Virtual R&D Teams: A New Model for Product Development

<p>Increased global competitions have urged small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to develop new products faster. Virtual research and development (R&D) teams in SMEs can offer a solution to speed up time-to-market of new product development (NPD). However, factors that affect the effectiveness of virtual teams for NPD are still not adequately verified. This paper presents the correlations between virtual R&D team constructs and virtual team effectiveness by developing a “Virtual Research and Development Team” (ViR&DT) model. The items, which may influence the effectiveness of virtual teams, are taken from the literature. Through an online survey and by application of structural equation modeling (SEM) technique, the proposed model (ViR&DT) has been tested. The results suggest that the process construct is strongly correlated to the effectiveness of virtual teams. Therefore, NPD managers in virtual R&D teams should concentrate on the process of new product development rather than simply equipping the teams with the latest technology or employing highly qualified experts. Further empirical research is recommended to fully explore and appreciate the breadth of application of the ViR&DT model.</p> <p><strong>Keywords</strong>: Virtual R&D teams; Collaborative teams; Questionnaires; Team performance; Cross-functional teams; Product development.</p> <p><strong>References:</strong></p> <p>Ale Ebrahim, N. (2012). Development of an effectual collaborative model for new product development in SMEs through virtual R&D teams. UNIVERSITY OF MALAYA.</p> <p>Ale Ebrahim, N., Abdul Rashid, S. H., Ahmed, S., & Taha, Z. (2011). The Effectiveness of Virtual R&D Teams in SMEs: Experiences of Malaysian SMEs. Industrial Engineering and Management Systems, 10(2), 109-114.</p> <p>Ale Ebrahim, N., Ahmed, S., Abdul Rashid, S. H., & Taha, Z. (2011, 22- 24 December). Knowledge Worker Role in the Virtual R&D Teams for New Product Development: A Measurement Model. Paper presented at the International Conference on Mechanical Engineering and Renewable Energy 2011 (ICMERE2011), Chittagong, Bangladesh.</p> <p>Ale Ebrahim, N., Ahmed, S., Abdul Rashid, S. H., & Taha, Z. (2012). Technology Use in the Virtual R&D Teams. American Journal of Engineering and Applied Sciences, 5(1), 9-14.</p> <p>Ale Ebrahim, N., Ahmed, S., Abdul Rashid, S. H., Taha, Z., & Wazed, M. A. (2012). Virtual Collaborative R&D Teams in Malaysia Manufacturing SMEs. Advanced Materials Research, 433-440, 1653-1659.</p> <p>Ale Ebrahim, N., Ahmed, S., & Taha, Z. (2008, 18-19 December). Virtual R&D Teams: A Sustainable Infrastructure for Promoting SMEs. Paper presented at the 2nd Engineering Conference (EnCon 2008), Crowne Plaza Riverside Hotel, Kuching, Sarawak, Malaysia.</p> <p>Ale Ebrahim, N., Ahmed, S., & Taha, Z. (2009a). Virtual R & D teams in small and medium enterprises: A literature review. [Review]. Scientific Research and Essay, 4(13), 1575–1590.</p> <p>Ale Ebrahim, N., Ahmed, S., & Taha, Z. (2009b, 11-12 May). Virtual R&D Teams: Innovation and Technology Facilitator. Paper presented at the Engineering Education in 2025, School of Engineering and Technology, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran.</p> <p>Ale Ebrahim, N., Ahmed, S., & Taha, Z. (2009c). Virtual Teams for New Product Development – An Innovative Experience for R&D Engineers. European Journal of Educational Studies, 1(3), 109-123.</p> <p>Ale Ebrahim, N., Ahmed, S., & Taha, Z. (2009d). Virtual Teams: a Literature Review. [Review paper]. Australian Journal of Basic and Applied Sciences, 3(3), 2653-2669.