From Technological Inventions to New Products: A Systematic Review and Research Agenda of the Main Enabling Factors

Firms' ability to steady exploit their proprietary inventions via new products is an important driver to innovate, and then to achieve a sustainable competitive advantage. However, the current state of the art on the main determinants affecting technology‐based products' commercialization is characterized by the lack of an integrative framework, and fails to analyze these factors across different levels of analysis. Thereby, the present paper aims at providing such an integrative and multilevel framework, bringing together findings on the various determinants enabling the introduction of new products based on firms' own technological inventions through a systematic review of more than 100 articles published in leading international journals. More specifically, we integrate and discuss the literature findings by distinguishing related factors across the individual, firm, network, and industry level of analysis. In addition, a summary of the main gaps and future research directions are presented, in the attempt to further stimulate the academic debate on the topic.

[1]  B. Nijstad,et al.  The routinization of innovation research: A constructively critical review of the state-of-the-science , 2004 .

[2]  David Doloreux,et al.  Innovation novelty and (commercial) performance in the service sector: A Canadian firm-level analysis , 2011 .

[3]  S. Wood,et al.  Commercializing Nascent Technology: The Case of Laser Diodes at Sony , 1998 .

[4]  S. Bell,et al.  Organizing for new product development speed and the implications for organizational stress , 2002 .

[5]  R. Katila,et al.  Effects of Search Timing on Innovation: The Value of Not Being in Sync with Rivals , 2008 .

[6]  A. Nerkar,et al.  The Impact of Global and Local Cohesion on Innovation in the Pharmaceutical Industry , 2012 .

[7]  Kevin Zheng Zhou,et al.  External learning, market dynamics, and radical innovation: Evidence from China's high-tech firms , 2012 .

[8]  David L. Deeds,et al.  Strategic alliances and the rate of new product development: An empirical study of entrepreneurial biotechnology firms , 1996 .

[9]  Øystein D. Fjeldstad,et al.  Organizing Continuous Product Development and Commercialization: The Collaborative Community of Firms Model , 2011 .

[10]  Robert A. Baron,et al.  The role of entrepreneurs in firm-level innovation: Joint effects of positive affect, creativity, and environmental dynamism , 2011 .

[11]  R. Chandy,et al.  The Incumbent's Curse? Incumbency, Size, and Radical Product Innovation , 2000 .

[12]  Sigvald Harryson,et al.  Transformation Networks in Innovation Alliances the Development of Volvo C70 , 2008 .

[13]  Ali E. Akgün,et al.  Team Stressors, Management Support, and Project and Process Outcomes in New Product Development Projects , 2007 .

[14]  Elena Huergo,et al.  The role of technological management as a source of innovation: Evidence from Spanish manufacturing firms , 2006 .

[15]  Jie Wu,et al.  Technological collaboration in product innovation: The role of market competition and sectoral technological intensity , 2012 .

[16]  Roland Helm,et al.  Product Development Success Through Cooperation: A Study of Entrepreneurial Firms , 2006 .

[17]  S. Zahra,et al.  Sources of capabilities, integration and technology commercialization , 2002 .

[18]  Alexander Kaufmann,et al.  Science–industry interaction in the process of innovation: the importance of boundary-crossing between systems , 2001 .

[19]  J. Hauser,et al.  Integrating R&D and marketing: A review and analysis of the literature , 1996 .

[20]  K. Eisenhardt,et al.  Speeding Products to Market: Waiting Time to First Product Introduction in New Firms. , 1990 .

[21]  Jane M. Howell.  The right stuff: Identifying and developing effective champions of innovation , 2005 .

[22]  Petr Hanel,et al.  Evaluating the Impact of R&D Tax Credits on Innovation: A Microeconometric Study on Canadian Firms , 2011 .

[23]  Rajiv K. Sinha,et al.  Market Orientation and Alternative Strategic Orientations: A Longitudinal Assessment of Performance Implications , 2002 .

[24]  Carolyn Y. Woo,et al.  Technology sourcing and output of established firms in a regime of encompassing technological change , 2003 .

[25]  Vangelis Souitaris,et al.  Firm-Specific Competencies Determining Technological Innovation: A Survey in Greece , 2002 .

