2 LITERATURE REVIEW
2.6 Theoretical framework
2.6.6 Questionnaire expectations
The questionnaire aims at seeking quantitative results in the form of feedback data. The data gathering strategy kept in mind was to involve the subject company´s selected employees, the operators and beneficiaries of the new product development process, as critics to evaluate the operations of the organization – new product development´s stage gate system through a global teamwork scenario and as consultants to suggest updates that may better assist them with their work tasks, especially focusing on new product development idea generation capacity. The questionnaire comprises four sections. Starting with ‘getting to know’ the respondent, proceeding with the evaluation of the current new product development work environment and ending with critical areas and suggestions for future refinement of NPD processes for the target company. The details of the sections are as follows;
Section 1 (Survey questionnaire question numbers 01 to 16 and question numbers 25 to 35) has been designed to collect the respondent´s feedback on organizational new product development (NPD) idea support related practices and trends.
Section 2 (Survey questionnaire question numbers 17 to 24) has been designed to collect the respondent´s feedback on transformational leadership based organizational work leadership practices and trends.
Section 3 (Survey questionnaire question numbers 35 to 46) has been designed to collect the respondent´s feedback on organizational strategic thinking related practices and trends.
Section 4 (Survey questionnaire question numbers 47 to 50) has been designed to collect the respondent´s feedback on organizational pseudo transformational leadership related trends.
2.6.6.1 New product development (NPD) idea support and NPD team climate
In research literature new product development (NPD) idea support refers to the desirable characteristics of team leaders and members who are involved in new product development operations. We have distributed the conceptual inventory items into two separate categories i.e. NPD idea support and NPD team climate
(Sun, Xu, Shang, 2012). In our survey, this concept refers to an organization´s capacity to offer supportive practices to its work teams, involved in new product development operations. The selected indicators seek feedback to reveal organizational practices in relation to new product development idea generation team potential. In total, twenty six questions were designed/ modified while following the strategic thinking characteristic introduced by Sun, Xu, Shang (2012) in their research inventory. Table 1 below shows the details.
Table 4. Survey instrumentation - Section 1
Questions: 01-16 and 25 to 34
Indicator
Reference
Q1: New products developed at our unit are very
different to our existing products. Product innovativeness capability
Q2: Our flexible production capability allows us to
modify our products faster. Product innovativeness capability
Q3: We remain in contact with our key clients
during the product development process. Early client involvement
Q4: We take advantage of all forms of media to connect with potential stake holders during NPD process.
Early client involvement
Q5: Management encourages us to develop something novel instead of just a new shape of the product.
Management´s NPD idea initiatives
Q6: Management constantly looks for options to
connect with external stake holders for NPD ideas. Management´s NPD idea initiatives
Q7: I feel very comfortable if external stake holders
give new ideas for NPD project. NPD Team initiative aspect Q8: We select NDP ideas based on their technical
feasibility to design, develop and manufacture. NPD Team initiative aspect Bass and Avolio (1990; 1992), Q9: Our business strategy focuses on aligning NPD
process with market needs. Customer value aspect Sun , Xu, Shang (2012). Q10: We focus on all types of customers (i.e.
purchasers, influencers and end users) during NPD projects.
Customer value aspect Q11: Our success in NPD idea generation is due to
our ability to reach potential stake holders. Target reach aspect Q12: There is a good fit between what the market
needs and what we provide. Target reach aspect Q13: Our market intelligence strategy combines-
customer needs assessment, price sensitivity, supplier capabilities, competitors NPD strategies and geo-political know-how aligned with new product specifications.
Market intelligence aspect
Q14: NPD teams regularly travel to remain in contact with potential influencers in search of NPD ideas.
