Success Factors for Integrating Suppliers into New Product Development

Businesses most often turn to customers when seeking network relationships on issues associated with innovation.

“Although much of the evidence points toward the important role of suppliers, co-suppliers and distributors in the innovation process it is to customers that businesses most often turn when seeking network relationships on issues associated with innovation (Ragatz et al. 1997).”

Customers are considered to be the most important partners during incremental innovation.

“Ragatz et al's (1997) work has also shown that customers are considered to be the most important partners during incremental innovation.”

Open and direct communication between companies is the critical success factor during supplier interactions in new product development processes.

“The degree of involvement of suppliers tends to depend on the nature of projects; however, open and direct communication between companies has been identified as the critical success factor during supplier interactions in new product development processes (Harryson, 1997;Ragatz et al. 1997;Lincoln et al. 1998;Perez and Sanchez, 2002).”

Customer involvement reduces the risks of innovation.

“Customer involvement reduces the risks of innovation (Gemünden et al. 1992;Ragatz et al. 1997).”

Effective integration of suppliers provides clearer focus on projects that require joint development.

“Provide clearer focus on the projects that require joint development (Ragatz et al. 1997).”

Including suppliers in new product development innovation is valuable.

“The value of including suppliers in new product development innovation has been widely documented in the supply chain literature (Ragatz et al., 1997).”

Effective integration of suppliers helps reduce concept-to-customer cycle time, costs and quality problems.

“Help reduce concept-to-customer cycle time, costs and reduce quality problems (Ragatz et al. 1997).”