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Coordination in global R&D organizations: an examination of the role of subsidiary mandate and modular product architectures in dispersed R&D organizations
Journal
Technovation
ISSN
0166-4972
ISSN-Digital
1879-2383
Type
journal article
Date Issued
2014-10-12
Author(s)
Abstract
International research and development (R&D) operations require a significant amount of coordination between the headquarters and the subsidiaries in order to integrate the dispersed activities in one final product. This article explores what mechanisms multinational companies (MNCs) use to coordinate their overseas R&D units. Based on a multiple case study involving nine MNCs with overseas R&D subsidiaries of varying mandates, we find that R&D sites with high technology and/or market orientation tend to be coordinated by informal mechanisms while sites with little technology and/or market orientation tend to be coordinated by formal mechanisms. Furthermore, it appears that this relationship is strongly affected by the product's architecture: while rather complex R&D activities are conducted at the systems level and at sites with high technology orientation, less complex R&D activities are conducted at the component level at sites with low technology and market orientation. Finally, the findings suggest that modular product architectures have a coordinating effect in global R&D activities which have the power to lower firms' overall coordination effort. The findings bear important implications for the effective coordination of MNCs' international R&D subsidiaries.
Language
English
Keywords
Formal Coordination
Informal Coordination
Hybrid Coordination
Subsidiary mandate
R&D subsidiaries
Product architecture
Product modularity
Global R&D
MNCs
HSG Classification
contribution to scientific community
HSG Profile Area
SoM - Business Innovation
Refereed
Yes
Publisher
Elsevier Scientific Publishing Co.
Publisher place
Amsterdam
Volume
34
Number
10
Start page
594
End page
604
Pages
11
Subject(s)
Division(s)
Eprints ID
232106