R&D networks and innovation: decentralised product development in multinational enterprises

This paper documents the ways in which overseas R&D in MNEs now plays roles in what are innovative new approaches to innovation itself. Networks of laboratories are seen as supporting both the short-term and long-term competitive evolution of the MNE group's globally-effective product innovation.
In terms of the immediate commercial application of new products for global markets it is argued that product development labs work within creative overseas subsidiaries in MNEs. These aim to derive variants of the new product that fully meet the distinctive needs of each key regional market.
Another separate network of decentralised MNE labs carry out precompetitive (basic or applied) research, embodying particular areas of technological comparative advantage of their host countries. This network of labs therefore provides inputs into a centrally-articulated programme whose objective is to provide the basis of the longer-term technological evolution of the MNE, by upgrading the core knowledge from which future generations of innovative products can emerge.     

Product development strategies for established market pioneers,early followers,and late entrants

At the time of entry, market pioneers are known for emphasizing major product development projects. After being in the market for many years, however, do market pioneers, early followers, and late entrants maintain different product development strategies? Data from 2273 established manufacturing businesses reveal that market pioneers have the highest probability of engaging in product development, which covers product R&D spending as well as new product sales. Even so, market pioneers and early followers tend to emphasize minor projects, such as product improvements and line extensions. Late entrants are less likely to engage in product development, but those that do tend to emphasize major development efforts. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

'Biological' revolution and strategies for innovation in pharmaceutical companies

Fundamental advances in the life sciences are exerting a profound influence on the structure of the pharmaceutical industry and the strategies of drug companies. The 'biological' revolution makes it possible to apply a scientific method to drug research. This paper argues that pharmaceutical companies can take advantage of the new method only if they encourage 'openness' of their research. We also offer a framework to explain why innovations in this industry increasingly result from networks of agents with complementary skills and resources. Greater use of scientific knowledge implies that important information for innovation can be expressed in relatively general and universal forms. This eases information exchange, and encourages specialisation and division of labour in drug R&D and marketing. Finally, the possibility of a division of labour in innovation opens new opportunities for medium-sized national pharmaceutical firms in Europe. Provided that they found their strategies on high-quality research in specialised niches, they can set up alliances with partners that possess complementary knowledge, and supply resources for clinical development and international marketing.     

中国成品油市场2009年回顾与2010年展望

2009年中国宏观经济和主要用油行业增速放缓,成品油(汽油、柴油、煤油)需求增速明显下降,全年成品油表观消费量2.21亿吨,同比增长2.5%,远低于2000-2008年8.4%的平均增速,为亚洲金融危机以来最低.全年汽油表观消费量6704.9万吨,同比增长5.5%;柴油表观消费量1.39亿吨,同比下降0.2%;煤油表观消费量1497万吨,同比增长17%.2009年中国炼油工业逆势上扬,成品油产量2.28亿吨,同比增长9.4%,远高于2.5%的成品油消费增速.成品油市场由金融危机前的供应偏紧转为供应宽松.中国推出新的成品油价格形成机制,国内、国际油价联动更为密切.2010年中国宏观经济继续向好,汽油需求将保持平稳增长,柴油需求增速大幅回升,煤油需求增速回落.国内炼油能力继续扩张,成品油供应能力进一步增加.预计2010年中国成品油表观消费量2.38亿吨,同比增长7.7%;成品油产量2.43万吨,同比增长6.7%,市场仍将延续供略大于求的态势.     

产业金融事业发展的政策基石——学习《企业集团财务公司管理办法》札记

(一) 历经整整十三个年头的艰苦探索,中国产业金融事业的第一部行政法规——企业集团财务公司管理办法》(以下简称《办法》)终于问世了。这是几十家企业集团及财务公司翘盼已久的一部法规,这是中国人民银行支持国企改革和发展、为产业金融事业在即将到来的新世纪获得更快发展而铸就的一块政策基石。在财务公司发展史上,《办法》既是十三年正反经验的结晶,又是一块具有划时代意义的里程碑。企业集团财务公司是我国经济体制和金融体制改革中产生的新生事物,它根植于企业集团,为发展集团的规模经济、实现资金的优化配置、促进企业技改和产品销售、增强集团投融资功能、实现产业资本与金融资本的有机结合发挥了不     

Technological interweavement: a means of achieving innovation success

In this paper, results are presented of an empirical study of the Lake Constance region covering a sample of 848 manufacturing companies. Based upon multivariate analyses, the paper documents that the mobilization of external resources and know-how is a critical factor for a firm's technological innovation success which in turn is the main determinant of commercial innovation success. The findings show that there are three kinds of technology-oriented external relationships, which prove to be of special importance: close contacts with customers, linkages to universities and research institutes and R&D-cooperations with other companies.     