</p> <p>Ale Ebrahim, N., Ahmed, S., & Taha, Z. (2010a). SMEs; Virtual research and development (R&D) teams and new product development: A literature review. [Review]. International Journal of the Physical Sciences, 5(7), 916–930.</p> <p>Ale Ebrahim, N., Ahmed, S., & Taha, Z. (2010b). Virtual R&D teams and SMEs growth: A comparative study between Iranian and Malaysian SMEs. [Full Length Research Paper]. African Journal of Business Management, 4(11), 2368-2379.</p> <p>Ale Ebrahim, N., Ahmed, S., & Taha, Z. (2011). Virtual R&D Teams: A potential growth of education-industry collaboration. Academic Leadership Journal, 9(4), 1-5.</p> <p>Andersen, P. H., & Drejer, I. (2009). Together we share? Competitive and collaborative supplier interests in product development. Technovation, 29(10), 690-703.</p> <p>Anderson, A. H., McEwan, R., Bal, J., & Carletta, J. (2007). Virtual team meetings: An analysis of communication and context. Computers in Human Behavior, 23, 2558–2580.</p> <p>Anderson, J. C., & Gerbing, D. W. (1988). Structural equation modeling in practice: A review and recommended two-step approach. Psychological Bulletin, 103(3), 411-423.</p> <p>Aripin, N., Mustafa, H., & Hussein, A. (2011). Virtual Teams In Malaysia: A Qualitative Investigation In Multimedia Super Corridor Status Companies. Journal of Techno-Social, 2(1), 37-58.</p> <p>Atuahene-Gima, K. (2003). The effects of centrifugal and centripetal forces on product development speed and quality: how does problem solving matter? Academy of Management Journal, 46(3), 359-373.</p> <p>Badrinarayanan, V., & Arnett, D. B. (2008). Effective virtual new product development teams: an integrated framework. [Conceptual paper]. Journal of Business & Industrial Marketing, 23(4), 242-248.</p> <p>Bal, J., & Gundry, J. (1999). Virtual teaming in the automotive supply chain. Team Performance Management, 5(6), 174 - 193.</p> <p>Bal, J., & Teo, P. K. (2001a). Implementing virtual teamworking: Part 2 - a literature review. [Research paper]. Logistics Information Management, 14(3), 208 - 222.</p> <p>Bal, J., & Teo, P. K. (2001b). Implementing virtual teamworking: Part 3 – a methodology for introducing virtual teamworking. [Research paper]. Logistics Information Management, 14(4), 276 - 292.</p> <p>Baskerville, R., & Nandhakumar, J. (2007). Activating and Perpetuating Virtual Teams: Now That We’re Mobile, Where Do We Go? IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication, 50(1), 17 - 34.</p> <p>Beranek, P. M., & Martz, B. (2005). Making virtual teams more effective: improving relational links. [Research article]. Team Performance Management, 11(5-6), 200-213.</p> <p>Bergiel, J. B., Bergiel, E. B., & Balsmeier, P. W. (2008). Nature of virtual teams: a summary of their advantages and disadvantages. [Conceptual paper]. Management Research News, 31(2), 99-110.</p> <p>Biuk-Aghai, R. P. (2003). Patterns of Virtual Collaboration. University of Technology, Sydney.</p> <p>Bochenek, G., & Ragusa, J. (2004). Improving Integrated Project Team Interaction Through Virtual (3D) Collaboration. Engineering Management Journal, 16(2), 3-12.</p> <p>Bosch-Sijtsema, P. M., Ruohomäki, V., & Vartiainen, M. (2009). Knowledge work productivity in distributed teams. [Conceptual paper]. Journal of Knowledge Management, 13(6), 533-546.</p> <p>Boudreau, M.-C., Loch, K. D., Robey, D., & Straub, D. (1998). Going Global: Using Information Technology to Advance the Competitiveness Of the Virtual Transnational Organization. Academy of Management Executive, 12(4), 120-128.</p> <p>Boutellier, R., Gassmann, O., Macho, H., & Roux, M. (1998). Management of dispersed product development teams: The role of information technologies. R&D Management, 28(1), 13 - 25.