As pequenas empresas vêm ganhando destaque no contexto econômico brasileiro dado o importante papel que desempenham. Dentre estas empresas, destacam-se as pequenas empresas de base tecnológica (PEBTs), as quais são caracterizadas por focalizar a estratégia competitiva na inovação, participar ativamente das mudanças tecnológicas e atuar como fornecedores em diferentes cadeias produtivas. O processo de desenvolvimento de produtos (PDP) representa o conjunto de atividades pela qual as informações sobre o mercado são transformadas em requisitos de produto. É um processo complexo e com um elevado grau de incertezas. Grande parte da literatura sobre o tema está relacionada com o contexto das grandes empresas, entretanto, uma série de particularidades torna a realidade das pequenas empresas bastante diferente. Sendo assim, o objetivo deste trabalho é explorar as particularidades do PDP das PEBTs. Foi conduzido um levantamento dos fatores críticos de sucesso de PEBTs através de uma pesquisa qualitativa. Na sequência, foi realizado um mapeamento de artigos publicados em periódicos internacionais, entre os anos de 2002 e 2011, sobre a velocidade do PDP. Por fim, foi efetuado um estudo quantitativo para identificar associações entre as melhores práticas de gestão e os problemas mais frequentes encontrado no PDP destas empresas. / Small businesses are gaining prominence in the brazilian economic context given the important role they play. Among these firms, there are the small high technology companies, which are characterized by the competitive strategy focused on innovation, by the actively participation in technological changes and as suppliers in different production chains. The new product development (NPD) is a set of activities in which information about the market are transformed into product requirements. It is a complex process with a high degree of uncertainty. Most part of the literature on the topic is related to the large companies context, however, a variety of particularities makes the reality of small firms quite different. Therefore, the aim of this work is to explore the particularities of the NPD small high technology firms. It was conducted a survey of critical success factors through qualitative research. Further, a research mapping the articles published in international journals, between the years of 2002 and 2011, about the speed of the NPD. Finally, a quantitative study was conducted to identify associations between best management practices and most common problems found in the NPD of these companies.

As pequenas empresas vêm ganhando destaque no contexto econômico brasileiro dado o importante papel que desempenham. Dentre estas empresas, destacam-se as pequenas empresas de base tecnológica (PEBTs), as quais são caracterizadas por focalizar a estratégia competitiva na inovação, participar ativamente das mudanças tecnológicas e atuar como fornecedores em diferentes cadeias produtivas. O processo de desenvolvimento de produtos (PDP) representa o conjunto de atividades pela qual as informações sobre o mercado são transformadas em requisitos de produto. É um processo complexo e com um elevado grau de incertezas. Grande parte da literatura sobre o tema está relacionada com o contexto das grandes empresas, entretanto, uma série de particularidades torna a realidade das pequenas empresas bastante diferente. Sendo assim, o objetivo deste trabalho é explorar as particularidades do PDP das PEBTs. Foi conduzido um levantamento dos fatores críticos de sucesso de PEBTs através de uma pesquisa qualitativa. Na sequência, foi realizado um mapeamento de artigos publicados em periódicos internacionais, entre os anos de 2002 e 2011, sobre a velocidade do PDP. Por fim, foi efetuado um estudo quantitativo para identificar associações entre as melhores práticas de gestão e os problemas mais frequentes encontrado no PDP destas empresas. / Small businesses are gaining prominence in the brazilian economic context given the important role they play. Among these firms, there are the small high technology companies, which are characterized by the competitive strategy focused on innovation, by the actively participation in technological changes and as suppliers in different production chains. The new product development (NPD) is a set of activities in which information about the market are transformed into product requirements. It is a complex process with a high degree of uncertainty. Most part of the literature on the topic is related to the large companies context, however, a variety of particularities makes the reality of small firms quite different. Therefore, the aim of this work is to explore the particularities of the NPD small high technology firms. It was conducted a survey of critical success factors through qualitative research. Further, a research mapping the articles published in international journals, between the years of 2002 and 2011, about the speed of the NPD. Finally, a quantitative study was conducted to identify associations between best management practices and most common problems found in the NPD of these companies.