Market intelligence aspect
Q15: Our NPD projects are supported through
extensive internal and external communication. Communication aspect Q16: Our teams quickly share, NPD ideas with each
Q25: Team members display agreement with the
team´s objectives NPD team climate Q26: Team members feel understood and accepted NPD team climate Q27: Team members keep each other informed NPD team- internal
communication Q28: Team is capable of making real attempts to
share information NPD team- internal communication Q29: Team is strong in searching for new ways of
looking at product development problems NPD team- generation capacity idea Q30: Team is cooperative in developing and
applying new ideas in collaboration with key individuals from other departments
NPD team – idea generation capacity Q31: We, as a work team, are capable of
cooperating with other work groups NPD team collaboration Q32: In our organization, work performance is
considered as an overall and combined phenomenon.
NPD team collaboration
Q33: We, as a work team are able to complete work
targets on time. NPD team responsiveness Q34: The team´s ability is considered “quick” while
responding to problems. NPD team responsiveness
2.6.6.2 Arrangement of NPD idea support and team climate constructs variables in quantitative survey tool
The NPD idea support construct variable consists of sixteen items/questions to obtain respondents’ feedback on the quality of work environmental support and the clues for future refinement. The questions are divided into two sets to offer focused and reliable data analysis relating to the construct. Question items 1, 2, 5, 6, 13, 14, 15 and 16 investigate the level of organizational effectiveness in terms of the external environment specific innovation boosters while question numbers 3, 4, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11 and 12 explore the effectiveness of organizational internal environment specific innovation boosters.
Question numbers 25 to 34 are linked to NPD team climate construct variable. The detailed plan of both the construct variables i.e. new product development (NPD) idea support and NPD team climate in the quantitative survey tool may be referred to below for better understanding. Below is the sequence of the referred construct items placement in the survey tool.
2.6.6.3 Arrangement of transformational leadership construct variables in quantitative survey tool
In the research literature, transformational leadership refers to the desirable characteristics of an organization’s leadership support practices. In our survey, this concept refers to an organization’s capacity to offer its work teams a supportive leadership (Bass and Avolio, 1992: Zaccaro, 1996) environment to harness new product development idea generation. The selected indicators seek feedback to reveal organizational practices with reference to transformational leadership connected to new product development idea generation team potential. In total, eight questions were designed/ modified while following the transformational leadership characteristic introduced by Bass and Avolio (1992) in their research inventory. The table 5 below shows the details.
Table 5. Survey instrumentation- Section 2
Questions: 17-24
Indicator
Reference
Q17: Our experts are trusted to pass on
genuine and quality knowledge to their teams. TL-Idealized influence Q18: Team members associate themselves with
their seniors for their work skills and expertise. TL-Idealized influence Based on the theoretical framework of transformational leadership.
Q19: Team leaders are capable of explaining
the project work targets and procedures. TL-Inspirational motivation (Bass and Avolio 1990; 1992) Q20: Leaders can help members to find out the
important ways to carry out NPD activities. TL-Inspirational motivation Q21: Experts challenge their teams to resolve
their usual NPD related concerns from new perspectives.
TL-Intellectual stimulation Q22: Experts are capable of forcing their
teams to rethink things that they have never thought of before.