</p> <p>Boyle, A. T., Kumar, V., & Kumar, U. (2006). Concurrent engineering teams II: performance consequences of usage. Team Performance Management, 12(5/6), 125-137.</p> <p>Boyle, T. A. (2005). Concurrent engineering teams I: organizational determinants of usage. [Research paper]. Team Performance Management, 11(7/8), 263-279.</p> <p>Byrne, B. M. (2010). Structural equation modeling with AMOS: Basic concepts, applications, and programming (Second Edition ed.). New York: Taylor and Francis Group, LLC.</p> <p>Camarinha-Matos, L. M., & Afsarmanesh, H. (2003). Elements of a base VE infrastructure. Computers in Industry, 51(2), 139-163.</p> <p>Camarinha-Matos, L. M., & Afsarmanesh, H. (2007). A comprehensive modeling framework for collaborative networked organizations. Journal Journal of Intelligent Manufacturing, 18(5), 529-542.</p> <p>Cascio, W. F. (2000). Managing a virtual workplace. The Academy of Management Executive, 14(3), 81-90.</p> <p>Cascio, W. F., & Shurygailo, S. (2003). E-Leadership and Virtual Teams. Organizational Dynamics, 31(4), 362-376.</p> <p>Chen, H. H., Kang, Y. K., Xing, X., Lee, A. H. I., & Tong, Y. (2008). Developing new products with knowledge management methods and process development management in a network. Computers in Industry, 59, 242–253.</p> <p>Chen, M., Liou, Y., Wang, C. W., Fan, Y. W., & Chi, Y. P. J. (2007). Team Spirit: Design, implementation, and evaluation of a Web-based group decision support system. Decision Support Systems, 43, 1186–1202.</p> <p>Chen, T.-Y. (2008). Knowledge sharing in virtual enterprises via an ontology-based access control approach. Computers in Industry, 59(5), 502-519.</p> <p>Chen, T. Y., Chen, Y. M., & Ch, H. C. (2008). Developing a trust evaluation method between co-workers in virtual project team for enabling resource sharing and collaboration. Computers in Industry, 59(6), 565-579.</p> <p>Chudoba, K. M., Wynn, E., Lu, M., Watson-Manheim, & Beth, M. (2005). How virtual are we? Measuring virtuality and understanding its impact in a global organization. Information Systems Journal, 15(4), 279-306.</p> <p>Coleman, D., & Levine, S. (2008). Collaboration 2.0: Technology and Best Practices for Successful Collaboration in a Web 2.0 World. Silicon Valley, California, USA: Happy About®.</p> <p>Cooper, R. G. (2001). Winning At New Products : Accelerating the Process From Idea to Launch (THIRD EDITION ed.). Cambridge, Massachusetts: Perseus Press.</p> <p>Corso, M., Martini, A., Pellegrini, L., Massa, S., & Testa, S. (2006). Managing dispersed workers: the new challenge in Knowledge Management. Technovation, 26(5-6), 583-594.</p> <p>Criscuolo, P. (2005). On the road again: Researcher mobility inside the R&D network. Research Policy, 34, 1350–1365.</p> <p>Cummings, J. L., & Teng, B. S. (2003). Transferring R&D knowledge: the key factors affecting knowledge transfer success. Journal of Engineering Technology Management, 20(1), 39–68.</p> <p>Daoudi, J. (2010). Dynamique de collaboration au sein des équipes dispersées: Le cas des projets d'ingénierie. Unpublished DU DIPLÔME DE PHILOSOPHIAE DOCTOR (Ph.D.), UNIVERSITÉ DE MONTRÉAL, MONTRÉAL.</p> <p>Dekker, D. M., Rutte, C. G., & Van den Berg, P. T. (2008). Cultural differences in the perception of critical interaction behaviors in global virtual teams. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 32(5), 441-452.</p> <p>Dibrell, C., Davis, P. S., & Craig, J. (2008). Fueling Innovation through Information Technology in SMEs. Journal of Small Business Management, 46(2), 203-218.