Managers' perceptions of learning in new product development

Purpose – Post‐project reviews (PPRs) are widely recommended as an appropriate mechanism to stimulate project‐to‐project learning in new product development (NPD) teams. However, empirical research on their potential is limited and so this study aims to answer two questions: how do NPD professionals perceive PPRs? and is tacit knowledge created during PPRs?Design/methodology/approach – Five in‐depth case studies were conducted in German companies. The main sources of data were: company documentation; in‐depth interviews with managers; and observation of PPRs. The different data sources enabled extensive data triangulation and a high degree of reliability and validity to be achieved.Findings – The results indicate that NPD personnel perceive PPRs to be a very useful mechanism. They also show that social interactions and tacit knowledge play key roles in NPD learning.Research limitations/implications – Tacit knowledge was investigated using a proxy measure – the usage of metaphors and stories in NPD discuss...

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