Technology Innovation Strategies and Organizational Designs for R&D: A Study of Taiwan Photonics Industry

• Main Authors: Chang Yu, 張瑀
• Other Authors: 周素娥
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2011
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/9ze8xy

碩士 === 臺中技術學院 === 企業管理系事業經營碩士班 === 99 === Technology innovation is a strategic weapon in high-technology industries. To yield the greatest value, companies should find a proper organizational design for R&D activities. This study of enterprises of Taiwan photonics industry investigates organizational designs of R&D, their technology innovation strategies, and group members of R&D activities. After in-depth interviews as a pilot test and subsequent questionnaires, cluster analysis and one-way ANOVA analysis were used for data analyzing. The results are as follows. Three organizational designs are used for R&D. They are decentralized, networked, and integrated organizational designs. R&D activities take place only within business units under decentralized design. Central R&D in networked design connects internal and external resources to form a network. Integrated design emphasizes communication and cooperation among individuals or groups for R&D project management. Integrated design is most widely adopted and generates greatest value from R&D but also spends more on R&D than the other two organizational designs. Companies choose appropriate organizational designs for R&D according to technology innovation strategies. Companies adopt decentralized design focus on improving existing products. Companies use networked design for pursuing new technologies. Companies choose integrated design for both improving existing products and pursuing new markets. The group members of R&D activities vary depending on organizational designs and stages of R&D. A new idea usually generates from sales or R&D people, and after the birth of a new technology, it is usually applied to products by R&D, manufacturing, process and QA departments. The result shows that integrated design seems to be the best choice. However, company size, capital and human resources should be taken into considerations before choosing organizational design. No matter which organizational design a company adopts, the company should lay stress on cooperation and communication, and respond to customer needs as well as market trends for better R&D results and revenue.