DO NEW PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT MANAGERS IN LARGE OR HIGH-MARKET-SHARE FIRMS PERCEIVE MARKETING R-AND-D INTERFACE PRINCIPLES DIFFERENTLY

In the quest for successful innovation, the importance of the R&D/mark eting interface is virtually unquestioned. For many organizations, how ever, effective integration of technical and marketing functions is di fficult, if not impossible. Despite seemingly widespread understanding of fundamental new product principles, some companies still manage to gain a larger share of the market than their competitors. This raises the question of whether managers in more successful companies have sp ecial insights into R&D/marketing interface principles that give them an edge over their competitors. To gain a better understanding of mana gers' perceptions of new product principles defined in the academic li terature, Ted Haggblom, Roger J. Calantone, and C. Anthony Di Benedett o conducted a survey of 687 nonacademic members of the Product Develop ment and Management Association. The basis for the survey was a set of 78 product management principles compiled from a search of more than 500 books and articles from various disciplines. From this survey, 14 of the 78 principles were selected as relevant to the study reported i n this article. The principles discussed in this article involve such issues as resistance to change, short-term orientation, communication and trust between marketing and technical people, the effect of centra lized decision-making on innovation, the importance of open communicat ion flows, senior management's role in the R&D/ marketing interface, a nd the necessity of a product champion. The primary question addressed in this study is whether managers from successful companies perceive these principles differently from managers of less successful firms. T he study provides partial support for the proposition that managers' p erceptions of these new product principles depend on their company's s uccess. In other words, the survey results suggest that managers in co mpanies with higher market shares tend to agree more strongly with the se principles than their counterparts in less successful firms. The st udy also explores the relationship between firm size and agreement wit h these principles of new product success. Specifically, the study ass esses whether the perceptions of managers from smaller, more entrepren eurial companies differ from those of managers in larger companies. Al though managers from small and large firms may view these principles f rom different perspectives, there were no statistically significant di fferences in the perceptions of managers from small and large firms.