[26]  M. Leiblein,et al.  How Firms Capture Value From Their Innovations , 2013 .

[27]  K. Atuahene–Gima,et al.  Resolving the Capability–Rigidity Paradox in New Product Innovation , 2005 .

[28]  Avimanyu Datta,et al.  Looking Beyond the Focal Industry and Existing Technologies for Radical Innovations , 2013 .

[29]  Stefan H. Thomke,et al.  Asset accumulation, interdependence and technological change: evidence from pharmaceutical drug discovery , 2002 .

[30]  T. M. Nevens,et al.  Commercializing technology: What the best companies do , 1990 .

[31]  Ken G. Smith,et al.  Existing Knowledge, Knowledge Creation Capability, and the Rate of New Product Introduction in High-Technology Firms , 2005 .

[32]  E. Garnsey,et al.  Commercializing Generic Technology: The Case of Advanced Materials Ventures , 2005 .

[33]  Réjean Landry,et al.  Lessons from Innovation Empirical Studies in the Manufacturing Sector: A Systematic Review of the Literature from 1993-2003 , 2006 .

[34]  R. Calantone,et al.  Determinants of New Product Performance: A Review and Meta-Analysis , 1994 .

[35]  R. Chandy,et al.  Organizing for Radical Product Innovation: The Overlooked Role of Willingness to Cannibalize , 1998 .

[36]  R. Gulati.  Alliances and networks , 1998 .

[37]  Ramkumar Janakiraman,et al.  How Customer Portfolio Affects New Product Development in Technology-Based Entrepreneurial Firms , 2008 .

[38]  Nathan Rosenberg,et al.  An Overview of Innovation , 2009 .

[39]  S. Dutta,et al.  Portfolios of Interfirm Agreements in Technology-Intensive Markets: Consequences for Innovation and Profitability , 2004 .

[40]  van Luk N. Wassenhove,et al.  Get fat fast - Surviving stage-gate in NPD , 2010 .

[41]  Jeffrey H. Dyer,et al.  The Relational View: Cooperative Strategy and Sources of Interorganizational Competitive Advantage , 1998 .

[42]  Robert G. Cooper,et al.  New product success factors: A comparison of ‘kills’ versus successes and failures , 1990 .

[43]  A. Benedetto,et al.  Strategic orientations and new product commercialization : mediator, moderator, and interplay , 2011 .

[44]  Lee Fleming,et al.  Finding the organizational sources of technological breakthroughs: the story of Hewlett‐Packard's thermal ink‐jet , 2002 .

[45]  Ljiljana Božić,et al.  The antecedents of SME innovativeness in an emerging transition economy , 2009 .

[46]  Sharmistha Bagchi-Sen,et al.  An analysis of firm-level innovation strategies in the US biotechnology industry , 2007 .

[47]  Vijay K. Jolly,et al.  Commercializing New Technologies: Getting from Mind to Market , 1997 .

[48]  Aron O'Cass,et al.  Achieving superior innovation-based performance outcomes in SMEs through innovation resource–capability complementarity , 2011 .

[49]  W. Sofka,et al.  Innovation on Demand: Can Public Procurement Drive Market Success of Innovations , 2008 .

[50]  C. Fulmer,et al.  At What Level (and in Whom) We Trust , 2012 .

[51]  Marina Apaydin,et al.  A Multi-Dimensional Framework of Organizational Innovation: A Systematic Review of the Literature , 2010 .

[52]  G. Lilien,et al.  Determinants of new industrial product performance: a strategic re-examination of the empirical literature , 1989 .

[53]  Francisco J. Molina-Castillo,et al.  Product competence exploitation and exploration strategies: The impact on new product performance through quality and innovativeness , 2011 .

[54]  Tommy Høyvarde Clausen,et al.  Modes of innovation, resources and their influence on product innovation: Empirical evidence from R&D active firms in Norway , 2013 .

[55]  Marcus M. Keupp,et al.  The Strategic Management of Innovation: A Systematic Review and Paths for Future Research , 2011, International Journal of Management Reviews.

[56]  Ryuhei Wakasugi,et al.  Why are Japanese firms so innovative in engineering technology , 1992 .

