Performance measures and sustainability strategies in new product development management: an empirical study.

The literature on performance measures in Research and Development (R&D) includes several topics such as the selection of indicators that are best suited to R&D activities, the choice of the performance dimensions (both financial and non financial), and the organization of metrics into a consistent structure including standards, frequency of measurement and format of information reporting. In this paper, the role played by performance measures in new product development (NPD) activities is studied. This paper is based on a survey of 68 large and very large national and international companies. The sample is interesting because as a reaction to the economic slowdown, in Italy firms have modified their strategies to deal with increased competition and price stagnation. The study takes into account the effects of the crisis and collects quite positive trends in NPD activities. These firms respond to the crisis by developing new products and services mainly in order to satisfy needs of loyal customers, acquire new customers in the same market and increase profitability of sales. The study analyses the findings by monitoring the sustainability movement across NPD management activities. Performance measures used by those driving sustainability were compared to those not driving it. The influence of sustainability strategies was assessed through questions on economic, environmental and social sustainability. The sample was divided into two groups: those companies which are “More Oriented to Sustainability” (MOS), and those “Less Oriented to Sustainability” (LOS). For these two groups the influence of the sustainability strategy on NPD management activities and performance measures were analyzed. This analysis contributes to the growing knowledge of NPD management practice by focusing on the possible relationships between the sustainable strategies of organizations and performance measurement systems. The findings show a significant strategic orientation towards sustainability and a sophisticated implementation of performance measures on development activities. [...