TL-Intellectual stimulation Q23: Experts are capable of helping their team
members to improve their work efficiency. TL-Individualized consideration Q24: Experts are capable of providing support
to their team members in special situations. TL-Individualized. Consideration
The construct items listed in table 5 are placed in the survey tool in a sequence displayed in figure 19 that is as follows:
Figure 19. Plan of the survey tool for transformational leadership based work management construct variables
2.6.6.4 Arrangement of strategic thinking construct variable in quantitative survey tool
Corporate leaders or senior executives must master the skills and cognitive capabilities needed to steer successfully within an intricate environment (Zaccaro, 1996). In our survey, this concept refers to an organization´s capacity to offer its work teams a supportive environment for new product development idea generation. The selected indicators seek feedback to reveal organizational practices with relation to strategic thinking connected to new product development idea generation team potential. In total, twelve questions were designed/ modified while following the strategic thinking characteristic introduced by Pisapia, Reyes -Guerra, and Yasin (2006) in their research inventory. The table 6 shows the details:
Table 6. Survey instrumentation - Section 3
Questions: 35-46
Indicator
Reference
Q35: I ask myself how the parts of an incomplete Figure connect
in a certain situation. Reflection situation -work Q36: I think intuitively about what is unique or unusual about a
certain problem situation. Reflection situation -work Q37: I think about questions I am neglecting to ask. Reflection- situation
handling
Q38: I think about what is important about this challenge. Reflection- situation handling
Q39: I try to understand how the facts in the situation are related
to each other. System thinking- investigative approach Pisapia, Reyes -Guerra, and Yasin, (2006; 2011 ) Q40: I look at the “big picture” in the information available
before examining the details. System thinking- investigative approach Q41: I investigate the cause before taking any action. System thinking-
problem solving Q42: I seek different perspectives while thinking about NPD
ideas. System thinking- problem solving Q43: I try to find a common goal when two or more parties are
in conflict. System thinking- conflict handling Q44: I engage in discussions with those who hold a different
point of view. System thinking- conflict handling Q45: I ignore my past experiences when trying to understand
situations presented to me. Reframing- situational referencing Q46: I create a plan to solve a problem before considering other
viewpoints. Reframing- situational referencing
The sequence of the referred construct item placement in the survey tool is as follows:
Figure 20. Plan of the survey tool for strategic thinking construct variables
Reflection– (Work Situation And Situation Handling) System Thinking- (Investigativ e Approach, Problem Solving and Conflict Handling Strategic Thinking Q36 Q35 Q37 Q38 Q3 Q4 Q4 Q4 Q4 Q4 Q4 Q4 Reframing- Situational Referencing
2.6.6.5 Arrangement of pseudo- transformational leadership construct variables in quantitative survey tool
In the research literature, pseudo transformational leadership focuses on identifying the conditions under which users are (or are not) satisfied with the quality and genuineness of the leadership. Transformational leadership is positively linked with subordinates’ enhanced trust levels (Conger and Kanungo 1994), while pseudo-transformational leaders use fear as a way to control their employees. Such leaders are highly focused on self-interest supported by their very personal sense of self-confidence, authority, and status by exploiting others (Howell and Avolio, 1993). In our survey, this concept refers to the level of faulty leadership patterns if existent within the work scenarios that can hamper the team´s new and innovative generation capabilities. The selected indicators seek feedback to reveal the grey areas in leadership practices if present within the target organization that can hinder the new product development idea generation team potential. In total, four questions were designed/ modified while following the pseudo-transformational leadership characteristic introduced by Barling, Christie and Turner (2008) in their research inventory. The table below shows the details:
Table 7. Survey instrumentation - Section 4
Questions: 47-50 Indicator Reference
Q47: When assigning tasks, I consider people’s
skills and interests through my judgment. Pseudo TL- inspirational motivation high Q48: I expect my kind of work from my team
members. Pseudo TL- inspirational motivation high Q49: I encourage everyone to work toward the
same goal through my way. Pseudo TL- idealized influence low Barling, Christie, Turner, (2008) Q50: Teams` performance is best when members
keep repeating the same tasks for perfection instead of learning new skills.
Pseudo TL- low idealized influence
Below is the sequence of the referred construct items placement in the survey tool:
Figure 21. Plan of survey tool for pseudo-transformational leadership construct variables
Summary of Chapter 2 - Literature Review
This chapter provides background support through literature references to develop the readers’ understanding of the main research domains (i.e. new product development idea generation through transformation leadership and strategic thinking) in this study. In addition, the chapter is divided into two parts: the first part highlights the theoretical background as discussed above, while the second half presents the empirical logic behind the formulation of the theoretical framework and the study’s instrumentation.
Pseudo TL- Low idealized influence Pseudo TL- High Inspirational motivation Pseudo Transformational Leadership elements Q4 Q4 Q4 Q5