</p> <p>Duhovnik, J., Starbek, M., Dwivedi, S. N., & Prasad, B. (2001). Development of New Products in Small Companies. Concurrent Engineering, 9(3), 191-210.</p> <p>Ebrahim, N. A., Ahmed, S., & Taha, Z. (2010a). SMEs; Virtual research and development (R&D) teams and new product development: A literature review. [Review]. International Journal of the Physical Sciences, 5(7), 916-930.</p> <p>Ebrahim, N. A., Ahmed, S., & Taha, Z. (2010b). Virtual R&D teams and SMEs growth: A comparative study between Iranian and Malaysian SMEs. [Article]. African Journal of Business Management, 4(11), 2368-2379.</p> <p>El-Tayeh, A., Gil, N., & Freeman, J. (2008). A methodology to evaluate the usability of digital socialization in ‘‘virtual’’ engineering design. [Original Paper]. Research in Engineering Design, 19(1), 29-45.</p> <p>Eppinger, S. D., & Chitkara, A. R. (2006). The New Practice of Global Product Development. MIT Sloan Management Review, 47(4), 22-30.</p> <p>Flores, M. (2006). Towards a Taxonomy for Networking Models For Innovation Network-Centric Collaboration and Supporting Frameworks (Vol. 224, pp. 55-66). Boston: Springer.</p> <p>Foster, M. K. (2010). Assessing Degree of Virtuality and Its Impact on Team Effectiveness. MORGAN STATE UNIVERSITY.</p> <p>Fuller, J., Bartl, M., Ernst, H., & Mühlbacher, H. (2006). Community based innovation: How to integrate members of virtual communities into new product development. Electronic Commerce Research, 6(1), 57-73.</p> <p>Fuller, M. A., Hardin, A. M., & Davison, R. M. (2006). Efficacy in Technology-Mediated Distributed Team. Journal of Management Information Systems, 23(3), 209-235.</p> <p>Furst, S. A., Reeves, M., Rosen, B., & Blackburn, R. S. (2004). Managing the life cycle of virtual teams. Academy of Management Executive, 18(2), 6-20.</p> <p>Gassmann, O., & Von Zedtwitz, M. (2003a). Innovation Processes in Transnational Corporations: Elsevier Science Ltd.</p> <p>Gassmann, O., & Von Zedtwitz, M. (2003b). Trends and determinants of managing virtual R&D teams. R&D Management, 33(3), 243-262.</p> <p>Gaudes, A., Hamilton-Bogart, B., Marsh, S., & Robinson, H. (2007). A Framework for Constructing Effective Virtual Teams. The Journal of E-working, 1(2), 83-97.</p> <p>Ge, Z., & Hu, Q. (2008). Collaboration in R&D activities: Firm-specific decisions. European Journal of Operational Research, 185(2), 864-883.</p> <p>Gomez, J. O., & Simpson, M. (2007). Achieving competitive advantage in the Mexican footwear industry. Benchmarking: An International Journal, 14(3), 289-305.</p> <p>González, F. J. M., & Palacios, T. M. B. (2002). The effect of new product development techniques on new product success in Spanish firms. Industrial Marketing Management, 31(3), 261-271.</p> <p>Guniš, A., Šišlák, J., & Valčuha, Š. (2007). Implementation Of Collaboration Model Within SME's. In P. F. Cunha & P. G. Maropoulos (Eds.), Digital Enterprise Technology-Perspectives and Future Challenges (pp. 377-384): Springer US.</p> <p>Hair, J., Black, W., Babin, B., & Anderson, R. (2009). Multivariate Data Analysis (7th Edition ed.).</p> <p>Hardin, A. M., Fuller, M. A., & Davison, R. M. (2007). I Know I Can, But Can We?: Culture and Efficacy Beliefs in Global Virtual Teams. Small Group Research, 38(1), 130-155.</p> <p>Hertel, G. T., Geister, S., & Konradt, U. (2005). Managing virtual teams: A review of current empirical research. Human Resource Management Review, 15, 69–95.</p> <p>Hinds, P. J., & Bailey, D. E. (2003). Out of Sight, Out of Sync: Understanding Conflict in Distributed Teams. Organization Science, 14(6), 615-632.</p> <p>Ho, R. (2006). Handbook of Univariate and Multivariate Data Analysis and Interpretation with SPSS (1 edition (March 24, 2006) ed.). Boca Raton, FL: Chapman and Hall/CRC.