Test of a model of organizational contributors to product development team effectiveness

This study tests a model of product development team effectiveness which was developed by Susman and Dean [Susman, G.I., Dean, J.W., 1992. Development of a model for predicting design for manufacturability effectiveness. In: Susman, G.I. (Ed.), Integrating Design and Manufacturing for Competitive Advantage. Oxford Univ. Press, New York, pp. 207–227.]. The model addresses two interrelated managerial issues. One concerns the use of integrative mechanisms to counterbalance the potentially negative effects of function-based differentiation, directly or indirectly through group process. The other concerns group process vs. codification/computerization as alternative means to process information as risk increases. This study addresses the first issue by testing the effect of a subset of integrative mechanisms on project outcomes, i.e., project focus, and the role of group process as partial mediator of this relationship. The second issue is addressed by testing for risk as positive moderator of the relationship between group process and project outcomes and as negative moderator of the relationship between codification/computerization and project outcomes. The results suggest that project focus is directly related to project outcomes, but group process does not mediate this relationship. Codification/computerization is not related to project outcomes. Risk does not positively moderate the group process–project outcomes relationship, but does negatively moderate the codification/computerization–project outcomes relationship.