Um dos grandes desafios das empresas para maximizarem sua capacidade de inovação, necessidade preemente nos dias atuais, é o desenvolvimento de mecanismos que proporcionem a obtenção da complementaridade de competências entre duas ou mais empresas (MOFFAT; GERWIN; MEISTER, 1997). Entre estes mecanismos encontram-se as alianças estratégicas para o desenvolvimento de novos produtos, fenômeno relativamente recente e que já pode ser considerado como tendência nas decisões de pesquisa e desenvolvimento (P&D). O foco do presente trabalho é a análise destas alianças estratégicas, através do estudo da teoria já existente, fazendo surgir reflexões importantes e gerando novas contribuições. O escopo do estudo é, sem dúvida, a questão organizacional, em uma visão macro, permitindo uma análise sistêmica do fenômeno. Muitos trabalhos trazem separadamente temas acerca das alianças estratégicas para o desenvolvimento de novos produtos. Surge com isso, como conseqüência, a oportunidade de estruturação desses elementos, aparentemente dispersos, em uma síntese teórica ou estrutura conceitual, o que possibilita uma compreensão mais profunda do tema. Além disso, é feita uma organização e estudo das variáveis existentes no fenômeno para contribuir com as decisões acerca da forma organizacional mais adequada às alianças / One of the great challenges of the companies to maximize its capability of innovation, an urgent necessity in current days, is the development of mechanisms that allow the complementing of competences between two or more companies (MOFFAT; GERWIN; MEISTER, 1997). One of these mechanisms is the strategic alliances for new product development, a relatively recent phenomenon and one that already can be considered as a trend in research and development (R&D) decisions. The focus of the present work is the analysis of these strategic alliances, through the study of the existing theory, causing important reflections to emerge and generating new contributions. The scope of the study is, with no doubt, the organizational problem, in a macro viewpoint, which makes possible a systemic analysis of the phenomenon. Many papers separately bring subjects concerning the strategic alliances for new product development. That brings the opportunity to structure these elements, apparently dispersed, in a theoretical synthesis or conceptual structure, which makes possible a deeper understanding of the subject. Moreover, the existing variables in the phenomenon are studied and organized, so that this contributes to arrive at the decisions concerning the most suitable organizational format for the alliances.

Esta pesquisa investigou quatro empresas multinacionais brasileiras em busca de suas práticas na gestão do portfólio de projetos de novos produtos. Por meio de um estudo multicaso, a pesquisa abrangeu diversos aspectos dessa gestão, tais como estratégia para novos produtos e tecnologias; mecanismos de identificação de oportunidades e fontes de idéias para novos produtos; estrutura e recursos de engenharia e P&D; técnicas preferidas para análise, seleção e priorização de projetos; mecanismos de acompanhamento no desenvolvimento dos novos produtos e revisão do portfólio. Um conjunto de práticas de gestão foi identificado e comparado a quatro modelos teóricos, o que levou à conclusão que as empresas gerenciam seu portfólio de forma heterogênea. Mesmo assim, tais práticas produzem como resultado final uma importante vantagem competitiva e podem auxiliar outras empresas na busca pela excelência na gestão da inovação por meio da gestão do seu portfólio de projetos de novos produtos. Ainda que não seja possível generalizar as conclusões acerca dos casos, os resultados apontam diversas intersecções entre as práticas encontradas nas empresas e os modelos teóricos, convergindo para um conjunto comum de práticas gerenciais que podem favorecer o desempenho de outras organizações, além de contribuir com subsídios para futuras pesquisas. / This research has investigated four Brazilian multinational companies looking for their most used practices in managing their portfolio of new product projects. To accomplish this goal, a multi-case study was undertaken. Several aspects of the new products portfolio management were explored, such as product innovation strategy; R&D structure and resources; opportunities seizing mechanisms and sources for new product ideas; preferred project evaluation and selection techniques; decision makers\' preferences and profiles; new product development measures and portfolio periodic revision. Based on this investigation, a set of practices was identified and compared to four theoretical models. It was found that the companies manage their portfolio in heterogeneous ways. However, such practices contribute to the overall innovation in the companies and produce a substantial competitive advantage. Indeed, such practices can also help other companies in achieving new products portfolio management excellence. Although the conclusions that followed through can not be generalized to a management model, the results can substantially aid other companies in leveraging their portfolio management performance and also be a relevant contribution for future research.

A practice of applying of Product Service System (PSS)—Xinmade.com is demonstrated by a business plan and this paper discusses about using Crowdsourcing in the traditional New Product Development (NPD). Finally tips of applying Crowdsourcing in PSS are summarized.

INNOFACTURE - innovative manufacturing development

The content of this Master’s thesis is an analysis of selected development project and its implementation, ie. activities regarding the preparation and realization of the development of a new product. Its purpose is to assess weak points, resources or issues appearing during the progress of the project. The proposal to eliminate these issues has been created based on this analysis considering the project efficiency.

