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Discussion Questions. November 22 , 2012 POSTECH Strategic Management of Information and Technology Laboratory (POSMIT: http :// posmit.postech.ac.kr) Dept. of Industrial & Management Engineering POSTECH. Discussion Questions. Chapter 10. Organizing for Innovation
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Discussion Questions November 22, 2012 POSTECH Strategic Management of Information and Technology Laboratory (POSMIT: http://posmit.postech.ac.kr) Dept. of Industrial & Management EngineeringPOSTECH
Discussion Questions • Chapter 10. Organizing for Innovation • What factors should a firm take into account when deciding how centralized its R&D activities should be? Should firms employ both centralized and decentralized R&D activities? • Value of taking advantage of economies of scale • Opportunity to divide labor across a broader pool of R&D specialists • Importance of tapping local knowledge resources • Degree to which the divisions of the firm are likely to benefit from sharing innovations across them • Degree to which innovations will require substantial customization for the local market • Cost of coordination and communication across the divisions • Most organizations can benefit from some combination of both centralized and decentralized R&D activities, as a function of the importance of the previously mentioned factors,however the cost of coordinating the combination of centralization and decentralization must be taken into account
Discussion Questions • Chapter 10. Organizing for Innovation • Why is the tension between centralization and decentralization of R&D activities likely to be even greater for multinational firms than firms that compete in one national market? • Because of the greater magnitude of the differences between divisions • Characteristics of foreign markets • Likely to have diverse product needs, different operating norms, and even different legal and institutional structures • Often being source of diverse information and other resources • Physical and cultural distance between markets It ismore likely the innovations developed in decentralized local markets will not bediffused to other divisions or the customization that made a product attractive in one market may make it difficult to transfer to another Agreater likelihood the product will be met with the “not invented here” syndrome