1,721,015 research outputs found
Introduction to The International Dimension of Entrepreneurial Decision-Making: Cultures, Contexts, and Behaviours
No full textThis chapter introduces the content of the book, presenting the key
insights from the contributed chapters. The book comprises 11 diverse and insightful
contributions from nine different countries
Agile beyond software-In search of flexibility in a wide range of innovation projects and industries
No full text“At its heart, an agile approach has little to do with software; it’s all about recognizing and applying feedback.” These are the words of Andrew Hunt, one of 17 authors of the Agile manifesto, which in 2001 initiated revolutionary changes in the way new software is developed and delivered [1]. Yet, the large majority of empirical studies on the effective use of Agile principles and methods has exclusively focused on the IT industry. Little is known about the application of Agile in non-software innovation contexts [2], [3].
This is a significant missed opportunity from a theoretical and practical standpoint. Agile has brought major productivity gains and has consistently enhanced the time, cost and quality performance of software development projects [4]. It’s a framework that helps innovators cope with the growing uncertainty and turbulence in technological and market environments [5]–[7]. Feedback and change are at the core of Agile for a dynamic, evolving, and organic, rather than static, predefined, and mechanistic development process[8]. To create timely, high-quality, and cost efficient innovations, Agile developers organized in small, co-located, autonomous teams, build and test software in rapid iterative cycles, actively involving users to gather feedback, updating the project scope and plan “on-the-fly”, using face-to-face communication as opposed to documentation [9].
Shortly after its introduction, Boehm and Turner [10] introduced the concept of Agile’s home ground, referring to the project conditions that are most favorable for this framework: small, non-critical, in-house projects with changing requirements but stable architecture [11]. Recent studies however report a growing trend of applying Agile methods outside its narrow “sweetspot”, to contexts that were the home turf of traditional, linear, plan-driven Stage-Gate/Watefall models [12], [13]. Mangalaraj et al. [14] suggest that developers increasingly perceive Agile as a viable approach across all innovation projects. Yet, this discussion is still mostly confined in the IT field.
What about projects that create new products which include no software or for which software is only a part? What about non-IT industries? Answers to these questions are few, and mostly based on anecdotal evidence. More research-based insights are needed. Transferring Agile concepts is not trivial due to the different nature of purely digital vis-à-vis physical products. Modern products are typically complex systems with many interacting components belonging to several technical domains. Unlike software, hardware development is more difficult to break into small chunks and so to organize in rapid iterations; it requires cross-functional teams that connect to departments that work very differently, are often geographically dispersed, and so harder to synchronize [15]. Tangible products have longer development cycles and cost more to prototype. The typical duration of Agile sprints is too fast for hardware developers to make meaningful progress and deliver a working prototype for user testing and the resultant collection of realistic feedback [3]. These and other attributes may indeed restrict and/or complicate the adoption of Agile methods outside software.
Scholars have tentatively explored recipes to overcome these obstacles: the adaptation of specific Agile practices to non-IT environments, e.g., modifying the definition of “done sprints” or introducing the concept of “protocepts” (the hardware version of a “shippable product” required at the end of sprints), while maintaining Agile values and principles unchanged [15]; the coexistence of flexible and traditional frameworks in the same organization, and so the adoption of Agile-Stage-Gate hybrids [16]; the evolution of Agile principles to account for all types of innovation projects, outputs and industries.
Most scholars believe that Agile will continue expanding its boundaries. Progress in prototyping and other technologies (e.g., 3D printing and virtual simulation) as well as in management thinking, through smarter ways to modularize and rapidly test complex systems (e.g., smoke tests, pretendo-types and minimum viable products) [17] will promote the growing applicability of this still relatively young and malleable framework. The examples of long-lived manufacturing and service companies adopting Agile such SAAB, 3M, Bosch and ING Direct [18] preliminarily support of this prediction.
The aim of this special issue is thus to spur and develop high-quality research in the emerging field of Agile management beyond the software industry. The special issue intends to offer an holistic and rigorous assessment of the current state of the art in the application of Agile principles, methods and tools for the development of a wide range of new products and services; to identify opportunities for future research, and to contribute building a community of scholars from different fields, e.g., project management, innovation management, new product development, entrepreneurship, software engineering and design.
