Summary: The Impact Of Cross-Functional Joint Involvement Across Product Development Stages

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• 1 Introduction

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• What does the contingency approach suggest?

  Under some conditions, NPD activities may be performed more effectively and efficiently by personnel within departments without requiring cross-functional involvement.

• What are the primary advantages of cross-functional integration?

  1. Improvement of horizontal communication linkages
  2. Interfunctional dependencies can be handled through direct information transfers between functions, thus increasing efficiency.
     
  3. Frequent communication and exposure to a variety of perspectives also stimulate creativity and increase the likelihood of generating valuable new knowledge, and in turn increase the likelihood of producing more successful new products.

• What are disadvantages of cross-functional integration?

  
  

  1. Violates two classic management principles (authority should equal responsibility, and every subordinate should be assigned to a single manager)
     
  2. Introduces conflict at an individual level
     
  3. Stress from conflict in cross-functional relationships can disrupt work patterns and consume an inordinate amount of time for those involved
     
  4. Costly
     
  5. Management of interface can be difficult
     

• Why do cross-functional teams violate two classic management principles (authority should equal responsibility, and every subordinate should be assigned to a single manager)?

  Complicating the relationship between functional areas and increasing organizational conflict

• Why introduce cross-functional teams conflict at an individual level?

  Diverse backgrounds lead to conflicting expectations and an excess of demands on individuals

• Why do cross-functional teams stress from conflict in cross-functional relationships can disrupt work patterns and consume an inordinate amount of time for those involved?

  Decreased productivity and poor decision-making

• Why are cross-functional teams costly?

  Many meetings are required to facilitate information flows, and reaching a consensus on decisions made across functions can take considerable time

• Why can by cross-functional teams management of interface can be difficult?

  Requires managers with special training to coordinate the complex process of developing a product with such a diverse set of individuals

• What is the type of joint involvement?

  
  

  • Joint involvement between different pairs of function
    
  • Specialization determines the role of each function as a particular type of information source
    

• What is the nature of the relationship between crossfunctional integration and NPD performance?

  
  

  • Positive effect of integration on NPD performance.
    
  • Measure of the effect of cross-functional integration at an aggregate level rather than based on functions: Overall benefits of integration outweigh costs in the NPD process.
    
  • Different pairs of functions for each innovation stage: benefits of some types of joint involvement may be higher than the costs in certain stages, while in others the costs may be higher than the benefits.