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The purpose of this study is to examine the impact of the standardization of the new product development (NPD) process on its efficiency. A dilemma exists with regard to determining to what extent NPD processes should be standardized, in order to not hinder the operators during the performance of NPD process and consequently, weaken it. The case analysis for this study was carried out at a company whose process development has been standardized for a decade and has undergone several degrees of standardization. Quantitative and qualitative research methods were applied in the study. A regression method was used for quantitative research in order to study the effects of selected dependent and independent variables; using qualitative analysis, we supported the findings of the quantitative analysis. The results of the analysis indicate that the standardization of the NPD process does have an impact on its efficiency. From the obtained results, it may also be concluded that a very high degree of standardization begins to reduce the efficiency of the NPD process.

PurposeThis study develops a conceptualization of NPD (new product development) complexity and explores how inter-organizational collaboration and conflict influence NPD performance.Design/methodology/approachAn empirical examination tests the proposed relationships in the context of Korean manufacturing firms, which currently engage in NPD projects with their key partners. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to examine the hypotheses.FindingsThe findings suggest that a higher level of NPD complexity simultaneously calls for inter-organizational collaboration and conflict, and these two factors influence NPD performance in a conflicting manner: inter-organizational collaboration serves as a driver, and inter-organizational conflict acts as a barrier against NPD performance.Originality/valueThis study provides answers to the academic and practical calls by providing how NPD complexity should be managed in a way to increase NPD performance. This study provides insight into how manufacturing firms form inter-organizational collaboration practices and why they need to mitigate inter-organizational conflict.

The programmed cell death 1 ligand 1 (PD‐L1)/programmed cell death protein 1 (PD‐1) axis is primarily associated with immunosuppression in cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs). However, mounting evidence is supporting the thesis that PD‐L1 not only functions as a ligand but mediates additional cellular functions in tumor cells. Moreover, it has been demonstrated that PD‐L1 is not exclusively localized at the cellular membrane. Subcellular fractionation revealed the presence of PD‐L1 in various cellular compartments of six well‐characterized head and neck cancer (HNC) cell lines, including the nucleus. Via Western blotting, we detected PD‐L1 in its well‐known glycosylated/deglycosylated state at 40–55 kDa. In addition, we detected previously unknown PD‐L1 variants with a molecular weight at approximately 70 and > 150 kDa exclusively in nuclear protein fractions. These in vitro findings were confirmed with primary tumor samples from head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) patients. Furthermore, we demonstrated that nuclear PD‐L1 variant expression is cell‐cycle‐dependent. Immunofluorescence staining of PD‐L1 in different cell cycle phases of synchronized HNC cells supported these observations. Mechanisms of nuclear PD‐L1 trafficking remain less understood; however, proximity ligation assays showed a cell‐cycle‐dependent interaction of the cytoskeletal protein vimentin with PD‐L1, whereas vimentin could serve as a potential shuttle for nuclear PD‐L1 transportation. Mass spectrometry after PD‐L1 co‐immunoprecipitation, followed by gene ontology analysis, indicated interaction of nuclear PD‐L1 with proteins involved in DNA remodeling and messenger RNA (mRNA) splicing. Our results in HNC cells suggest a highly complex regulation of PD‐L1 and multiple tumor cell‐intrinsic functions, independent of immune regulation. These observations bear significant implications for the therapeutic efficacy of immune checkpoint inhibition. Both the membrane and nucleus of head and neck cancer cells express PD‐L1. PD‐L1 is translocated from the membrane into the nucleus via vimentin. We detected high‐molecular‐weight PD‐L1 variants in the nucleus. Their expression is cell‐cycle‐dependent and involves interaction with proteins related to DNA remodeling and mRNA splicing. Multimerization likely causes PD‐L1's high weight in cancer patient tumors.

•A GC–NPD method was applied for the analysis of 54 samples seized by the Brazilian Federal Police.•The adulterants levamisol, lidocaine, caffeine, phenacetin and 4-dimethylaminoantipyrine were identified in the samples.•The large variation in cocaine concentrations found in seized samples may pose risks to user's health. Here, gas chromatography with nitrogen phosphorous detector (GC–NPD) method was developed and validated for the quantification of cocaine and adulterants (caffeine, 4-dimethylaminoantipyrine, levamisole, lidocaine and phenacetin) in illicit samples. The method was based on direct dilution of samples in methanol, sonication for 5min and centrifugation. After appropriate dilution, an aliquot was injected into GC–MS in order to identify the active compounds and into GC–NPD for the analytes quantification. Bupivacaine was used as an internal standard. The method showed to be precise, accurate and linear over a range of 0.5–100% (weight/weight percentages) for all analytes, except phenacetin which showed a linear range between 2% and 100%. The method was successfully applied to 54 samples seized by the Brazilian Federal Police in the International Airport of Sao Paulo and mailing services during the year 2011. All the samples were associated with international trafficking and were apprehended while leaving the country. The purity of cocaine ranged from 16.5% to 91.4%. Cocaine was the only detected active compound in 29.6% of total samples. Among the identified cutting agents, levamisole was the most abundant (55.6% of the total samples) and relative concentrations (weight/weight percentages) ranged from 0.7% to 23%. Lidocaine, caffeine, phenacetin and 4-dimethylaminoantipyrine were also identified in these samples in minor concentrations. In contrast with what we initially hypothesized, drugs intended to international trafficking did not present high cocaine purity and most of the samples were laced with adulterants before leaving Brazil.