[57]  Reinhilde Veugelers,et al.  In Search of Complementarity in Innovation Strategy: Internal R&D and External Knowledge Acquisition , 2006, Manag. Sci..

[58]  E. Autio,et al.  SOCIAL CAPITAL, KNOWLEDGE ACQUISITION, AND KNOWLEDGE EXPLOITATION IN YOUNG TECHNOLOGY-BASED FIRMS , 2001 .

[59]  Joe Tidd,et al.  Development of novel products through intraorganizational and interorganizational networks the case of home automation , 1995 .

[60]  Andrew Hess,et al.  Building Dynamic Capabilities: Innovation Driven by Individual-, Firm-, and Network-Level Effects , 2007, Organ. Sci..

[61]  Warren B. Brown,et al.  Leading the way to faster new product development , 1993 .

[62]  David Wield,et al.  Understanding company R&D strategies in agro-biotechnology: trajectories and blind spots , 2004 .

[63]  Walid Y. Thabet,et al.  Concurrent commercialization and new‐product adoption for construction products , 2010 .

[64]  J. Schumpeter.  The Theory of Economic Development: An Inquiry into Profits, Capital, Credit, Interest, and the Business Cycle , 1934 .

[65]  Alan Pilkington,et al.  Technology portfolio alignment as an indicator of commercialisation: an investigation of fuel cell patenting , 2004 .

[66]  Gilbert Probst,et al.  From Organizational Learning to Knowledge Management , 2000 .

[67]  Antonio Dávila.  Short-term economic incentives in new product development , 2003 .

[68]  T. Koc,et al.  Factors impacting the innovative capacity in large-scale companies , 2007 .

[69]  Samar K. Mukhopadhyay,et al.  Interfaces for resolving marketing, manufacturing and design conflicts: A conceptual framework , 1998 .

[70]  D. Teece.  Profiting from technological innovation: Implications for integration, collaboration, licensing and public policy , 1993 .

[71]  Andrew B. Hargadon,et al.  Technology brokering and innovation in a product development firm. , 1997 .

[72]  S. Hart,et al.  Roles, role performance, and radical innovation competences , 2011 .

[73]  R. Katila,et al.  SOMETHING OLD, SOMETHING NEW: A LONGITUDINAL STUDY OF SEARCH BEHAVIOR AND NEW PRODUCT INTRODUCTION , 2002 .

[74]  Johannes I.M. Halman,et al.  Technology Commercialization in Road Infrastructure: How Government Affects the Variation and Appropriability of Technology , 2008 .

[75]  M. Tushman,et al.  The ambidextrous organization. , 2004, Harvard business review.

[76]  J. March.  Exploration and exploitation in organizational learning , 1991, STUDI ORGANIZZATIVI.

[77]  Ralph A. Heidl,et al.  Knowledge, Networks, and Knowledge Networks: A Review and Research Agenda , 2011 .

[78]  Richard L. Divine,et al.  CREATIVITY + BUSINESS DISCIPLINE = HIGHER PROFITS FASTER FROM NEW PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT , 1999 .

[79]  K. Zhou,et al.  The Effects of Strategic Orientations on Technology- and Market-Based Breakthrough Innovations , 2005 .

[80]  B. Lukas,et al.  Antecedents and outcomes of new product development speed: An interdisciplinary conceptual framework , 2002 .

[81]  R. Bakker.  Taking Stock of Temporary Organizational Forms : A Systematic Review and Research , 2010 .

[82]  Ramón Valle Cabrera,et al.  Managing Functional Diversity, Risk Taking and Incentives for Teams to Achieve Radical Innovations , 2007 .

[83]  David L. Deeds,et al.  Exploration and Exploitation Alliances in Biotechnology: A System of New Product Development , 2004 .

[84]  P. Walsh.  Innovation Nirvana or Innovation Wasteland? Identifying commercialization strategies for small and medium renewable energy enterprises , 2012 .

[85]  Filipe Coelho,et al.  Market orientation and new-to-the-world products: Exploring the moderating effects of innovativeness, competitive strength, and environmental forces , 2009 .

[86]  Kwaku Atuahene-Gima,et al.  Using Exploratory and Exploitative Market Learning for New Product Development , 2010 .

[87]  H. Gatignon,et al.  Strategic Orientation of the Firm and New Product Performance , 1997 .

