Qingyu Zhang, Mei Cao and William Doll
The uncertainties, ambiguities and unknown issues that characterize the beginning of a new product development project have led practitioners and scholars to coin the term “fuzzy…
Abstract
Purpose
The uncertainties, ambiguities and unknown issues that characterize the beginning of a new product development project have led practitioners and scholars to coin the term “fuzzy front end” to refer to this seminal stage. The causes of many product failures can be traced back to this fuzzy front end. Despite a growing realization of its importance, the meaning of the term “front-end fuzziness” itself remains vague. A theory-based framework is not available to guide thinking and research on this important topic. The purpose of this paper is to create a conceptual framework for fuzzy front end.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper applies Daft and Lengel’s (1986) theory of organizational information processing to create a framework for research on the fuzzy front end of product innovation. This framework is used to clarify the concept of front-end fuzziness and identify three sources of fuzziness in the project team’s task environment.
Findings
Contrary to the current literature, the authors argue that equivocality rather than uncertainty is the dominant cause of front-end fuzziness. This new conceptualization: appropriately broadens the concept of front-end fuzziness; identifies new problem areas; highlights the need for new solutions; and suggests the need to focus on team vision as a front-end deliverable.
Practical implications
The previous literature used a single uncertainty reduction rationale for integrative mechanisms. Thus, it did not consider that the implementation might change from front end to downstream. The dual theoretical rationale suggests that integrative mechanisms can be implemented differently to focus either on uncertainty or equivocality reduction. In the front end, equivocality is the dominant issue and mechanisms should be implemented in ways that create a rich channel to identify issues and share perspectives. In downstream activities where the dominant issue is uncertainty reduction, mechanisms might be implemented in ways that provide greater quantities of information on known issues.
Originality/value
This new conceptualization of front-end fuzziness provides a better theoretical rationale for how integrative mechanisms enable a project team to work through the fuzziness it faces, creating a clear team vision that guides its downstream efforts.
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Qingyu Zhang and William J. Doll
While managers and researchers agree that the fuzzy front end of new product development (NPD) is critical for project success, the meaning of the term “front‐end fuzziness”…
Abstract
While managers and researchers agree that the fuzzy front end of new product development (NPD) is critical for project success, the meaning of the term “front‐end fuzziness” remains vague. It is often used broadly to refer to both the exogenous causes and the internal consequences of fuzziness. This imprecise language makes it difficult for managers to separate cause and effect and thus identify specific prescriptive remedies for “fuzziness” problems. The vagueness of the concept and the lack of a framework for defining “front‐end fuzziness” also impede empirical research efforts. Building upon uncertainty theory, we define front‐end fuzziness in terms of environmental uncertainties. Front‐end fuzziness has consequences for a project’s team vision. It reduces the team’s sense of shared purpose and causes unclear project targets and priorities. Describes how foundation elements of a firm’s overall product development program can help project teams cope with front‐end fuzziness.
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William J. Doll, Thomas W. Sharkey and Don R. Beeman
Most universities have MBA programs designed to train functionally specialized managers for large Fortune 1000 type firms. The graduate management education needs of small and…
Abstract
Most universities have MBA programs designed to train functionally specialized managers for large Fortune 1000 type firms. The graduate management education needs of small and mid‐size firms have been largely ignored. Many innovative MBA programs have themes that emphasize entrepreneurship, management of technology, or international business, but none have integrated all three themes in a redesigned MBA program that meets the needs of small and mid‐size firms.This paper describes a successful business‐driven approach to re‐engineering the form and content of an MBA program to create a higher value‐added program for smaller and rapidly growing enterprises. This curriculum development process was funded by a grant from the Cleveland Foundation’s Statewide Program for Businessand Management Education. Guided by a business‐driven process, The University of Toledo successfully initiated a new Executive MBA for Small and Mid‐size firms in the fall of 1995.
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Rupak Rauniar, William Doll, Greg Rawski and Paul Hong
This paper seeks to empirically investigate how a heavyweight product manager (HW) can impact the cross‐functional team and project performance (PP) through actively influencing…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper seeks to empirically investigate how a heavyweight product manager (HW) can impact the cross‐functional team and project performance (PP) through actively influencing the ways and the extent of strategic alignment (SA), shared project mission, and clarity of project targets in the early front‐end stage.
Design/methodology/approach
Based on past studies on leadership role theory and goal‐setting theory for teams, this study hypothesizes that the role of the HW for SA of the project, shared project mission, and clarity of the project target are positively related. The study further hypothesizes that these roles of the HW can have a positive impact on PP measures such as product cost, time, and customer satisfaction.
Findings
Primary data collected from 191 new product development (NPD) projects from the US automotive industry were analyzed using structural equation modeling techniques. All the hypotheses presented in this study regarding the role of the HW in a cross‐functional team are supported. These roles of the HW also seem to indicate a positive relationship with overall PP.
Practical implications
Rather than blindly subscribing to generic and prescriptive “best practices” for the HW, the causal relationship detailed in this study makes it now possible to rationalize the role of HW in cross‐functional product development teams. Through formal and informal influence of the HW, the project and the team gain SA, shared mission, and clear project targets that can drive better PP.
Originality/value
This is the first study to focus specifically on the role of HW in NPD in a cross‐functional team environment.
