Coordinating new product development with supply chain management

Abstract

Purpose: This research seeks to form an understanding of how new product development (NPD) relates to supply chain management (SCM), why the two fields should be coordinated, and how this may be done.Design/methodology/approach: This research uses a literature review and case study research. The case study considers a Swedish company that operates on a global basis in the furniture industry. Empirical data has been collected mainly from in-depth interviews with key persons representing senior and middle management in the case company.Findings: This research stresses the need to produce innovative, value-adding products, as well as the necessity to quickly deliver them to the market. Companies that face mature business environments may encounter problems due to a high emphasis on either the value creation processes, or on the value delivery processes. Therefore, NPD activities need to be coordinated with SCM activities on a strategic level, lest competitiveness will be lost. Research limitations/implications:The research is limited to one case company; replication studies would enhance understanding of the studied phenomenon. There is a wide need for research exploring how various parts of demand and supply chains should be managed in order to fully utilize the advantages of the consumeroriented enterprise. Practical implications:This research provides insights for researchers and practitioners on how to coordinate and balance NPD (demand-side) with SCM (supply-side) activities. It highlights that companies should organize themselves around understanding how consumer value is created and how these processes may be coordinated to provide that value. The two processes must be given equal attention and importance to avoid sub-optimization. Originality/value:The need for coordinating NPD and SCM activities has been emphasized in the literature but still remains relatively unexplored. This research contributes by investigating this issue further.

Decision model for product rollover in manufacturing operations

“…It is evident, from the literature review, that product rollover is often thought of in isolation from other events in the company. Several researchers in related fields, highlight the importance of considering product portfolios (Hilletofth and Eriksson 2011, Talke et al 2011, Martínez-Mora and Merino 2014, Büyüközkan and Arsenyan 2012. It is quite remarkable that this has not been taken more seriously.…”

New Product Development Processes in The Australian FMCG Industry

“…Where appropriate, customers and suppliers should have input into the NPD process although protecting intellectual property may inhibit the extent of this input. Hilletofth and Eriksson (2011) suggest taking a supply chain view to select appropriate contributors. It is important to achieve high quality decision making and discipline at gates.…”

“…First, demand forecasting is especially difficult for new products that cannot be modelled on demand for existing products (Kahn, 2009). Second the literature (e.g., Hilletofth and Eriksson, 2011;Galluci, 2008;Slotegraaf and Atuahene-Gima, 2011) highlights tensions between functions such as marketing, sales and operations, leading for example to biases in debates over launch volumes. Dougherty (1992) studied barriers to successful product introduction and discovered several key personnel problems in developing and launching new products.…”

“…We found relatively little research that specifically addressed the role of S&OP in NPD processes, and thus identified this topic as being worthy of further study. There are three major issues in introducing new products (Hilletofth and Eriksson, 2011). First is introducing a product that appeals to the marketplace, second meeting customer expectations on delivery of the products to the market.…”

Lean product development principles and practices

“…, Sobek (1997), Pessôa (2006), McManus, Haggerty and Murman (2005), Ballé and Ballé (2005), Kennedy, Harmon and Minnock (2008), Kato (2005), Seth, Seth and Goel (2008), Collin, Eloranta and Holmström (2009), Hilletofth (2009), Jorgensen and Emmitt (2007, Parry, Mils and Turner (2010), Fung, Chen and Yip (2008), Taylor (2006), Pawar, Beltagui and Riedel (2009), Allee (2009), Enquist, Edvardsson and Sebhatu (2007 and Hilletofth and Eriksson (2011).…”