Group #6Session 4

Henard & Szymanski (2011) Why Some New Products Are More Successful Than

Others

PREDICTORS OF NEW PRODUCT SUCCESSReview and suggestions for future research

Jamal ArmelAlexey MalkovOriol Sementé Katariina Silander

Let’s assume that you are a company manager and that your read this

article.

What else would you like to know about predictors of new product

success?

What would be your recommendations for future research?

Assignment Question:

Highlights• Overview: What was done in the article

• Identification of predictors and their grouping

• Identification of most important predictors

• Moderator Variables and its implications

• What have we learned from all this and As Managers: What would we want to know more? Recommendations for future research

What was actually done in the article

META-ANALYSIS OF NEW PRODUCT PERFORMANCE STUDIES

Keyword searches

of electronic databases + manual

searches of most

important journals

41 articles chosen

Identification of predictor variables related to

new product performance

Analysis of individual predictors → how do they affect

new product

performance

e.g. ”product

innovation”, ”newproduct

s”

24 predicto

r variable

s identifie

d + grouped

Had strong enough

correlation

Analysis of many

predictors at the same

time (multivariate regression

model)→ how do they affect new product performance

Identified significant drivers + dominant

drivers

ANOVA-analysis: how

did the predictors affect new

product performance

(depending on how certain

concepts were measured)

e.g. Asia vs America, short-term vs long-

term performance

Predictors and Analysis

Keyword searches

of electronic databases + manual

searches of most

important journals

41 articles chosen

Identification of predictor variables related to

new product performance

Analysis of individual

predictors → how do they affect new

product performance

e.g. ”product

innovation”, ”newproduct

s”

24 predictor variables identified

+ grouped

Had strong enough

correlation

Analysis of many

predictors at the same

time (multivariate regression

model)→ how do they affect new product performance

Identified significant drivers + dominant drivers

ANOVA-analysis: how

did the predictors affect new

product performance

(depending on how certain

concepts were measured)

e.g. Asia vs America, short-term vs long-

term performance

Product Firm Strategy Firm Process Marketplace

Categories of Predictors

Advantage

Meeting customer

needs

PriceTechnological sophisticatio

nInnovativene

ss

Marketing synergy

Technological synergyOrder of

entryDedicated

human resources

Dedicated R&D

resources

Structured approach

Predevelopment task

proficiency

Likelihood of competitive

response

Marketing task proficiency

Technological proficiency

Launch proficiency

Reduced cycle time

Market orientation

Customer input

Cross-functional integration

Cross-functional

communicationSenior

management support

Competitive response intensity

Market potential

Product Firm Strategy Firm Process Marketplace

Dominant Predictors

Advantage

Meeting customer

needs

PriceTechnological sophisticatio

nInnovativene

ss

Marketing synergy

Technological synergyOrder of

entryDedicated

human resources

Dedicated R&D

resources

Structured approach

Predevelopment task

proficiency

Likelihood of competitive

response

Marketing task proficiency

Technological proficiency

Launch proficiency

Reduced cycle time

Market orientation

Customer input

Cross-functional integration

Cross-functional

communicationSenior

management support

Competitive response intensity

Market potential

Dominant Predictors of New Product Performance

Moderator VariablesMeasurement and Contextual Effects

Contextual Effects

- Service vs Goods

- Asia vs North America

- High-tech vs Low-tech

Measurement Effects

- Multi vs Single-Item Measurement

- Subjective vs Objective Criteria

- Senior vs Project Management

- Short-terms vs Long-term Performance

Moderator VariablesMeasurement and Contextual Effects

Managers should go in-depth research according to their company’s context!

Measurement Effects and Implications (I)

Multi vs Single-Item Measurement (ROI, share, sales)→ Multi-item measurement claimed to be more reliable and accurate→ Multi-item measurement ensure a common reference for decision-making

Subjective vs Objective Criteria→ Objective performance data yield stronger relationships with selected Process characteristics→ Subjective assessments likely to reflect biases and imperfect information

Short-term vs Long-term Performance (< or > 36 months)→ Effects of being first to the market with a new offering are evidenced more fully when considerable time has elapsed since product introduction. (Product Diffusion)

Managers’ PerceptionSelective Attention

Perceptual Screens

Personal Biases

Collective Blindness

Tunnel vision

Functional fixedness

Strategic Myopia

Contested Belief structures

Senior Manager vs Project Manager→ PM perceive the support they receive from SM as more vital to the success of new product introductions than do the SM responsible for providing this support.

Measurement Effects and Implications (II)

Marketing synergies greater in services than in goods → communicate more the characteristic intangibles of the services , capitalize on brand name recognition, other service offerings.

Less structure → positive effect on success levels achieved by new services

Services Vs. Goods

Contextual Effects and Implications (I)

Services Goods

- More intangible- Less consistent- Less separable in

production and consumption

- More perishable

- More tangible- More consistent- Separable in

production and consumption

- Less perishable

Contextual Effects and Implications (II)Asian Vs. North American markets

Asia North America

- Greater performance of technological sophistication

- Greater marketing synergies- Greater market orientation- Greater senior management

support

- Less performance of technological sophistication

- Less marketing synergies- Less market orientation- Less senior management

support

Producing and selling new offerings is not the same across Asia andNorth America

Successful performance in Asian markets accrues to firms that display more marketing savvy and top management support

Contextual Effects and Implications (III)High-tech markets Vs. Low-tech markets

High-tech markets Low-tech markets

- More complex- Information intensive- Turbulent- Uncertain- Based on scientific &

technical know-how- More structured

- Less complex- Less information intensive- Less Turbulent- Somewhat predictable- Less based on scientific &

technical know-how- Less structured

Less structure is important to the success of new products in markets that are more turbulent and more uncertain because of heterogeneous and rapidly changing technologies.

• How the following affect product performance and how could they be enhanced? More information of the following and their alignment together

How delaying product entry, having less structure and more personnel and selling more products should be aligned to increase product performance

Why are these important?Are there other aspects that should be taken into account?

• International contextWhat product facets and organizational dimensions and strategies should be adapted

and when should this be done to optimize product performance?The article gives some insight to Asia vs North America, technological

sophistication, market orientation and synergies and senior-level support. We would like to know more of the real implementation of adaptation. What does it really mean? What should we take into account?

• What is the right timespan to measure new innovation product performance? Product Diffusion Theory.

• NPD Team composition for maximizing new product success. Impact of Interdisciplinarity

As Managers: What would we want to know more?

Recommendations for future research• More knowledge on how product quality affects product performance

• How new ideas in firms are translated into new productsAre there essential steps in the process that can be identified?

• What kind of organizational issues (e.g. discourse, dialogue, networking) support product innovation

Are companies with these traits more successful in creating new innovations with higher product performance?

• The roles of different employees in innovations with higher product performance (e.g.)

senior managers vs project managerstop management vs middle managementengineers vs marketing

• More specific industry studies meaning what attributes affect product performance in certain industries

Thanks for your attention!