</p> <p>Huang, C.-C. (2009). Knowledge sharing and group cohesiveness on performance: An empirical study of technology R&D teams in Taiwan. Technovation, 29(11), 786-797.</p> <p>Hunsaker, P. L., & Hunsaker, J. S. (2008). Virtual teams: a leader's guide. [Conceptual paper]. Team Performance Management, 14(1/2), 86-101.</p> <p>Jain, V. K., & Sobek, D. K. (2006). Linking design process to customer satisfaction through virtual design of experiments. [Original paper]. Research in Engineering Design, 17(2), 59-71.</p> <p>Jarvenpaa, S. L., & Leidner, D. E. (1999). Communication and Trust in Global Virtual Teams. Organization Science, 10(6), 791 - 815.</p> <p>Johnson, P., Heimann, V., & O’Neill, K. (2001). The “wonderland” of virtual teams. Journal of Workplace Learning, 13(1), 24 - 30.</p> <p>Kankanhalli, A., Tan, B. C. Y., & Wei, K.-K. (2006). Conflict and Performance in Global Virtual Teams. Journal of Management Information Systems, 23(3), 237-274.</p> <p>Kirkman, B. L., Gibson, C. B., & Shapiro, D. L. (2001). “Exporting” teams enhancing the implementation and effectiveness of work teams in global affiliates. Organizational Dynamics, 30(1), 12-29.</p> <p>Kirkman, B. L., Rosen, B., Gibson, C. B., Tesluk, P. E., & McPherson, S. O. (2002). Five challenges to virtual team success: lessons from Sabre Inc. Academy of Management Executive, 16(3), 67-79.</p> <p>Kotelnikov, V. (2007). Small and Medium Enterprises and ICT. Bangkok: UNDP Regional Centre.</p> <p>Kratzer, J., Leenders, R., & Engelen, J. V. (2005). Keeping Virtual R&D Teams Creative. Research Technology Management, 1(March-April), 13-16.</p> <p>Kratzer, J., Leenders, R. T. A. J., & Engelen, J. M. L. V. (2006). Managing creative team performance in virtual environments: an empirical study in 44 R&D teams. Technovation, 26, 42–49.</p> <p>Kusar, J., Duhovnik, J., Grum, J., & Starbek, M. (2004). How to reduce new product development time. Robotics and Computer-Integrated Manufacturing, 20, 1-15.</p> <p>Kyriazis, E. (2005). The antecedents and consequences of the marketing manager and R&D manager working relationship during new product development: an empirical study. The University of Wollongong.</p> <p>Laforet, S. (2008). Size, strategic, and market orientation affects on innovation. Journal of Business Research, 61(7), 753-764.</p> <p>Lee-Kelley, L., & Sankey, T. (2008). Global virtual teams for value creation and project success: A case study. International Journal of Project Management, 26, 51–62.</p> <p>Leenders, R. T. A. J., Engelen, J. M. L. V., & Kratzer, J. (2003). Virtuality, communication, and new product team creativity: a social network perspective. Journal of Engineering and Technology Management, 20, 69–92.</p> <p>Lei, P.-W. (2009). Evaluating estimation methods for ordinal data in structural equation modeling. Quality & Quantity, 43(3), 495-507.</p> <p>Lin, C., Standing, C., & Liu, Y.-C. (2008). A model to develop effective virtual teams. Decision Support Systems, 45(4), 1031-1045.</p> <p>Lipnack, J., & Stamps, J. (2000). Why The Way to Work Virtual Teams: People Working across Boundaries with Technology (Second Edition ed., pp. 1-25). New York: John Wiley & Sons.</p> <p>Liu, B., & Liu, S. (2007). Value Chain Coordination with Contracts for Virtual R&D Alliance Towards Service. Paper presented at the The 3rd IEEE International Conference on Wireless Communications, Networking and Mobile Computing, WiCom 2007. Retrieved from http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/xpls/abs_all.jsp?arnumber=4340609</p> <p>Lurey, J. S., & Raisinghani, M. S. (2001). An empirical study of best practices in virtual teams. Information & Management, 38(8), 523-544.