Date of Award

2013

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

PhD in Business

Department

Department of Management

First Advisor

Euthemia Stavrulaki

Second Advisor

Dominique Haughton

Third Advisor

Marcus Fitza

Fourth Advisor

Gloria Barczak

Abstract

This dissertation conducts an inquiry into the linkages between new product development and supply chain management. Simchi Levi, Simchi-Levi and Kaminsky (2008) coined the term "Development Chain" for the area where product development and the supply chain intersect. The first chapter of this research (Chapter 2) contributes to a more thorough understanding of the Development Chain (DC) and its impact on financial success with new products. We expand the term Development Chain and provide precise definitions for its scope and its activities. We develop a conceptual view of the DC at the single product/project level which can be understood and applied by academics and practitioners. Chapter 3 studies the impact of the intensity of linkages between sub-processes of the DC on performance. We conceptualize linkages between sub-processes in Product Development (PD) and the Supply Chain (SC) as key problem-solving enablers and we postulate that more intense or participative linkages improve problem solving as they equate to a higher, more diverse exchange and application of vital problem-solving inputs (ideas, knowledge and information). Using a network perspective, we measure the intensity of linkages at three different levels: (1) at the dyadic level between sub-processes, (2) at the level of interwoven, complex linkages between multiple sub-processes that are problem-solving sites and (3) at the aggregate-level where the two domains connect. We find support that, at the aggregate level, more intense connections is not always better (i.e., does not lead to financial success), confirming the tension between PD productivity and higher levels of problem solving. However, we also empirically detect the presence of 5 critical dyadic linkages and 2 complex problem-solving sites that improve product success. Chapter 4 is concerned with a product centric view of DC linkages and alignment of decisions during product development. We develop a conceptual model and conduct empirical tests on three hypotheses for alignment. We find that alignment between product architecture and sourcing or order fulfillment strategies can raise the probability of product success by 55 and 69 percent, respectively. Additionally, we find that the firm-level product success rate positively correlates with alignment between clock-speed and product architecture.

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