NPD Planning Activities and Innovation Performance: The Mediating Role of Process Management and the Moderating Effect of Product Innovativeness

The aim of this study is to investigate the effects of planning and control on the performance of new product development (NPD) projects. It is hypothesized that (1) thorough business planning at the beginning of a project creates a basis for proficient project and risk planning; (2) the proficiency of project planning, risk planning, and process management activities each improves innovation performance directly; (3) the relationship of planning and success is mediated by process management; and (4) the strength of these relationships is moderated by uncertainty, as determined by the degree of innovativeness. To test the hypotheses, data from 132 NPD projects were collected and analyzed. A measurement model was used to establish valid and reliable constructs, a path model to test the main effects, and a multiple-moderated regression analysis for the moderator hypotheses. The results suggest that the proficiency of project planning and process management is important predictors of NPD performance. Specifically, project risk planning and goal stability throughout the development process are found to enhance performance significantly. Business planning proves to be an important antecedent of the more development-related planning activities such as project planning and risk planning. Additionally, the results lend support to the hypotheses regarding the mediating role of process management in the planning–performance relationship. Project planning and risk planning support the quality of process management and thus impact NPD performance indirectly. Only to a limited extent are the strengths of these relationships moderated by the degree of innovativeness of the NPD project.     

Profitability and market share: A reflection on the functional relationship

The paper analyzes the functional relationship between profitability and market share for type of businesses in the PIMS data base. Although a linear relationship has been imposed in other studies, our result shows that empirically it seems a poor representation of the data. In addition, three observations seem to be most evident. First, small-share businesses were not per se less successful than larger business units. In the service market and the market for raw or semi-finished materials small-share businesses were just as profitable or even more profitable than larger business units. Second, some businesses were ‘stuck in the middle’, which was most evident in the service market but also in the retail and wholesale markets. Third, very large-share businesses were often less profitable. A critical market share was identified as between 65 and 70 percent. Beyond that level the ROI decreased.     

The internationalization of development policy

It has been evident for some time that the proportion of the public development aid which is distributed through multilateral channels is increasing. The causes of this process are examined in the following article which is based on the author's doctor thesis.     

Zur Frage der Kombination von Lohn-und Investitionspolitik als Stabilisierungsinstrumente

Ohne Zusammenfassung     

On the microstructure of the german export boom: Evidence from establishment panel data, 1995–2002

This paper uses an unbalanced panel data set for exporting firms from manufacturing industries in one German federal state, Lower Saxony, to investigate the microstructure of the recent export boom. Looking at data for 1995/96–2001/02 it is demonstrated that a considerable number of plants start and stop exporting in each year, but that most of the export dynamics is due to positive and negative changes of exports in plants that continue exporting. A small fraction made of 4–5 percent of all exporting plants is responsible for around 70 to 80 percent of the gross increase in exports. Firms with expanding and contracting exports are found simultaneously in all broad sectors, technology classes and firm size classes. Patterns of export behavior differ widely between the plants over the periods investigated. JEL no. F14, E32     

Modularity and intellectual property protection

Modularity is a means of partitioning technical knowledge about a product or process. When state‐sanctioned intellectual property (IP) rights are ineffective or costly to enforce, modularity can be used to hide information and thus protect IP. We investigate the impact of modularity on IP protection by formally modeling the threat of expropriation by agents. The principal has three options to address this threat: trust, licensing, and paying agents to stay loyal. We show how the principal can influence the value of these options by modularizing the system and by hiring clans of agents, thus exploiting relationships among them. Extensions address screening and signaling in hiring, the effects of an imperfect legal system, and social norms of fairness. We illustrate our arguments with examples from practice.© 2014 The Authors. Strategic Management Journal published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.