</p> <p>Martinez-Sanchez, A., Pérez-Pérez, M., de-Luis-Carnicer, P., & Vela-Jiménez, M. J. (2006). Teleworking and new product development. [Technical paper]. European Journal of Innovation Management, 9(2), 202-214.</p> <p>Martins, L. L., Gilson, L. L., & Maynard, M. T. (2004). Virtual teams: What do we know and where do we go from here? Journal of Management, 30(6), 805–835.</p> <p>May, A., & Carter, C. (2001). A case study of virtual team working in the European automotive industry. International Journal of Industrial Ergonomics, 27(3), 171-186.</p> <p>McDonough, E. F., Kahn, K. B., & Barczak, G. (2001). An investigation of the use of global, virtual, and collocated new product development teams. Journal of Product Innovation Management, 18(2), 110–120.</p> <p>McNamara, K., Dennis, A. R., & Carte, T. A. (2008). It’s the Thought that Counts: The Mediating Effects of Information Processing in Virtual Team Decision Making. Information Systems Management, 25(1), 20–32.</p> <p>Merali, Y., & Davies, J. (2001). Knowledge Capture and Utilization in Virtual Communities. Paper presented at the International Conference On Knowledge Capture, K-CAP’01. Retrieved from http://portal.acm.org/citation.cfm?id=500754</p> <p>Mulebeke, J. A. W., & Zheng, L. (2006). Incorporating integrated product development with technology road mapping for dynamism and innovation. International Journal of Product Development, 3(1), 56 - 76.</p> <p>Munkvold, B. E., & Zigurs, I. (2007). Process and technology challenges in swift-starting virtual teams. Information & Management, 44(3), 287–299.</p> <p>Narula, R. (2004). R&D Collaboration by SMEs: new opportunities and limitations in the face of globalisation. Technovation, 24(2), 153-161.</p> <p>Naveh, E. (2005). The effect of integrated product development on efficiency and innovation. International Journal of Production Research, 43(13), 2789–2808.</p> <p>Ojasalo, J. (2008). Management of innovation networks: a case study of different approaches. European Journal of Innovation Management, 11(1), 51-86.</p> <p>Olson-Buchanan, J. B., Rechner, P. L., Sanchez, R. J., & Schmidtke, J. M. (2007). Utilizing virtual teams in a management principles course. [Case study]. Education + Training, 49(5), 408-423.</p> <p>Ortiz de Guinea, A., Webster, J., & Staples, S. (2005, October 12). A Meta-Analysis of the Virtual Teams Literature. Paper presented at the Symposium on High Performance Professional Teams Industrial Relations Centre, School of Policy Studies, Queen’s University, Kingston, Canada.</p> <p>Partanen, J., Möller, K., Westerlund, M., Rajala, R., & Rajala, A. (2008). Social capital in the growth of science-and-technology-based SMEs. Industrial Marketing Management, 37(5), 513-522.</p> <p>Paul, S., Seetharaman, P., Samarah, I., & Peter Mykytyn, J. (2005, January 3-6). Understanding Conflict in Virtual Teams: An Experimental Investigation using Content Analysis. Paper presented at the 38th Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences, Hawaii.</p> <p>Pauleen, D. J., & Yoong, P. (2001). Facilitating virtual team relationships via Internet and conventional communication channels. [Research Paper]. Internet Research, 11(3), 190 - 202.</p> <p>Pawar, K. S., & Sharifi, S. (1997). Physical or virtual team collocation: Does it matter? International Journal of Production Economics, 52(3), 283-290.</p> <p>Pena-Mora, F., Hussein, K., Vadhavkar, S., & Benjamin, K. (2000). CAIRO: a concurrent engineering meeting environment for virtual design teams. Artifcial Intelligence in Engineering, 14, 203-219.</p> <p>Piccoli, G., Powell, A., & I