[88]  C. A. Benavides-Velasco,et al.  Cooperation, competition, and innovative capability: a panel data of European dedicated biotechnology firms , 2004 .

[89]  F. Damanpour.  Organizational Innovation: A Meta-Analysis Of Effects Of Determinants and Moderators , 1991 .

[90]  Haiyang Li,et al.  Innovation search of new ventures in a technology cluster: the role of ties with service intermediaries , 2010 .

[91]  Ralph A. Heidl,et al.  Knowledge, Networks, and Knowledge Networks , 2011 .

[92]  Wayne S. DeSarbo,et al.  Strategic Capabilities and Radical Innovation: An Empirical Study in Three Countries , 2008, IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management.

[93]  Hsuan Lo,et al.  The Impact of Complementary Agglomeration and Multi-Unit Systems on New Product Introduction , 2010 .

[94]  Basil Achilladelis,et al.  The dynamics of technological innovation: the case of the pharmaceutical industry , 2001 .

[95]  R. Calantone,et al.  The Impact of Market Knowledge Competence on New Product Advantage: Conceptualization and Empirical Examination , 1998 .

[96]  Justin J. P. Jansen,et al.  Top Management Team Advice Seeking and Exploratory Innovation: The Moderating Role of TMT Heterogeneity , 2008 .

[97]  Knut Blind,et al.  The Influence of Regulations on Innovation: A Quantitative Assessment for OECD Countries , 2012 .

[98]  J. D. Sherman,et al.  Environmental Uncertainty, Organizational Integration, and New Product Development Effectiveness: A Test of Contingency Theory , 1998 .

[99]  Shaker A. Zahra,et al.  Technology strategy and new venture performance: A study of corporate-sponsored and independent biotechnology ventures , 1996 .

[100]  J. Moultrie,et al.  Top Management Involvement in New Product Development: A Review and Synthesis , 2014 .

[101]  L. Manjarrés-Henríquez,et al.  The effect of external and internal factors on firms’ product innovation , 2008 .

[102]  Yasunori Baba,et al.  Embeddedness, social epistemology and breakthrough innovation: The case of the development of statins , 2010 .

[103]  Andreas Mild,et al.  Open innovation modes and the role of internal R&D , 2011 .

[104]  Uma Kumar,et al.  Relationship between quality management practices and innovation , 2012 .

[105]  Henry Chesbrough,et al.  Open Innovation: The New Imperative for Creating and Profiting from Technology , 2003 .

[106]  Gianmario Verona,et al.  Unbundling Dynamic Capabilities: an Exploratory Study of Continuous Product Innovation , 2003 .

[107]  H. Ernst.  Success Factors of New Product Development: A Review of the Empirical Literature , 2002 .

[108]  Jie Wu,et al.  Asymmetric roles of business ties and political ties in product innovation , 2011 .

[109]  M. Freel,et al.  Patterns of innovation and skills in small firms , 2005 .

[110]  Esther P. Y. Tang,et al.  Innovation strategy and performance during economic transition : evidences in Beijing, China , 2009 .

[111]  Patrick G. Maggitti,et al.  Top management attention to innovation: The role of search selection and intensity , 2009 .

[112]  F. Johne,et al.  Success Factors in Product Innovation: A Selective Review of the Literature , 1988 .

[113]  Richard C.M. Yam,et al.  An audit of technological innovation capabilities in chinese firms: some empirical findings in Beijing, China , 2004 .

[114]  M. Iansiti.  Shooting the Rapids: Managing Product Development in Turbulent Environments , 1995 .

[115]  S. Shane,et al.  Determinants of invention commercialization: an empirical examination of academically sourced inventions , 2007 .

[116]  Rinaldo Evangelista,et al.  NATURE AND IMPACT OF INNOVATION IN MANUFACTURING INDUSTRY : SOME EVIDENCE FROM THE ITALIAN INNOVATION SURVEY , 1997 .

[117]  Mason A. Carpenter,et al.  Social Network Research in Organizational Contexts , 2012 .

[118]  Anil K. Gupta,et al.  Innovation At and Across Multiple Levels of Analysis , 2007, Organ. Sci..

