Home | Business News | Browse by Publication | R | Research Technology Management

Internal vs. external collaboration: what works.

Article Excerpt
Should developers of a new product that requires collaboration focus on internal integration of departments using cross-functional teams or on external linkages with suppliers and customers? While both types of integration can help, our recent international study of new product development (NPD) practices suggests that internal integration will affect time and product performance differently than external integration.

Our study analyzed survey responses to questions about the procedures and performance measures of the NPD programs at 250 small- to medium-size Machinery Manufacturing and Electrical Equipment firms (codes SIC 35 and SIC 36) in four countries: Italy, Germany, Japan, and the United States. Ninety percent of the firms employed fewer than 3,000 people. All firms were randomly selected but the population was chosen because of the propensity to perform NPD and its importance to strategic business success in the industry. Individual respondents included CEOs and senior managers at the VP or program-level of the NPD, R&D or design department.

The study was conducted at the program level whereas much NPD research focuses at the project level. Program-based studies can increase generalizability by determining the average effects of total program efforts on firm success. We defined the "development program" as the set of new products developed and launched within the previous three years. All the companies had at least five projects as part of their overall NPD program....

View this article FREE - Now for a Limited Time, try Goliath Business News
Free for 3 Days!