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Paul Hong, Abraham Y. Nahm and William J. Doll
Product development is recognized as cross‐functional teamwork that has become important in the fast‐paced, globally competitive environment. Despite an extant body of knowledge…
Abstract
Product development is recognized as cross‐functional teamwork that has become important in the fast‐paced, globally competitive environment. Despite an extant body of knowledge on the importance of fuzzy front‐end planning and functions of goals in the management literature, the impact of uncertain project environment and goal setting mechanisms in front‐end planning is not fully understood. Product development literature presents numerous case studies or conceptual papers that emphasize the importance of upfront planning and a need for team building; however, large‐scale empirical studies are rare. This paper presents a model linking uncertain project environment, project target clarity, teamwork and its outcome measures (i.e. a product's value to customer and time to market). The data were analyzed from 205 product development projects of firms from the USA and Canada. Valid and reliable instruments were developed to assess the nature and impact of inter‐relationships of these variables. Results from structural model tests indicate that uncertain project environment influences the nature of project targets which in turn affects the level of teamwork. Teamwork is an important process outcome for enhancing value to customer and time to market. Management implications are discussed as well.
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William J. Doll, Paul Hong and Abraham Nahm
The purpose of this paper is to present a model linking the role of design engineers to shared team knowledge, enhanced manufacturability, and product development outcomes. New…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to present a model linking the role of design engineers to shared team knowledge, enhanced manufacturability, and product development outcomes. New product manufacturability is a quality of the product design that indicates the ease and reliability by which an organization develops products by using its manufacturing and supply chain resources.
Design/methodology/approach
The model is tested using a sample of 205 product development projects from firms in the USA and Canada.
Findings
The findings of the large‐scale empirical study suggest that by facilitating informing practices among functional specialists, design engineers help translate a functional portrayal of the product in terms of customer attributes, to a form description in terms of engineering characteristics, and then to a fabrication view in terms of manufacturing processes.
Practical implications
New product manufacturability can be a distinctive competency that provides competitive advantage by lowering costs, improving customer value, and speeding products to market.
Originality/value
In contrast to previous research that showed that role changes of design engineers have a narrow impact on development productivity (e.g. improving resource allocation), this paper suggests that these role changes of design engineers have a much broader impact on manufacturability and, through this, improve manufacturing cost, time‐to‐market, and value‐to‐customers.
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Paul Hong, William J. Doll, Abraham Y. Nahm and Xiao Li
Although product development is recognized as knowledge‐intensive work, we have limited understanding of its impact on product development performance. The mechanisms by which…
Abstract
Although product development is recognized as knowledge‐intensive work, we have limited understanding of its impact on product development performance. The mechanisms by which knowledge sharing contributes to strategic imperatives such as time to market and value to customers are also not well understood. Despite increased interest in knowledge sharing in cross‐functional teams, there have been few large‐scale empirical studies of its efficacy. This paper develops a model that explains how shared knowledge, defined in three types – shared knowledge of customers, suppliers, and internal capabilities – enhances process performance, as well as downstream strategic imperatives of time to market and value to customers. The model is tested using 205 responses on product development projects by US automotive engineers. The results show that shared knowledge of customers, suppliers, and internal capabilities positively affect product development performance, as well as indirectly affect downstream strategic imperatives via enhanced process performance.
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Ahmad Syamil, William J. Doll and Charles H. Apigian
The key to successful project management is knowing how well the process is performing to prevent problems rather than fix them after they occur. Success measurement in product…
Abstract
The key to successful project management is knowing how well the process is performing to prevent problems rather than fix them after they occur. Success measurement in product development has emphasized end‐result measures of overall project performance or economic value. The product development literature has largely ignored process performance (i.e., the measurement of how effectively the product development process is actually working). Process performance may be an early warning signal of downstream problems in a project's quality, time, or productivity. This paper proposes a model of process performance at the project level during product and process engineering. The model suggests that process performance mediates the influence of concurrent engineering (process choice) on overall project development performance. This process performance model is tested in the automobile industry using a sample of 406 product development projects in Germany and the USA. The theoretical and practical implications of the findings are discussed.
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Silvia Edling and Anneli Frelin
In this chapter, the issue of social justice in teacher education is addressed from a Swedish perspective. The chapter begins by briefly describing the Swedish educational context…
Abstract
In this chapter, the issue of social justice in teacher education is addressed from a Swedish perspective. The chapter begins by briefly describing the Swedish educational context in schools and teacher education, with a specific emphasis on the task of educators and teacher educators to promote social justice and as a consequence to this counteract various forms of social violence: such as violation, including bullying, harassment, and discrimination. The second section introduces evidence on fruitful strategies for counteracting social violence in school, based on a national research study that takes into account international research. Following this, we exemplify how these findings are interlaced the pedagogies of teacher education in Sweden. The chapter ends with thoughts on such pedagogies in an international context, and a brief conclusion.
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To describe the connections between reading and writing and to discuss new ways of understanding the nuisances associated with their development beginning with consideration to…
Abstract
Purpose
To describe the connections between reading and writing and to discuss new ways of understanding the nuisances associated with their development beginning with consideration to language appreciation.
Design/methodology/approach
Theoretical advances related to the complexity of reading, thinking, and writing are discussed alongside an ongoing description of how wide reading, interventions, language study, and risk taking are foundational to language creation.
Findings
The linkages between reading and writing are inseparable. Reading and writing must be developed in unison. The best writers are avid readers and vice versa. Generally speaking, students will have preferences regarding which they enjoy partaking in more but this just gives the motivation to utilize an appreciate approach to grow, that is utilizing existing strengths of the student in either reading or writing toward improving the other.
Practical implications
A host of instructional practices can extend from these new theoretical understandings of language creation including free verse journals, usage of non-examples to jolt previous understandings, language play, feedback, diverse literature, and finalization processes related to writing development.