[119]  I. Barreto.  Dynamic Capabilities: A Review of Past Research and an Agenda for the Future , 2010 .

[120]  Paul W. Beamish,et al.  Building Theoretical and Empirical Bridges Across Levels: Multilevel Research in Management , 2007 .

[121]  Rajesh K. Chandy,et al.  From Invention to Innovation: Conversion Ability in Product Development , 2006 .

[122]  Ali E. Akgün,et al.  Organizational emotional capability, product and process innovation, and firm performance: An empirical analysis , 2009 .

[123]  D. Chudnovsky,et al.  Innovation and productivity in developing countries: A study of Argentine manufacturing firms’ behavior (1992–2001)☆ , 2006 .

[124]  J. Barney.  Looking inside for competitive advantage , 1995 .

[125]  Yifei Sun,et al.  Determinants of Industrial Innovation in China: Evidence From its Recent Economic Census , 2010 .

[126]  B. Lundvall,et al.  Forms of knowledge and modes of innovation , 2007 .

[127]  A. Rodríguez‐Pose,et al.  In Economics and Social Sciences Working Papers Series Firm Collaboration and Modes of Innovation in Norway Firm Collaboration and Modes of Innovation in Norway Firm Collaboration and Modes of Innovation in Norway , 2022 .

[128]  David L. Deeds,et al.  DYNAMIC CAPABILITIES AND NEW PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT IN HIGH TECHNOLOGY VENTURES: AN EMPIRICAL ANALYSIS OF NEW BIOTECHNOLOGY FIRMS , 2000 .

[129]  Joakim Björkdahl.  Technology cross-fertilization and the business model: The case of integrating ICTs in mechanical engineering products , 2009 .

[130]  H. Rao,et al.  HARNESSING MANAGERIAL KNOWLEDGE TO IMPLEMENT PRODUCT-LINE EXTENSIONS: HOW DO MUTUAL FUND FAMILIES ALLOCATE PORTFOLIO MANAGERS TO OLD AND NEW FUNDS? , 2002 .

[131]  Antonio Capaldo,et al.  Knowledge Maturity and the Scientific Value of Innovations , 2017 .

[132]  R. Parthasarthy,et al.  Product innovation input and outcome: moderating effects of the innovation process , 2002 .

[133]  Laura B. Cardinal,et al.  A Longitudinal Study of the Impact of R&D, Patents, and Product Innovation on Firm Performance , 2010 .

[134]  M. Nieto,et al.  Beyond formal R&D: Taking advantage of other sources of innovation in low- and medium-technology industries , 2009 .

[135]  Cheryl Nakata,et al.  Integrating marketing and information services functions: a complementarity and competence perspective , 2011 .

[136]  H. Ernst,et al.  External Technology Commercialization in Large Firms: Results of a Quantitative Benchmarking Study , 2007 .

[137]  O. Ferrell,et al.  The effect of market orientation on product innovation , 2000 .

[138]  David T. Wilson,et al.  Industrial innovation and firm performance: A re-conceptualization and exploratory structural equation analysis☆ , 1993 .

[139]  S. Gopalakrishnan,et al.  A review of innovation research in economics, sociology and technology management , 1997 .

[140]  K. Pavitt.  Technologies, Products and Organization in the Innovating Firm: What Adam Smith Tells Us and Joseph Schumpeter Doesn't , 1998 .

[141]  Ana Paula Faria,et al.  Innovation across Europe: how important are institutional differences? , 2011 .

[142]  P. Koellinger.  The Relationship between Technology, Innovation, and Firm Performance: Empirical Evidence on E-Business in Europe , 2008 .

[143]  Geciane Silveira Porto,et al.  Characteristics of Brazilian innovative firms: An empirical analysis based on PINTEC—industrial research on technological innovation , 2005 .

[144]  Avimanyu Datta,et al.  Understanding Commercialization of Technological Innovation: Taking Stock and Moving Forward , 2015 .

[145]  W. Sofka,et al.  Search patterns and absorptive capacity: Low- and high-technology sectors in European countries , 2009 .

[146]  Erwin Danneels,et al.  THE PROCESS OF TECHNOLOGICAL COMPETENCE LEVERAGING , 2007 .

