Success Factors of New Product Development: A Review of the Empirical Literature

The continuous development and market introduction of new products can be an important determinant of sustained company performance. For approximately 30 years, conceptual and empirical research has been undertaken to identify the critical success factors of new products. This paper reviews the findings of empirical work into the success factors of new product development (NPD). It is the prime objective of this work to summarize the most important findings in a compact and structured way. In addition, shortcomings of previous empirical work on NPD success factors will be discussed and suggestions for improvement in future empirical NPD studies will be made.     

Methods for Managing Different Perspectives of Project Success

The results of an exploratory study of UK organizations into methods for meeting project key performance indicators (KPIs) are presented. The paper explores: influences on the use of methods to manage project KPIs; the need for and existence of methods; the factors that facilitate the meeting of the KPIs. It is concluded that the use of methods varies depending upon the perceived importance of the project, the type of project, the client-team relationship and whether an organization performance management system exists. With project management capability often decreasing, in part due to a failure to meet psychosocial project KPIs, a need for methods linked to the KPIs was identified. However, the study found relatively low levels of adoption of such methods. Where psychosocial project KPIs were being met the following facilitating factors emerged: top-level policies, organization-wide training, integration with existing management processes, building into project management system. Situations were found where decision-makers did not consider the psychosocial KPIs of programme and project managers. This was seen to contribute to a failure by organizations to manage necessary increases in their project management capability and to be acting as a possible barrier to long-term, sustainable improvements in performance.     

Managing Product Rollovers

We study the product rollover strategy decision, where a firm decides whether to phase out an old generation of a product to be replaced by a new with either a dual or single roll. Our model considers a final build of the old product and preannouncement of the new, and incorporates dynamic pricing and inventory decisions. We find that the optimal price path closely follows changes in reservation price curves for the two products over time. We also identify the drivers of the rollover strategy decision, finding that lower market risk (faster diffusion, higher market responsiveness to preannouncements) and higher performance improvement for the new generation are associated with the single roll strategy.     

中小企业新产品开发关键成功因素的识别及其实证研究

创新对于公司绩效的重要性引致了许多关于识别新产品开发成功因素的研究。然而,这些研究的大部分都是针对发达经济或是大型企业的;对于中小企业在新兴市场中如何开发新产品研究则相对较少。这篇论文试图分析中国中小企业新产品开发的成功因素以弥补这一研究的空缺。不同于传统的分析方法将新产品开发的每一阶段的成功因素都认为是同质的,我们对于新产品开发过程的每个阶段的成功因素从管理的角度来进行审视。我们发现我国中小企业在创意设想阶段并不将经济回报作为首要标准。虽然各成功因素的相对重要性在不同阶段会有所不同,技术、营销、商业性、管理等因素在所有阶段都是重要的。这个结果对于中小企业在新产品开发的各个阶段如何开发和管理新产品有一定的启示作用。     

Managing Multiple Facets of Risk in New Product Alliances*

The trend of forming alliances to develop new products continues; however, many of these new product alliances fail. As such we explore how key risk types intrinsic in new product alliances, performance, relational, and knowledge appropriation risks, influence alliance success. Further, we theorize that different alliance governance mechanisms can reduce the negative impact of risks on alliance success. To disentangle possible heterogeneous factors across firms that may affect the interplay of risk assessments and the use of governance mechanisms, we employ latent class regression analysis on survey data collected from 128 new product alliance firms and find support for a two‐regime solution. Longer alliance relationships and lower technological turbulence are factors for some firms (regime one), while the opposite are factors for other firms (regime two). These two regimes show different patterns in the interplay of risk assessments and governance for alliance success. Our theory and results support viewing risk as a multiple‐factor concept and by understanding the different impacts of the risk types in new product alliances and how governance mechanisms mitigate such effects, we aid managers' decision making regarding the balance of contractual versus normative governance in new product alliances. Understanding the heterogeneous factors inherent in these complex relationships enables managers to understand the conditions in which various governance mechanisms promote new product alliance success.     

Managing a Portfolio of Product Development Projects under Resource Constraints

Managers of product development (PD) project portfolios face difficult decisions in allocating limited resources to minimize project or portfolio delay. Although PD projects are highly iterative (cyclical), almost all of the vast literature on project scheduling assumes that projects are acyclical. This article addresses this gap with a comprehensive analysis of 31 priority rules (PRs) on 18,480 portfolios containing 55,440 iterative projects. We find that the best PRs for iterative project portfolios differ significantly from those for acyclical ones, and that the best PRs at the project level differ from those at the portfolio level. The best PR depends on project and portfolio characteristics such as network density, iteration intensity, resource loading profile, and amount of resource contention. In particular, by amplifying the effects of iteration, high‐density networks hold dramatically different implications for iterative projects. Moreover, the best PR also differs depending on whether the objective is to minimize the average delay to all projects or to minimize delay to the overall portfolio. Thus, a project or portfolio manager who uses the same PR on all occasions will exhibit unnecessarily poor performance in most cases.     