Both conceptual as well as empirical submissions are welcomed. While the focus is on Agile in non-software environments, adopting a comparative approach (software vs. non-software) is possible and valued. We are interested in studies using any of the full range of empirical methodologies, qualitative and quantitative, laboratory or field settings. We also value theoretical pluralism. All articles should offer a strong practical and theoretical contribution
A mixed methods bibliometric investigation of the World Review of Entrepreneurship, Management and Sustainable Development: from qualitative to quantitative data
Full text linkThis article offers a complete overview of the World Review of Entrepreneurship, Management and Sustainable Development (WREMSD) from 2005 to 2015. The article employs an innovative mixed method, based on a bibliometric analysis of the Journal and an in-depth interview with the editor Prof. Leo Paul Dana about the journal, his academic and personal life. By using SCOPUS data, the analysis maps the knowledge produced and disseminated by the journal revealing the most cited papers and most prolific authors. By also presenting a keywords correlation analysis, the paper shows the main streams of research covered by the Journal and their evolution. Although the objective of mapping the knowledge in WREMSD this paper offers an example of application of a mixed method to bibliometric studies, methodological implications are discussed
Knowledge Management in the Fourth Industrial Revolution: Mapping the Literature and Scoping Future Avenues
Full text linkDue to increased competitive pressure, modern organizations tend to rely on knowledge and its exploitation to sustain a long-term advantage. This calls for a precise understanding of knowledge management (KM) processes and, specifically, how knowledge is created, shared/transferred, acquired, stored/retrieved, and applied throughout an organizational system. However, since the beginning of the new millennium, such KM processes have been deeply affected and molded by the advent of the fourth industrial revolution, also called Industry 4.0, which involves the interconnectedness of machines and their ability to learn and share data autonomously. For this reason, the present study investigates the intellectual structure and trends of KM in Industry 4.0. Bibliometric analysis and a systematic literature review are conducted on a total of 90 relevant articles. The results reveal 6 clusters of keywords, subsequently explored via a systematic literature review to identify potential stream of this emergent field and future research avenues capable of producing meaningful advances in managerial knowledge of Industry 4.0 and its consequences
New Product Development during the Last Ten Years: The Ongoing Debate and Future Avenues
Full text linkResearch on new product development (NPD) has grown considerably over the last 30 years interweaving with serval fields of study such as strategy, marketing, supply chain management, and project management. This article offers an overview of the development of the NPD management literature published over the last ten years (2008 to 2018) in 1226 peer-reviewed articles. By applying bibliometric analysis, we have discovered the existence of five research clusters focused on the following main thematic areas: the NPD process, the integration of diverse knowledge sources for NPD optimization, the relationship between NPD and corporate strategy, the role of users and consumers in the NPD process, and the supplier involvement in the NPD activities. In respect of each area, we selected and reviewed the most relevant contributions and presented the emerging theoretical approaches and best practices. Also, the analysis has helped us to uncover the existence of promising research areas that have been scarcely explored. As a result, we formulated some suggestions for further research to fill in the existing gaps
The role of universities in the development of the wearable haptic technology: An analysis based on the Technological Innovation Systems framework
No full textA bibliometric analysis of family firm internationalization research: Current themes, theoretical roots, and ways forward
No full textThis paper presents a bibliometric analysis and a systematic literature review of 161 core contributions concerning family firm internationalization. A bibliographic coupling analysis and a co-citation analysis reveal the richness of family firm internationalization research and help to organize this large body of work into five thematic clusters and seven theoretical roots. By examining the linkages between research themes and theoretical roots, we advance an integrative framework, clarifying the variety of research paths available regarding the internationalization of family firms, and identifying new and important research avenues for further developing the field
Internationalising in the Transition economies of Central and Eastern Europe. A Systematic Literature Review Approach.
No full textThe purpose of this paper is to organise in a systematic approach the understudied topic of
the internationalisation processes undergone by firms from the transition economies of the
Central and Eastern Europe (CEE). Internationalisation is a topic largely inquired for firms
of the large and developed economies, but smaller transitional economies are not always
adequately represented in the scientific discussion, and thus we contribute to such debate.
After a scrupulous screening, we analysed 30 relevant papers identifying three different
clusters of research. Internationalisation Behaviour cluster contains comparative studies
focused on specific approaches adopted by local firms in the process of internationalisation.
Internationalisation Performance cluster aims to explain the reasons of success or failure of
internationalisation processes and strategies. Finally, Internationalisation Benefit cluster
assumes a reverse approach in terms of effects that the internationalisation may have on
firms. Our findings may develop future research directions and contribute to build an agenda
for the subject
Teams management: conflict and organizational behaviour
No full textIn response to growing demands for efficiency and flexibility, organizations are shifting to team-based structures (Boyett and Conn 1991). Between the characteristics of a Successful Employee for a Fortune 500 Company, identifies “Ability to Function as Part of a Team” (Fortune, 2011). The reasons given to justify why teams are important, if not fundamental, for organizations are diverse. The concepts of teamwork, team building, and self-directed work teams have penetrated nearly every segment of the business world in recent decades.
The first part of this chapter introduces both mainstream views and critical studies of teams at work. On one hand, mainstream view elaborates the assumptions and the importance attached to the idea that teamwork is good for organizational performance (Drucker, 1992; Katzenbach and Smith, 1993; Wheelan, 2009), and that teamwork favours flexibility, motivation and learning. Summarizing the arguments of both popular and academic mainstream literature, we can suggest that team working ranks highly on these dimensions that are central for today's organization: flexibility, motivation and learning (see Hackman, 1987; Campion, Medsker and Higgs, 1993; Cohen, Ledford and Spreitzer, 1996; Tannebaum, Beard and Salas, 1992; West, 2004). On the other hand, critical studies present the problems of teamwork to show that can become prescriptions and lose their relevance for understanding the challenges and difficulties of organized life. Organizational life is complex, ambiguous and embedded in relations of power. Teamwork is neither intrinsically good nor new
The international dimension of entrepreneurial decision making: cultures, contexts, and behaviours
No full textThis chapter introduces the content of the book, presenting the key insights from the contributed chapters. The book comprises 11 diverse and insightful contributions from nine different countries
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