The domain of New Product Development (NPD) is subject to considerable uncertainties.However, companies are required to manage the innovation process as efficiently as possible.The resulting conflicting demands often leave companies struggling to achieve both,efficiency as well as flexibility...

In this paper, we report on the results of a large-scale study about typical front-end-related innovation practices in 553 Japanese mechanical and electrical engineering companies. We explore typical activities concerning the generation and assessment of new product ideas, the reduction of...

Analogies can trigger breakthrough ideas in new product development. Numerous examples demonstratethat substantial innovations often result from transferring problem solutions from one industry ordomain to another. For instance, the designers of the new running shoe generation of Nike,...

In a study of New Product Development (NPD) projects, the fuzzy front end ofinnovation is explored. The New Product Development process is a multistageprocess. Therefore, the study examines two sorts of impact that the fuzzy front endhas on the success of New Product Development: a direct impact...

Our study focuses on the question, whether users should be intensively involved in the innovation process of radical product innovations or better not – from the manufacturer’s perspective. Radical innovations incorporate new technologies, shift market structures, require intensive user...

In new product development (NPD) unacceptably high failure rates have often been related to insufficiencies during the early development phases. Nevertheless, only little effort is devoted to the early phases, in theory as well as in practice, and managers often indicate the front end as being...

The current shift in demographics – aging and shrinking populations – in many countries around the world presents a major challenge to companies and societies alike. One particularly essential implication is the emergence and constant growth of the so-called "silver market", the market...