基于演化博弈的供应链协同产品开发合作机制研究

针对由制造商与供应商构成的两层供应链系统,基于演化博弈理论和方法,研究在长期的协同产品开发过程中,有限理性的制造商和供应商之间的合作机制。首先,对合作的成本分担与收益分配机制进行了分析;然后,对监督和惩罚机制进行了探讨。理论研究、数值模拟和实例分析结果表明:双方进行协同产品开发合作的概率与合作超额收益和单独研发的收益正相关、与研发总费用和背叛收益负相关;存在一个最优的超额收益分配比例,使得制造商和供应商合作的可能性最大化;合作双方支付的成本与双方合作超额收益的分配正相关;在监督条件下,合理的惩罚将有利于减少背叛行为。     

高绩效人力资源管理系统对新产品成功影响机制研究

本文以383家中国医疗器械生产企业调研数据为依据,实证研究了新兴市场企业高绩效人力资源管理系统对新产品成功的影响机制。由于新兴市场企业产品创新机制和发达国家不完全相同,在有效控制相关影响变量后,本文发现,动态能力对高绩效人力资源管理系统和新产品成功之间的关系起到部分中介作用;环境动态性对高绩效人力资源管理系统与新产品成功直接和间接关系以及总的关系存在显著负向调节作用。本文的研究丰富了新兴市场高绩效人力资源管理系统对组织创新影响的文献内容。     

研发阶段新产品信息发布:时间与频率策略研究

新产品开发过程中,何时、以什么频率向外发布所开发的新产品的信息,是企业经营者需要决策的重要问题.现有的文献对新产品信息发布频率尚无直接研究,对首次发布信息时间的研究也还非常有限.本文基于信号理论和有效市场理论,以2000-2010年间我国上市公司发布的602个新产品项目为样本,采用事件研究法和回归分析,研究了研发阶段企业新产品信息发布的时间与频率策略及其市场效果.结果表明,新产品首次发布信息的时间、发布信息的频率对新产品的市场价值都存在倒U形的影响;开发过程中企业与外部商业伙伴的合作对上述两种影响产生负向的调节作用;新产品的创新性正向调节首次发布信息的时间对新产品市场价值的影响.本文的研究结果对于企业新产品开发阶段信息传播策略具有现实的指导意义.     

新产品开发的最优战略均衡模型

在分析了产品开发时间、产品开发成本、单位产品成本和产品质量这4个战略因素之间权衡关糸的基础上,运用最优控制理论,建立了关于成本、质量、时间的最优战略均新模型,通过对该最优控制问题的求解,揭示了4个战略因素之间的最优均衡关系     

一种复杂新产品概念开发的结构化模型

针对复杂产品提出了一种复杂产品概念开发结构化模型,并且论述了该模型中产品概念域的层次结构和相互之间的联系;依据提出的模型框架,开发人员可以使产品概念结构化,能处理各种概念开发活动中的系统耦合问题;通过一个实例说明了该模型框架的应用.     

新产品开发项目的有效决策模型

为了研究影响新产品开发项目有效决策的诸因素及它们之间的相互关系,区分出这些因素中的促进项和抑制项,对北京中关村地区十多家高科技公司进行了实地调研,结合 20 多位项目经理的实践经验,归纳出了影响新产品开发项目有效决策的重要因素.认为决策者的先验知识、项目条件和决策者主观意识三方面因素是影响高科技新产品开发项目有效决策的关键.并构建理论模型对这些重要因素和相互关系进行了描述.     

