CHAPTER 1
A Comparison of MedTech Supply Chain Strategies in Switzerland and the Czech Republic
Bublu Thakur-Weigold ETH Zurich, Patrick Dümmler HealthTech Cluster Switzerland, and Jana Vlckova VSE Prague
This paper compares the Supply Chains of Medical Technology (MedTech) firms in two open European economies: highly-developed Switzerland, and the emerging Czech Republic. The focus is on MedTech because it is fast-growing and important to the economies of both locations, and like other manufacturing sectors, has undergone fragmentation of production across Global Value Chains (GVCs). Firm-level data and on-site interviews are analysed to describe MedTech supply chains in the two contrasting European locations. Both GVC methodology and Supply Chain Mapping are applied to case studies to identify factors which influence competitiveness. Supply Chain patterns and GVC positioning differ between locations because Switzerland focuses on high value-added activities such as R&D and branding. Specialized manufacturing (especially of therapeutic products), is also located there, in spite of high costs. By contrast, the Czech Republic focuses mostly on low value-added activities, such as manufacturing of disposables, although several domestic innovative companies are notable. We generalize four types of firms, and describe strategies of their supply chains within their macroeconomic conditions and business cultures.
CHAPTER 2
The Importance of Design Newness and Innovation: Two In-Depth Case Studies
Wykella Patrick, Verizon AdFellow-Account Management, McCann New York
New products need a certain level of newness and innovation in order to be successful in a market. These decisions of level of newness and innovation are made by the new product development (NPD) manager. In order to determine the level of value and the way consumers evaluate products, a strong understanding of consumers in the market must be present. The research explores the connection and differences between product design, design newness, and innovation and its importance to consumers. The dimensions in the idea of product design are briefly discussed. Elements of radical and incremental innovation are present throughout the research in addition to the relevance of category schema and learning cost inferences. The main goal of this research is to examine how consumers respond to product innovations through various experiments. Discovering the positive and negative influences that affect product evaluations of new products provide responses to their radical innovations. Numerous results emphasize that both design and technical newness are important drivers of sales. However, the effects differ widely across the product life cycle. An experimental study as well as case studies are presented throughout the research to illustrate the comparisons of the high and low levels of design newness for both radical and incremental innovations. Throughout the research we also plan to address the following research question: How does the newness of a products design coincide with the purchase response to the consumer's actual use of the product? Each managerial implication outcome poses for future research.
Keywords: design, design newness, radical, incremental, innovation, consumers, category schema & learning cost inferences
CHAPTER 3
How do Organizations Utilize Social Media to Innovate? Analyzing the Role of 'Absorptive Capacity' in Social Media Driven Organizational Innovations in Higher Education Initiatives
Cassidy Clement, Marc Donato, and Anshu Arora, Wilkes University
About the Author:
Anshu Saxena Arora is Associate Professor of Marketing at the Jay S. Sidhu School of Business and Leadership, Wilkes University, USA. With more than a decade of industrial and academic experience, Anhsu is the Senior Editor of Marketing for the International Journal of Emerging Markets.
Sabine Bacouel-Jentjens is Professor of Management at ISC Paris Business School, France, where she is the Head of the Management department and directs the International Business Management Master Program. Sabine is also Head of the school's Assessment of Learning Committee and has previously worked in both specialist and management positions at Dresdner Bank and Allianz Group in Germany.
Jennifer J. Edmonds is the Associate Dean in the Jay S. Sidhu School of Business and Leadership, Wilkes University, USA. Jennifer is an Associate Professor in Statistics and Operations Management and is interested in efficiency, sustainability, and a better workplace.
