implementation and usage.