考虑组织失效与协调的复杂产品研发项目设计变更风险传播模型

基于产品部件间的设计关联和组织产品间的镜像假设,构建一对一依赖的复杂产品研发项目组织-产品相依网络模型。在此基础上,构建考虑组织失效和组织间协调的复杂产品研发项目设计变更风险传播动力学模型,并针对由少数部件发生设计变更风险事件引发的复杂产品研发项目相依网络上的设计变更风险传播进行数值仿真。结果表明：组织失效和组织协调不足均会导致设计变更风险的积累,使得设计变更风险传播经历缓慢传播、失控传播后达到相对稳定状态;组织设计能力充足且组织间协调充分时设计变更风险传播不发生。复杂产品研发项目设计变更风险传播受到部件设计变更风险容量的显著影响,存在设计变更风险传播阈值η*3使得设计变更风险传播不发生;传播阈值η*3与初始变更源规模正相关;研发组织的冗余设计能力存在作用条件,使得传播阈值η*3保持在最低水平。研究成果完善了项目管理中风险动态分析框架,为提高复杂产品研发项目抵御设计变更风险的能力提供建议。     

The Roles of Supply Chain Intelligence and Adaptability in New Product Launch Success

Many new product introductions continue to be unsuccessful, and while researchers have studied product development processes, relatively few studies directly address new product launch. We do so in the present research and posit that supply chain intelligence, defined as technological and competitive knowledge sourced and integrated from suppliers, customers, and competitors, plays an important role in explaining new product launch success. We further employ the knowledge‐based view to theorize that both supply chain adaptability and product innovation capability act as important mediators of the effects of supply chain intelligence on new product launch success and firm financial performance. While the former capability refers to a firm's ability to quickly adjust its supply chain to react to market and product design changes, the latter refers to the firm's proficiency in developing innovative new products. We test hypothesized relationships among these factors utilizing data collected in a survey of 229 U.S. manufacturing firms. Results point to the central role of supply chain adaptability in capturing the benefits of supplier technological intelligence for enhanced product innovation capability, new product launch success, and firm financial performance. In contrast, product innovation capability serves as the generative means by which customer and competitor intelligence is translated into more successful new product launches, which, in turn, produce superior firm financial performance. Overall, these findings contribute to a better understanding of factors that can explain why certain product launches are more successful than others, and offer practical insights for appropriate investments in the development of related knowledge resources.     

企业新产品开发风险及其防范

随着市场竞争的加剧,不断开发并向市场投入新产品成为企业取得持久竞争优势的关键。然而在新产品开发中,企业将面临许多技术和市场的不确定性,这些不确定性会给企业带来风险。在分析新产品开发风险的来源及其影响因素的基础上,提出防范产品开发风险的五种方法,对企业正确认识并有效防范产品开发风险具有一定的指导意义。     

基于前景理论的新产品开发方案选择方法

为了解决新产品开发中考虑竞争产品方案评价信息的方案选择问题,提出了一种基于前景理论的决策分析方法。在该方法中,依据新产品开发方案与竞争产品方案相比的绩效确定前景参考点,并给出了前景价值函数和权重函数;通过计算和比较新产品开发方案的前景值和竞争产品方案的前景值,得到新产品开发方案的优选结果;最后给出一个算例,说明该方法的可行性和有效性。     

互补性研发努力下垂直合作新产品开发中的收益共享契约设计

研发努力表现为互补还是替代关系,对于合作新产品开发中激励契约的设计有重要影响.在研发努力存在互补关系的情形下,探讨垂直合作新产品开发中的收益共享机制.研究表明,新产品开发的组织安排取决于由研发努力弹性和成本参数所确定的研发投入产出效率,当双方的研发投入产出效率相差悬殊时,新产品开发应由效率更高的一方独自承担;当双方各自承担部分开发任务时,收益共享契约可以有效调节合作者的研发努力水平;最优收益共享率介于使合作者分别达到各自最大努力水平的不同收益共享率之间,且取决于双方的研发努力弹性,而与双方的研发成本参数、新产品市场风险等因素无直接关系;研发努力弹性较高的一方应分享到更多收益,而当双方研发努力弹性相同时,应均分收益.     

一种基于模糊推理的新产品开发风险评价方法

针对具有语言评价信息的新产品开发风险评价问题,提出一种基于模糊推理的评价方法.在已有研究成果的基础上,建立新产品开发风险指标体系;将专家给出的具有语言评价信息的风险指标影响程度矩阵、风险发生可能性向量和风险后果严重程度向量转化为三角模糊数形式的矩阵和向量;进一步地,通过运用线性加权法得到风险指标影响程度综合群体评价值、风险发生可能性群体评价值和风险后果严重程度群体评价值;在此基础上,运用模糊推理对新产品开发风险进行评价,根据评价结果得到新产品开发风险的置信度.最后,通过一个算例说明该方法的可行性和实用性.     

新产品开发模式研究

在对新产品开发模式(内包式、外包式、众包式)进行理论回顾的基础上,针对当前新产品开发呈现出的螺旋式发展态势,研究了不同情境下新产品开发方式的特性.以宝洁公司为例,提出了内包、外包和众包式进行组合的方式,并将专有网络和开放网络有机结合,提升新产品的开发速度和市场接受度.