Many organizations are increasingly investing in building dynamic capabilities to gain competitive advantage. New products play an important role in gaining competitive advantage and can significantly boost organizational performance. Although new product development (NPD) is widely recognized as a potentially vital source of competitive advantage, organizations face challenges in terms of developing the right antecedents or capabilities to influence NPD performance. Our research suggests that organizations should invest in building alliance management capability (AMC), big data analytics capability (BDAC) and information visibility (IV) to achieve their desired NPD success. Informed by the dynamic capabilities view of the firm (DCV) we have stated seven research hypotheses. We further tested our hypotheses using 219 usable respondents gathered using a pre-tested instrument. The hypotheses were tested using variance based structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM). The results of our study paint an interesting picture. Our study makes some significant contribution to the DCV and offers some useful directions to practitioners engaged in NPD in the big data analytics era. We demonstrate that AMC and BDAC are lower-order dynamic capabilities and that AMC has a positive and significant influence on BDAC. In turn, AMC and BDAC influence NPD under the moderating influence of IV. Ours is one of the first studies to empirically establish an association among three distinct dynamic capabilities which are often considered in isolation: AMC, BDAC and NPD. Our findings support emergent views on dynamic capabilities and their classification into various orders. Lastly, we provide empirical evidence that information visibility acts as a contingent variable to both AMC and BDAC effects on NPD. We end our paper by outlining some limitations of our study and by offering useful future research directions.

PurposePrevious studies focus on the direct effects of marketing analytics on entrepreneurial performance, but few explore the underlying mechanisms. Drawing on affordance theory, this study explores pathways through new product innovation (NPI) for the effects of marketing analytics on business performance. NPI is a market-based innovation concept comprising customer- and competitor-driven NPD and incremental innovation.Design/methodology/approachUsing survey data collected from UK-based entrepreneurial firms operating in the IT and telecoms industries, we apply confirmatory factor analysis and a sequential structural equation model to test the mediating role of NPI in the effect of marketing analytics on market performance and financial performance.FindingsThe results show that marketing analytics enhances business performance through competitor-driven but not customer-driven NPD. Although using marketing analytics to generate customer knowledge for existing product innovation may enhance market performance, this positive effect becomes negative when competitor-driven NPD is undertaken to improve existing product innovation.Originality/valueThis study makes significant contributions to the innovation and NPD literature. It delves deeper into the existing view on the positive contributions of customer engagement to business value creation, revealing the significance of competitor knowledge to enhance business performance through marketing analytics, particularly in the context of IT and telecoms entrepreneurial firms.

Artificial intelligence by principle is developed to assist but also support decision making processes. In our study, we explore how information retrieved from social media can assist decision-making processes for new product development (NPD). We focus on consumers’ emotions that are expressed through social media and analyse the variations of their sentiments in all the stages of NPD. We collect data from Twitter that reveal consumers’ appreciation of aspects of the design of a newly launched model of an innovative automotive company. We adopt the sensemaking approach coupled with the use of fuzzy logic for text mining. This combinatory methodological approach enables us to retrieve consensus from the data and to explore the variations of sentiments of the customers about the product and define the polarity of these emotions for each of the NPD stages. The analysis identifies sensemaking patterns in Twitter data and explains the NPD process and the associated steps where the social interactions from customers can have an iterative role. We conclude the paper by outlining an agenda for future research in the NPD process and the role of the customer opinion through sensemaking mechanisms.

Drawing on social exchange theory, this study develops a longitudinal theoretical framework of supplier participation in buyers’ new product development (NPD) activities. The study focuses on the longitudinal temporal dynamics of supplier involvement in buyers’ new product development and postulates that working relations and inter-dependence impact suppliers’ attitudes toward co-innovation and suppliers’ co-innovation behaviors. Applying this framework to a 10-year longitudinal dataset from the North American automotive industry, the drivers of the escalation of supplier involvement in buyers’ NPD over time and the effect of this involvement on innovation performance, buyer sales performance, and supplier sales performance are identified. The results indicate that buyer–supplier communication, suppliers’ anticipated long-term returns, suppliers’ trust of a buyer, and supplier–buyer inter-dependence all play a significant role in changing supplier attitudes toward co-innovation and supplier involvement in a buyer’s NPD. Further, the study also shows that supplier involvement in buyer new product development is mutually beneficial for both the buyer and the supplier as it increases performance of both parties. Performance returns are actually greater for suppliers than for buyers. As such, this study contributes to both relationship management and new product development literature streams, as well as providing practical direction to manufacturers as to how they can increase suppliers’ involvement in their NPD to benefit both parties.

Sensory evaluation plays an important role in New Product Development (NPD) in food industry. In the present study, the current trends of using sensory evaluation in NPD in the food industry in countries that belong to EIT Regional Innovation Scheme (RIS) were identified. The research was conducted in the first quarter of 2020. Computer assisted self-interviewing (CASI) technique for survey data collection was used. The sample included 122 respondents representing RIS countries that are the EU Member States and European Horizon 2020 Associated Countries that are classified as modest and moderate innovators according to European Innovation Scoreboard. The analysis presented in the paper allowed to describe the methods of sensory evaluation that can be used to support NPD in the food industry, identify the trends of using sensory evaluation in NPD in the food industry companies in RIS countries. The research results showed that almost 70% of companies apply sensory evaluation methods in NPD. The larger the company, the more often the methods of sensory evaluation are used in NPDs. Almost 60% of companies employing 51–100, 101–1000 and more than 5000 people, respectively declare the use of expert (analytical) test. However, regardless of size, most companies prefer consumer (affective) test to expert tests. Based on the results, it seems that the potential of usage sensory evaluation methods is not yet fully exploited in the food industry.