依靠科技创新才会赢 2005年度中国纺织科技表彰大会召开

目前我国已成为世界公认的纺织生产大国，消费大国和出口大国，但同时纺织行业依然面临着严峻的挑战，例如2005年大量的贸易摩擦事件的出现等等，这些警示着我们不能再单纯依赖数量和低价格取胜，而是要在科技创新，品牌建设等多方面狠下功夫。可喜的是，我国纺织企业已经根据自身的实际进行卓有成效的调整和改进，比如在科技创新方面，其重要性已经被我国纺织企业理解并接受。透过不久前召开的2005年度中国纺织科技表彰大会，我们就发现了很多在科技创新方面值得推崇的进步。     

Concerned innovation: The ebb and flow between market and society

This paper examines concerned market innovations i.e. new market configurations which integrate non-economic values and collective concerns. We focus on a specific example of concerned market innovation: the evolution over a ten-year period of a cell phone take-back scheme in a single European country. Adopting a practical constructivist perspective, we note that in the case of concerned market innovation, market configurations are shaped by non-economic values and collective concerns and that, in turn, non-economic values and collective concerns are shaped by market configurations. The analysis of market practices integrating, and at the same time, performing values and concerns, leads us to the conceptualization of a theoretical model which shows that one of the difficulties of realizing concerned market innovations resides in the distinction between market and society.     

Collective action for market chain innovation in the Andes

The Papa Andina network employs collective action in two novel approaches for fostering market chain innovation. The participatory market chain approach (PMCA) and stakeholder platforms engage small potato producers together with market agents and agricultural service providers in group activities to identify common interests, share market knowledge and develop new business opportunities. These forms of collective action have generated commercial, technological and institutional innovations, and created new market niches for Andean native potatoes grown by poor farmers in remote highland areas. These innovations have benefited small farmers as well as other market chain actors. This paper describes Papa Andina’s experiences with collective action for market chain innovation. It then discusses the implications of these experiences for the understanding of collective action and the policy implications for research and development organizations.     

The externalisation of R&D activities and the growing market of product development services

Several authors in recent years have discussed the observed trend towards the externalisation of (part of) a firm's R&D activities. As a consequence, several companies have been created that provide innovators with technical and scientific services such as R&D contracts, laboratory testing services, technology consulting, industrial design, engineering.
The paper is based upon an empirical study which consists of (i) an extensive analysis, in which information has been collected (for about two hundred companies) on size, location and type of services offered; (ii) an intensive analysis, in which one case is studied in depth of a company providing product development services. Some conclusions have been drawn regarding the characteristics of the market of product development services and the management and organisation of companies operating in that market.     

Organizing for dual strategies of product diversity and international expansion

This study examines organization structures of 37 large U.S. multinationals which are both highly diverse and heavily involved abroad. The findings show that the international division is still the most popular structure for this form of enterprise. However, Several other structures are also found to be in common use. An attempt is made to relate use of these structures to such strategic variables as extent of vertical integration, R & D intensity, level of foreign sales and method of diversifying.     

The use of information technology tools in new product development phases: Analysis of effects on new product innovativeness, quality, and market performance

Extant research has largely ignored empirically examining how information technology (IT) affects new product effectiveness. Using the knowledge-based theory as a foundation, this study examines if, and how, particular IT tools used in the discovery, development, and commercialization phases of the new product development (NPD) process influence NPD effectiveness dimensions, namely, market performance, innovativeness, and quality of a new product. Based on data collected from NPD managers in the US and Canada, the findings indicate that specific IT tools contribute to various measures of new product effectiveness differently. Moreover, the results show the positive effect of these IT tools in different phases of the NPD process. This suggests that with regard to NPD, a decompositional approach that examines the role of IT within each phase of the NPD process is best. Based on these findings, the authors discuss theoretical and managerial implications of the study and suggest paths for future research. Managerially, some interesting results of our study are that decision support systems, file transfer protocols, and concept testing tools would significantly improve NPD effectiveness regardless of the phase they are used.     

