HOW THE JAPANESE MANAGE THE RESEARCH-AND-DEVELOPMENT MARKETING INTERFACE

OVERVIEW: A survey of 2 74 Japanese R&D managers suggests that the per ceived success of Japanese new product programs is related to the achi eved level of R&D-marketing integration in Japanese firms Moreover, th e achieved level of integration appears to reflect the quality of R&D- marketing relations, the organizational structure of Japanese firms, a nd the attitudes and actions of Japanese senior management. These find ings are consistent with the conclusions of similar studies of U S. co mpanies. The authors, however, find one important difference between U S and Japanese companies. In japanese firms, the method of organizing new product activity appears to have little influence on the achieved level of R&D-marketing integration. We suspect that in Japan methods o f organizing new product activity do not matter because corporate cult ure accomplishes what U.S. firms try to accomplish through organizatio n In the successful Japanese company, a common commitment to the long- run success of the firm binds R&D and marketing employees together. In terfunctional cooperation is based on this shared commitment, and is r einforced through participative decision-making job rotation, and the use of joint reward systems.