ISSN:0033-6807    

DOI:10.1111/j.1467-9310.1991.tb00755.x

出版商:Blackwell Publishing Ltd    

年代:1991

数据来源: WILEY

摘要:

For all the advances in the management of software research and development over the last few years, it is never easy to ensure that complex programmes of research are efficiently directed and assessed. There are a number of inherent difficulties that contribute to this, for instance—the complexity of modern technology, the abstract nature of research and the need to work in an area which is, by definition, largely unexplored. This paper discusses two techniques aimed at easing the evaluation of complex projects. Both techniques are designed to ensure that critical decisions and their dependencies are explicitly addressed. The effectiveness of the techniques is illustrated by their application to research in software engineerin

ISSN:0033-6807    

DOI:10.1111/j.1467-9310.1991.tb00756.x

出版商:Blackwell Publishing Ltd    

年代:1991

数据来源: WILEY

摘要:

This paper aims at helping innovators to rethink their overall approach to industrial design in product innovation. It examines the role of industrial design in product innovation and demonstrates with both normative and empirical evidence that industrial design is still neglected in British manufacturing industry. The research reveals that firms satisfied their industrial design needs through engineering designers in preference to professional industrial designers. It is concluded that to make the most of design and create market‐winning products, the synthesising, interfacing and ‘integratorial’ approach of an industrial designer is of paramount importance; engineering design, while both necessary and crucial, is by itself insufficient to ensure that innovative products satisfy physical form as well as functional requirements of customers/users. The paper warns that the continued inattention to industrial design may place UK firms at a competitive disadvantage in international ma

ISSN:0033-6807    

DOI:10.1111/j.1467-9310.1991.tb00757.x

出版商:Blackwell Publishing Ltd    

年代:1991

数据来源: WILEY

摘要:

The work here described is the early stages of a programme to develop a series of Expert Systems (ES's) in the management of R&D.In particular, the development of a prototype ES using a package program Crystal Ver. 2.1 is the focus together with the problems encountered.The literature had suggested that the use of such packages facilitated the process for those exploring ES's. What was not clear from the literature or the program manuals was the limited range of problems which could be handled. The programs have a rigid structure such that unless the logic of the problem solving process matches that of the program, severe difficulties will ensue.This paper outlines the inherent structure of the programs and indicates the kind of problems which would fit. Specific problems which were encountered when trying to stretch the use of the program are explained in detail. It goes on to explain how these problems were got round using Lotus 1–2–3 which proved far more flexible in practice. This kind of understanding is essential if ES's are to become every‐day tools of R&D management.The objective in developing the Expert System (ES) was for it to be advisory to those preparing project proposals for possible submission to higher management within the context of an R&D laboratory. Thus the intention was to capture the expertise of senior managers, make it available to more junior ones, and thereby improve the quality of their work. This concept proved to be naive in that the expertise proved to be so diffuse that a wholly new rationale to structure the expertise had to be developed. This process, the subsequent development into a prototype ES, and its evaluation, have already been published (Wilkinson, 1991).The literature on ES's had suggested that the use of available package programs was straight forward and that the real problem was in establishing the expertise to be used and in structuring it to fit the program. This too proved to be an over‐simplification. When this work started, the exact nature of the package programs had not been spelt out adequately. The purpose of this paper, Part II, is to describe their inherent structure and the limitations which this imposes on the kind of problems for which they can be used.The insights gained in this work into the evaluation of projects and the inadequacies of previous evaluation techniques will form the contents of Part III of this series of

ISSN:0033-6807    

DOI:10.1111/j.1467-9310.1991.tb00758.x

出版商:Blackwell Publishing Ltd    

年代:1991

数据来源: WILEY

摘要:

This paper addresses the issue of assessing the technical expertise within the organization of a large firm.It presents the results of a study that examined the technical competence of the human resources of a large, high technology company. Various data about the company's technical professionals (engineers, researchers, etc.) were systematically identified and collected.A general framework for the Strategic Management of Technology is first presented to explain the importance of constructing a firm's portfolio of technologies and competence.The design and construction methodology of the“Who's Who in Technology” (WWT)is then briefly described. Several possible uses of this tool are subsequently mentioned.Analyses across the technical staff population using the WWT data base are then presented in greater detail. They show how one may understand (1) the accumulation and utilization of the firm's competence over time, (2) the distribution of expertise within the organization, (3) the level of expertise reached, (4) the age distribution of the technical professionals, (5) the nature of the work experience of the technical staff, etc.The WWT scheme appears to be a practical and enlightening way to gain insight into a firm's portfolio of technical competence, while also providing the basis for a more appropriate methodology in technical human resource planning.Some limits of the tool are finally presented and discus

ISSN:0033-6807    

DOI:10.1111/j.1467-9310.1991.tb00759.x

出版商:Blackwell Publishing Ltd    

年代:1991

数据来源: WILEY

摘要:

Locational determinants are an important input into any internationalisation process, but they are difficult to rank and measure. This paper describes an attempt to do both in the arena of the international pharmaceutical industry. In particular, the dispersal of R&D activities to six target countries (US, UK, West Germany, France, Italy, Japan) is examined using thirty location‐specific factors which are analysed in detail. In addition, indicators of differentiation between the perspectives of US and European firms are derive

ISSN:0033-6807    

DOI:10.1111/j.1467-9310.1991.tb00760.x

出版商:Blackwell Publishing Ltd    

年代:1991

数据来源: WILEY

摘要:

This paper investigates changes in factors bearing on technology adoption decisions in small manufacturing firms. It is hypothesized that, as a firm's experience with technology increases and its technological capabilities grow, the decision process is gradually modified and puts more weight on those factors which are more closely related to the true potential of the technology. An empirical study shows the more innovative firms to have an outward orientation dominated by clients and suppliers, and to pay more attention to the added flexibility brought about by new technology. It is also shown that functional groups within the company play a more important role in the decision‐making proces

ISSN:0033-6807    

DOI:10.1111/j.1467-9310.1991.tb00761.x

出版商:Blackwell Publishing Ltd    

年代:1991

数据来源: WILEY

ISSN:0033-6807    

DOI:10.1111/j.1467-9310.1991.tb00762.x

出版商:Blackwell Publishing Ltd    

年代:1991

数据来源: WILEY

ISSN:0033-6807    

DOI:10.1111/j.1467-9310.1991.tb00763.x

出版商:Blackwell Publishing Ltd    

年代:1991

数据来源: WILEY

ISSN:0033-6807    

DOI:10.1111/j.1467-9310.1991.tb00765.x

出版商:Blackwell Publishing Ltd    

年代:1991

数据来源: WILEY