[147]  J. C. Goodale,et al.  Operations management and corporate entrepreneurship: The moderating effect of operations control on the antecedents of corporate entrepreneurial activity in relation to innovation performance , 2011 .

[148]  Frank T. Rothaermel,et al.  Leveraging internal and external experience: exploration, exploitation, and R&D project performance , 2010 .

[149]  Arun Sharma,et al.  Innovation and new product introductions in emerging markets: Strategic recommendations for the Indian market☆ , 2006 .

[150]  J. West,et al.  Leveraging External Sources of Innovation: A Review of Research on Open Innovation , 2013 .

[151]  J. Gans,et al.  The Product Market and the Market for 'Ideas': Commercialization Strategies for Technology Entrepreneurs , 2002 .

[152]  Matthias Meier,et al.  Knowledge Management in Strategic Alliances: A Review of Empirical Evidence , 2011 .

[153]  S. Roper,et al.  Modelling the innovation value chain , 2008 .

[154]  Rudolf R. Sinkovics,et al.  Crossing Borders and Industry Sectors: Behavioral Governance in Strategic Alliances and Product Innovation for Competitive Advantage , 2013 .

[155]  Kendall Roth,et al.  An empirical analysis of sustained advantage in the U.S. pharmaceutical industry: impact of firm resources and capabilities , 1999 .

[156]  Jakki J. Mohr,et al.  Radical Product Innovation Capability: Literature Review, Synthesis, and Illustrative Research Propositions , 2014 .

[157]  Antonio J. Verdú,et al.  The moderating effect of environmental uncertainty on the relationship between real options and technological innovation in high-tech firms , 2012 .

[158]  D. Tranfield,et al.  Towards a Methodology for Developing Evidence-Informed Management Knowledge by Means of Systematic Review , 2003 .

[159]  Ali E. Akgün,et al.  Antecedents and Consequences of Team Sensemaking Capability in Product Development Projects , 2012 .

[160]  Bradley R. Barnes,et al.  A 22 year review of strategic alliance research in the leading management journals , 2016 .

[161]  Nabil Amara,et al.  Learning and novelty of innovation in established manufacturing SMEs , 2008 .

[162]  Herman Stekler,et al.  Introducing technologically advanced products: Strategies in the commercial aircraft industry , 1995 .

[163]  Chih-Cheng Lo,et al.  An empirical study of commercialization performance on nanoproducts , 2012 .

[164]  Ruth Stock,et al.  Patterns and performance outcomes of innovation orientation , 2011 .

[165]  S. Zahra,et al.  Business strategy, technology policy and firm performance , 1993 .

[166]  Kate D. Abel,et al.  Key Factors in Increasing Speed to Market and Improving New Product Success Rates , 1999 .

[167]  A. Bonaccorsi,et al.  Strategic Partnerships in New Product Development: an Italian Case Study , 1994 .

[168]  Harbir Singh,et al.  Organizing for Innovation: Managing the Coordination-Autonomy Dilemma in Technology Acquisitions , 2006 .

[169]  E. Maine.  Radical Innovation through Internal Corporate Venturing: Degussa's Commercialization of Nanomaterials , 2008 .

[170]  Bart Van Looy,et al.  Structural ambidexterity in NPD processes: A firm-level assessment of the impact of differentiated structures on innovation performance , 2010 .

[171]  R. Amit,et al.  The Business Model: Recent Developments and Future Research , 2011 .

[172]  Sofy Carayannopoulos.  Research in Motion: A Small Firm Commercializing a New Technology , 2005 .

[173]  V Kumar,et al.  Commercialization of new technologies in India: an empirical study of perceptions of technology institutions , 2003 .

[174]  Curba Morris Lampert,et al.  Entrepreneurship in the large corporation: a longitudinal study of how established firms create breakthrough inventions , 2001 .

[175]  José Emilio Navas-López,et al.  The moderating role of innovation culture in the relationship between knowledge assets and product innovation , 2013 .

[176]  P. Murphy,et al.  Prior Knowledge and New Product and Service Introductions by Entrepreneurial Firms: The Mediating Role of Technological Innovation , 2012 .

[177]  Beat Birkenmeier,et al.  Management Principles for Evaluating and Introducing Disruptive Technologies: The Case of Nanotechnology in Switzerland , 2003 .