Innomediary agency and practices in shaping market innovation

In today's business world, the role of the Schumpeterian entrepreneur is dwarfed by that of the variety of market actors who co-create innovation by interacting with and integrating resources within performative practices. New actors have entered the market and changed how market innovation occurs. This study focuses on the “innomediary” as a new category of market actor. By moving beyond the mainstream research, we offer a fresh conceptualisation of innomediary agency and practices in shaping market innovation. Acting as catalysts of creativity and knowledge, innomediaries collect information, expertise, skills and experiences from a heterogeneous mass of actors, and encourage the interchange of ideas, tools, images and languages. Innomediary agency enables the deployment of four practices: 1) engaging; 2) exploring; 3) exploiting; and 4) orchestrating. Each practice involves a set of actions and resource integration.     

Supporting new product commercialization through managerial social ties and market knowledge development in an emerging economy

While it has been advocated that the generation and application of market knowledge shape marketing capabilities to commercialize new products, the weak institutional environment makes access to critical market knowledge challenging in emerging economies. Critically, managerial social ties with business and political institutions may complement the firm’s market orientation (MO) to obtain market knowledge that is not available in the open market in emerging economies. This study draws attention to the differential roles of business and political ties in complementing or inhibiting the effects of market orientation on exploratory and exploitative marketing capabilities in one of the “Next Eleven” emerging economies, Iran. The results help firms operating in emerging economies to identify the conditions under which business and political ties help to overcome institutional limitations, complement market-oriented efforts, and successfully commercialize new products.     

制药企业技术创新风险及风险控制

目的增强企业的创新风险防范意识,提高企业技术创新风险控制能力。方法对技术创新风险因子进行横向解剖,从本质上分析技术创新风险的来源及对其的控制。结果与结论我国制药企业技术创新能力比较弱,技术创新风险控制体系不健全。因此,要加大制药企业技术创新各阶段的风险控制管理力度,从而降低制药企业技术创新的主观意识风险。     

抗贫血药物产品结构与市场分析

许多人在一生中会发生贫血,尤其是肿瘤病人的促红细胞生成素的缺乏而产生贫血现象,在全球抗贫血药物和保健品已是一个不容忽视的市场。在我国尽管有着相当高的贫血发病率,而抗贫血药物仍属于医院市场中的小品种,尚未得到足够的重视。贫血中最常见的类型是失血引起的贫血和缺乏铁元素、维生素B12、叶酸所致的营养缺乏性贫血和再生障碍性贫血。     

Timing of technology adoption and product market competition

This paper examines how product market competition affects firms' timing of adopting a new technology, as well as whether the market provides sufficient adoption incentives. It demonstrates that adoption dates differ, not only among symmetric firms, but also among markets with different market features. More specifically, technology adoption can occur earlier in a market with Cournot competition than in a market with Bertrand competition. It can also occur earlier in a market in which goods are not too close substitutes. Therefore, this paper shows that competition toughness does not always reinforce adoption incentives. When goods are sufficiently differentiated, adoption occurs later than is socially optimal.     

打造电台主播虚拟形象语音玩偶 深圳捷通开创国内传媒衍生品产品市场先河

当玩具与动漫电影的合作越来越深入,对于这些互通合作的行业来说都将是一个巨大的促进。就像变形金刚、米奇老鼠、机器猫等经典玩具,既可以说是动漫成就了他们的经典,也可以说是他们促进了动漫的进一步深人人心。在国内智能玩具领域处于领先地位的深圳捷通语音技术有限公司（下称深圳捷通）,此次推出的主持人形象玩偶．正是开创了国内传媒衍生品市场的先河。     

Technological innovation of firms in China: Past, present, and future

What do we know about technological innovation of firms in China? What are the directions for future research on this topic? This paper summarizes and discusses some of the newest literature on technological innovation of firms in China in the following three ways: (1) the influence of firms?? external factors, (2) the influence of firms?? internal factors, and (3) interfirm cooperation factors. Based on the analysis of these articles, we propose a framework which highlights these influencing factors, decision-making and implementation of technological innovation and innovation performance, in the context of China??s emerging economy. This framework sheds lights on future innovation research.     

Induced innovation and agricultural development

Dr Ruttan reviews the five general models in the literature on agricultural development: the frontier, conservation, urban- industrial impact, diffusion and high pay-off input models, and finds them lacking. He outlines a model of agricultural development which treats technical change as endogenous to the development process, rather than as an exogenous factor operating independently of it. This leads to an emphasis on the strong relationship between technological and institutional change and a call for institutional innovation that will result in a more effective realisation of the new technical potential.