Reducing project related uncertainty in the "fuzzy front end" of innovation: a comparison of German and Japanese product innovation projects

In this paper, we report on the results of an exploratory study including 28 innovation projects carried out by 14 German and 13 Japanese companies to reduce project uncertainty. In all cases, we observed a range of activities to reduce project specific uncertainties and revealed differences in the practice of innovation management in both the German and Japanese companies. The focus of our research was the so-called "fuzzy front end", activities and typical deliverables in the innovation process, which might be affected by front end management practice. Overall, in the case of the German as well as the Japanese projects, the uncertainties affected by the market or technology could successfully be reduced during the "fuzzy front end" and the majority of projects achieved their objectives and efficiency targets. Nevertheless, our study revealed differences in the way such uncertainties were reduced by the companies in Japan and Germany.

[1]  Horst Geschka,et al.  Creativity Techniques in Product Planning and Development : A View from West Germany : R&D Management , 1983 .

[2]  John H. Friar,et al.  Factors for success in R&D projects and new product innovation: a contextual framework , 1997 .

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

[4]  Dirk Deschoolmeester,et al.  R&D/marketing communication during the fuzzy front-end , 1995 .

[5]  M. Montoya-Weiss,et al.  Critical development activities for really new versus incremental products , 1998 .

[6]  Sigvald Harryson,et al.  Improving R&D Performance through Networking – Lessons from Canon and Sony , 2003 .

[7]  E. Mansfield,et al.  Organizational and Strategic Factors Associated with Probabilities of Success in Industrial R & D , 1975 .

[8]  Ali E. Akgün,et al.  Innovation Strategies Under Uncertainty: A Contingency Approach for New Product Development , 1998 .

[9]  Ulrich Jürgens.  New Product Development and Production Networks , 2000 .

[10]  L. Dwyer,et al.  Organizational Environment, New Product Process Activities, and Project Outcomes , 1991 .

[11]  Robert W. Veryzer.  Discontinuous innovation and the new product development process , 1998 .

[12]  R. Cooper,et al.  0 0 0 0 An Investigation into the New Product Process : Steps , Deficiencies , and Impact , 1986 .

[13]  Gerald F. Smith.  Idea‐Generation Techniques: A Formulary of Active Ingredients , 1998 .

[14]  S. R. Rosenthal,et al.  Integrating the Fuzzy Front End of New Product Development , 1997 .

[15]  Linda Rochford,et al.  Generating and screening new products ideas , 1991 .

[16]  B. Zirger,et al.  A study of success and failure in product innovation: The case of the U.S. electronics industry , 1984, IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management.

[17]  W. Souder,et al.  New product development success factors in American and British firms , 1999 .

[18]  Stephen G. Green,et al.  How Management Can Influence the Generation of Ideas , 1985 .

[19]  R. Cooper,et al.  SCREENING NEW PRODUCTS FOR POTENTIAL WINNERS , 1993 .

[20]  Vinod Kumar,et al.  The front end of new product development: a Canadian survey , 1997 .

[21]  Mark E. Parry,et al.  What separates Japanese new product winners from losers , 1996 .

[22]  C. Anthony Di Benedetto.  Product planning and management: Designing and delivering value: by William L. Moore and Edgar A. Pessemier. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1993. 542 + xiv pages , 1994 .

[23]  Robert G. Cooper,et al.  New Products: The Key Factors in Success , 1990 .

[24]  Ulrich Jürgens,et al.  Restructuring Product Development and Production Networks: Introduction to the Book , 2000 .

[25]  R. Verganti.  Leveraging on systemic learning to manage the early phases of product innovation projects , 1997 .

[26]  Thomas M. Schlaak.  Der Innovationsgrad als Schlüsselvariable , 1999 .

[27]  Sanjay Mishra,et al.  Factors affecting new product success: Cross-country comparisons☆ , 1996 .

[28]  Jay R. Galbraith.  Designing Complex Organizations , 1973 .

[29]  Trevor Sowrey.  The generation of ideas for new products , 1987 .

[30]  E. Pessemier,et al.  Product Planning And Management Designing And Delivering Value , 1993 .

[31]  Michael Song,et al.  The Effect of Perceived Technological Uncertainty on Japanese New Product Development , 2001 .

[32]  M. Parry,et al.  A Cross-National Comparative Study of New Product Development Processes: Japan and the United States , 1997 .

[33]  J. Mullins,et al.  New Product Development in Rapidly Changing Markets: An Exploratory Study , 1998 .

[34]  Wm. E. Souder,et al.  Analyses of U.S. and Japanese Management Processes Associated with New Product Success and Failure in High and Low Familiarity Markets , 1998 .

[35]  Joo-Hong Park.  Vergleich des Innovationsmanagements deutscher, japanischer und koreanischer Unternehmen : eine empirische Untersuchung am Beispiel der chemischen Industrie , 1996 .

[36]  Alan Webb,et al.  Project Management for Successful Product Innovation , 2000, Ind. Manag. Data Syst..

[37]  S. R. Rosenthal,et al.  Towards holistic front ends in new product development , 1998 .

[38]  Ulrich Jürgens,et al.  New product development and production networks : global industrial experience , 2000 .