Companies are pressured by dynamic markets and the increase of innovation speed, technology change and shortening of product life cycles. They need to attend to customer demands and ever-changing environmental conditions, policies and regulations set by governments and institutions in order to stay relevant on the market and be allowed to operate. Innovation has therefore become a must and the innovation processes are a central part of companies’ operations. Futures studies is presented as a systematic way of studying the future that can contribute to a better understanding of the needed direction of innovations. The aim of the study is to investigate how futures studies can be embodied in the innovation process of manufacturing companies in the industry of rail and road vehicles. The structure of an innovation process within the industry of rail and road vehicles is summarized to consist of three different phases: the fuzzy-front-end, the development and the maintenance. The innovation process is further divided by the components of the product and during the entire process there are decision points to evaluate the projects. The organizational aspects which are considered to have the most influence on the innovation process concern the company environment and internal knowledge sharing. Futures studies are moderately performed at different stages of the innovation process and levels of the organization, mainly at corporate level and in the fuzzy-front-end. The people involved in these activities are solely employees from the company in question and the main issue found regarding the activities of futures studies is that the results of the foresight are not communicated properly across the company. Two ways in which futures studies can be embodied in the innovation process are identified to create more high-quality ideas and to tune the product during the process according to the future market, with a third way ensuring alignment with corporate level.  A recommendation is presented consisting of a scenario workshop which enables for futures studies to be embodied in the innovation process of manufacturing companies. Activities and pointers for prior, during and after the workshop are presented. The results of the workshop will further be embodied in the innovation process in three different ways, in the beginning, alongside and as a basis for the corporate strategy.

This study examines how the organizational structure affects New Product Development (NPD) in mature companies that enter a fast-growing phase. A case study with interviews and a workshop was conducted in a company in south of Sweden in addition to studying the current literature. This company is currently experiencing fast growth and is therefore facing new challenges. The fast growth in the recent years has affected the NPD processes, organizational structure, culture, and communication according to its employees. The literature argues that there must be a balance between the NPD and organizational structure to ensure performance. Each organization must have a structure that complements the NPD processes to maintain high performance.   Furthermore, communication affects NPD projects' performance, and for organizations experiencing fast growth, communication has an even more significant effect on performance. Mature organizations tend to hold on to existing organizational structures and processes, which can become troublesome when entering a fast-growing phase, as fast-growing companies need to invest in the future. As the research is lacking regarding fast-growing companies, this in-depth study explores the correlation between NPD, organizational structure, communication and culture for fast-growing companies. This case study found that the internal culture positively impacts innovation, along with the need to modify the organizational structure and NPD processes as it grows, and when growing fast, communication plays a vital role. In conclusion, we can see an interconnection between organizational structure, culture, and communication, for facilitating NPD performance, where communication is the red thread that facilitates or hinders, depending on its quality.

Many companies depend on their innovation capabilities to increase sales in an increasinglycompetitive market. This affects the companies’ R&D departments, which have to identify and develop new products that the market demands. However, even though new product development has been a well-researched area, there is still a gap between theory and practice regarding how to implement efficient new product development processes. Therefore, this study has investigated how the outcomes of new product development projects can be more  consistent. Particularly, the study has focused on how project governance of new product development can be improved. This investigation has been done by conducting a case study of six new product development projects at Sandvik Materials Technology in Sandviken, Sweden, a world-leading manufacturer of high-value added steel products. The results indicate that new product development at Sandvik Materials Technology works well, however there is still room for improvement. The findings suggest that in order to improve the consistency of the project outcomes, education in the process and workshops are needed. Furthermore, roles and responsibilities should be more specific and a structure for how to handle projects in the matrix organization has to be implemented. The findings of this study have implications both on the theoretical and practical aspect. Regarding the theoretical aspect, the findings provide additional data in a well-researched area  that still has a knowledge gap between literature and practice. Furthermore, from a theoretical point of view, the findings show how a world-leading manufacturer can improve the consistency of its new product development project outcomes. / Många av dagens företag måste förlita sig på sin produktutveckling för att öka försäljningen på enalltmer konkurrensutsatt marknad. Detta påverkar företagens forskning- och utvecklingsavdelningar som måste identifiera och utveckla produkter som marknaden efterfrågar. Trots att produktutveckling är ett väl utforskat område finns det ett gap mellan de teoretiska modeller och den praktiska implementeringen av dem. Denna studie har därför studerat hur resultatet av produktutvecklingsprojekt kan förbättras. Mer specifikt har denna studie fokuserat på hur styrningen av produktutvecklingsprojekt kan bli bättre. En fallstudie på sex produktutvecklingsprojekt i Sandvik Materials Technology, en världsledande tillverkare av högt förädlade stålprodukter, i Sandviken, Sverige har bidragit till empirin. Resultatet indikerar att produktutvecklingen på Sandvik Materials Technology fungerar bra, däremot finns det utrymme för förbättringar. Förbättringarna gäller framförallt utbildning i processerna, workshops, förtydliga roller och ansvar och en tydlig struktur för hur produktutvecklingsprojekt ska hanteras i matrisorganisationen. Studien kommer att bidra till teorin genom empiri i form av en fallstudie. Denna fallstudie kan tillsammans med andra studier fylla gapet mellan teoretiska projektmodeller och den praktiska implementeringen av dem. Denna studie kommer även att bidra till en förbättring av Sandvik Materials Technologys produktutvecklingsprojekt.