The development of relationships and networks for successful radical innovation

Abstract

The ability to innovate is a vital skill for firms wishing to compete in the global marketplace. The development of radical new products is important but much of the research has explored incremental innovation rather than more radical ones. The literature highlights the importance of relationships in the development process but suggests that the role played by relationships would be different for different types of innovation. The research was undertaken in partnership with industry and supported by the EPSRC. The aim of this paper is twofold: to develop an understanding of the issues pertaining to how relationships and networks are developed and managed to ensure the development of successful radical new products; and to build a research platform for future investigation based on some preliminary findings of dyadic interviews in the automotive industry. Issues arising show that relationships are important for NPD, however, significant differences are suggested between those that support incremental innovation and those that support the development of radical new products. The focus on understanding the relationships that lead to successful launches of radical innovations will enable all stakeholders to understand how to develop mutually beneficial relationships that create products with clear competitive advantage

Determinants of Enterprises Radical Innovation and Performance: Insights into Strategic Orientation of Cultural and Creative Enterprises

“…Moreover, according to regression analysis, competitors' orientations, inter-functional coordination, and proactiveness are the focus of firms when they aim to engage in radical innovation. The extant literature on NPD also emphasizes cross-functional coordination (especially extending beyond companies to include key suppliers, users, or partners) for radical innovation [14]. Therefore, under operating processes, these three sub-factors should be emphasized if C&C enterprises seek the success of radical innovation.…”

“…Ground theory or NPD (new product development) theory is usually referenced and utilized by researchers to conduct studies and identify innovation capability, processing [11], or scopes (e.g., open innovations) [12,13]. Story et al [14] indicate that successful launches of radical innovations enable the understanding of mutually beneficial relationships with stakeholders and these help create a clear product advantage. The innovation capability may result in product advantage, brand value [15,16], or sales growth [17].…”

Roles, role performance, and radical innovation competences

“…The conditions in which such relationships must develop are uncertain, complex and dynamic (see Chelariu, Johnston & Young, 2002). Despite limited knowledge of each other's ways of working, firms must share information, make non-retrievable investments and engage in intense collaboration, often before trust has been developed (Birkinshaw et al, 2007;Story, O'Malley & Hart, 2008). Relationships are formed to access resources that can be drawn upon, which both influence RI and, are in turn, influenced by the RI process (Ford, Cova & Salle, 2010).…”

The role of networks in technological capability: a technology-based companies perspective

“…Then, when the company has graduated, the entrepreneur's planning role should be directed to seeking insertion into financial and technological networks, rather than focusing on organizational innovation in a closed manner, as these networks can lead to technological capability development. This means planning how to overcome the obstacles to building a strong network (Story et al, 2007;Story et al, 2009)-in other words, how to overcome the lack of embeddedness in the external network (Birkinshaw et al, 2007).…”