Abstract In industrial product development with customers, it is well-known that lead userness is associated with novel and commercially attractive products. We take a next step by analyzing if lead userness is related to product development that potentially affects industry-level practices. Our main hypothesis is that lead userness results in the pursuit of Schumpeterian product opportunities: disequilibrating, radical, rare, and based on new knowledge and creative activities. In contrast, at low lead userness, more Kirznerian product opportunities are expected—which maintain industry standar ..read more

Abstract Firms that capture the benefits of innovation opportunities ahead of their rivals achieve superior rates of organic growth. These growth leaders don't wait for opportunities to appear before reacting. Instead, they systematically search for opportunities to select for development. Qualitative case analyses of four growth leaders found that each used two types of heuristics or rules of thumb while capturing innovation opportunities. Their top-down strategy heuristics were revealed with a wide-spectrum framework that reimagined and stretched each dimension of their strategy. Growth lead ..read more

Abstract Developing innovative, eco-friendlier products that gain traction in the mass market remains a persistent challenge for many firms. To bring consumers to choose “greener” alternatives over conventional products, firms need to overcome prevailing product evaluations that favor traditional solutions. Research on valuation entrepreneurship examines the strategies that actors apply to induce changes in established evaluations. Adding to the emerging literature on valuation entrepreneurship, our study analyzes how the car maker Tesla, Inc. used product design—material artifacts' properties ..read more

Abstract Scientific research demands robust findings, yet variability in results persists due to researchers' decisions in data analysis. Despite strict adherence to state-of the-art methodological norms, research results can vary when analyzing the same data. This article aims to explore this variability by examining the impact of researchers' analytical decisions when using different approaches to structural equation modeling (SEM), a widely used method in innovation management to estimate cause–effect relationships between constructs and their indicator variables. For this purpose, we invit ..read more

Abstract This paper builds theory on theatrical cultural design in corporate venturing units, such as manifested in playful esthetics (foosball tables and beanbags), startup lingo, or youthful behavior (building with Lego bricks and informal dressing). We develop a set of propositions, illuminating how theatrical cultural design can (de)legitimize corporate venturing units, highlighting three different functions: attention-direction function, social categorization function, and escapist function. In addition, we explain how such changes in legitimization can influence the resilience of corpora ..read more

Abstract Although the literature's case and longitudinal studies provide ample evidence of organizational routines that foster creative behaviors, it still lacks an integrative model of organizational creative capabilities (OCCs) and the quantitative evidence to validate such a model. This research is aimed at conceptualizing and developing a reliable and valid scale for OCCs. First, we define the OCC construct's domain by conducting an extensive literature review. We then generate a list of items for the five dimensions of OCCs through a qualitative study involving a group of 24 practitioners ..read more

Abstract A review of research on innovation and new product development points to certain foundational issues of concern such as the use of (1) different definitions of constructs germane to the field (e.g., definitions of innovation, innovativeness, and specific types of innovations), (2) different construct labels to refer to specific innovation types, and (3) the same construct label to refer to different innovation types. Over the years, scholars have cautioned that a body of research in a field of study that is based on different definitions of constructs germane to the field would slow t ..read more

Journal of Product Innovation Management, Volume 41, Issue 2, Page 159-160, March 2024 ..read more

Abstract Innovation is a key driver of firm success. To encourage innovation, firms often offer equity-based compensation, such as stock options, to better align CEOs' personal interests with shareholder value. Drawing on agency theory, we argue that stock options may not always benefit a firm by encouraging innovation. Instead, we demonstrate that CEOs intending to exercise their stock options have the incentive to be myopic in R&D management so that they can temporarily boost the stock price and, thus, increase their personal wealth. Using a unique multi-source dataset of 335 Standard &a ..read more

Abstract This study delves into the intricate relationship between customers' willingness to co-create (WCC) and the required level of co-creation (LCC) for effective service innovation adoption. In response to recent findings suggesting a “co-creation sweet spot,” beyond which additional co-creation activities have detrimental effects, this research aims to provide both theoretical and empirical insights into this phenomenon. Unlike previous investigations focusing on either the willingness to co-create or the level of co-creation at a particular point in time and overlooking potential intera ..read more