Marketing’s limited role in new product development in one computer systems firm

Question 1

What is “Workman, J. P. (1993). Marketing’s limited role in new product development in one computer systems firm” about?

Answer 1

Workman’s study examines the role of marketing in new product development (NPD) within a high-tech firm (referred to as “Zytek”) and identifies reasons for its limited influence. Unlike consumer goods industries, where marketing typically leads product development, Zytek’s NPD is engineering-driven, with marketing playing a supportive but secondary role. The study aims to uncover the reasons behind marketing’s limited role and explore how marketing professionals try to exert influence within this context.

Question 2

What is the Traditional Role of Marketing in NPD?

Answer 2

Marketing is generally seen as integral to understanding customer needs, which is central to developing successful products. In consumer goods, marketing usually defines product specifications and drives the NPD process to ensure customer alignment.

Question 3

What are the Challenges in High-Tech NPD?

Answer 3

In technology-focused firms like Zytek, engineering and technical knowledge dominate. High-tech firms often prioritize technological advancements over direct market research, leading to a “technology-push” rather than a “market-pull” approach in product development.

Question 4

What are the managerial implications of “Workman, J. P. (1993). Marketing’s limited role in new product development in one computer systems firm”?

Answer 4

1. Strengthening Cross-Functional Ties:
   o Managers should encourage cross-functional collaboration by placing marketing personnel within engineering teams or appointing product managers with technical expertise who understand both customer needs and engineering constraints.
2. Building Credibility:
   o Firms should prioritize recruiting marketing professionals with technical backgrounds or providing technical training for marketers. This approach can help marketing establish credibility with engineers, enabling better integration of customer insights.
3. Flexible and Adaptive Processes:
   o High-tech firms should adopt flexible NPD processes that allow for both technological exploration and periodic integration of market feedback. This balance can prevent rigid, engineering-dominated structures that may overlook customer needs.
4. Empowering Customer-Focused Roles:
   o Formalizing customer-focused roles within engineering departments, such as product advocates or customer liaisons, could help bridge the gap between market needs and technical innovation without shifting control away from engineering.

Question 5

What is the conclusion of “Workman, J. P. (1993). Marketing’s limited role in new product development in one computer systems firm”?

Answer 5

Workman’s study highlights the unique challenges and adaptive strategies for marketing in high-tech firms where engineering holds dominant control over NPD. By examining Zytek, the research provides a nuanced understanding of how marketing can navigate an engineering-centric culture to influence product outcomes. Although formal power is limited, marketing’s informal networks, advocacy, and post-launch adaptation efforts allow it to inject customer insights into the NPD process. This study suggests that high-tech firms may need to rethink the traditional “market-driven” model of NPD, instead adopting a flexible structure that accommodates both technological exploration and customer feedback.

Question 6

What are the limitations of “Workman, J. P. (1993). Marketing’s limited role in new product development in one computer systems firm”?

Answer 6

1. Single-Firm Study:
   o As the research focuses solely on Zytek, additional studies across various high-tech firms are needed to validate these findings and determine if the limitations on marketing’s role are unique to Zytek or more widely applicable.
2. Internal Markets and Resource Competition:
   o Future studies could examine how marketing and engineering compete for resources within firms and the impact of these dynamics on NPD outcomes, particularly in rapidly evolving industries.
3. Organizational Learning:
   o Further research could explore how firms manage knowledge sharing between departments to align technological innovation with evolving customer needs, as well as how marketing can contribute to organizational learning in high-tech firms.

Question 7

What are the implications for Marketing in High-Tech firms?

Answer 7

1. Shift from Initiation to Support:
   o Workman finds that in high-tech environments, marketing’s role is less about initiating product concepts and more about supporting and refining technology-driven ideas. Marketing helps adapt products to market needs rather than defining those needs upfront, a reversal from typical consumer goods practices.
2. Role of Informal Influence:
   o Networking and Credibility: Marketing can influence engineering through informal relationships and by building credibility with technical teams. Marketing personnel with technical knowledge are better able to build trust with engineers, allowing them to communicate customer needs more effectively.
3. Marketing as a Customer Advocate:
   o Marketing’s limited formal power at Zytek means its role is primarily to advocate for the customer perspective in NPD discussions. This advocacy is crucial but must be done tactfully to avoid resistance from engineering.
4. Implications for High-Tech NPD:
   o The study suggests that in high-tech firms, NPD may benefit from viewing marketing not as a directive force but as a supportive, adaptive role that provides customer insights without obstructing the technology-focused innovation process.