Suppliers Involvement in New Product Development - Essay Example

Suppliers Involvement in New Product Development Research Methodology Research Method The study will be performed by the use of the qualitative research method. Creswell (2007) explained a qualitative research method as a type of research in which the researcher seeks to gain in-depth understanding of human behaviour and the factors that govern their behaviour. This means that the proposed study which seeks to find supplier involvement in new product development (NPD) will be approached in such a way that the behaviour or organisations towards supplier involvement in NPD will be sought to be understood, as well as the factors that informs such behaviour. There are a number of reasons that informed the selection of qualitative research method. Most of these are directly linked to the strengths of qualitative research as identified in literature. One such reason is the fact that qualitative research ensures the collection of in-depth data, allowing that the problem or issue understand is better understood (Saunders, Lewis & Thornhill, 2003). What is more, the qualitative research ensures that data collected are based on participants’ personal categorisation of meaning (Kasim, Alexander & Hudson, 2010). This way, the interpretation of findings is always directly linked to the subjective involved in the study rather than making speculative conclusions. With the proposed study, using a qualitative research method will ensure that stakeholders who are directly involved in the research problem which include suppliers and project managers are the ones whose meaning and ideas count in the data that will be collected. Research Philosophy A research of this nature interplays with both the use of available knowledge, as well as the creation of new set of knowledge. It is on this basis that the research philosophy is defined as the researcher’s perception of the way knowledge is constructed (Cooper, 2008). From a philosophical framework, three major research philosophies can be identified which are positivism, realism, and interpretivism. Of these, the researcher proposes to use the interpretivism research philosophy. To use interpretivism, the researcher takes a philosophical position that knowledge is a complex phenomenon which cannot be generalised in a value-free and detached manner (Diriwächter & Valsiner, 2006). As a result of this, the researcher engages in a series of complex exploration of the given topic by applying critical interpretations to data collected until a conclusion is gradually established. Saunders, Lewis and Thornhill (2003) saw a very direct relation between interpretivism and qualitative research method, a reason for which it was selected as part of the overall methodology. As the qualitative research will make way for several open ended data to be collected based on the meanings that participants give, it is important that interpretivism be used to gain a detailed interpretation of all the data collected and later direct the interpretation made towards a common conceptual framework in drawing conclusions as to what the impact of supplier involvement in NPD is. Research Approach After the framework to knowledge construction has been identified, the research approach determines the exact procedure to be used in exploring knowledge in the study (Dellinger & Leech, 2007). In this, two major research approaches are identified that relate to different types of research methods. These are inductive approach and deductive approach. Of the two, inductive research approach has been recommended for the proposed study. The rationale for selecting inductive approach is in its direct relation and bearing with qualitative research method. This is because Diriwächter and Valsiner (2006) explained that in inductive approach, the researcher is provided with greater flexibility to modify the emphasis of the research until the desired goal is attained. This is unlike deductive approach where there is so much restriction to focus the data collection process around a hypothesis until the data collected either proves or disproves the hypothesis. In relation to the research topic, the inductive approach will be used in such a way that any theories or conclusions on the impact of supplier involvement in NPD will be based on the outcome of findings. This is in contrast to a deductive approach where the researcher would have had to set a hypothesis and try to test the hypothesis. The absence of any hypothesis in the study means that the concepts of the study can be widened to any extent to which the researcher feels is possible to find answers to the research questions set (Moballeghi & Moghaddam, 2008). Research Strategy Of the several research strategies available, the researcher proposes to use case study for the research. Green, Johnson and Adams (2006) explained a case study to be a type of research strategy in which the researcher identifies a unique problem or situation within a given research setting and critically studies the issue through data collection from the research setting. For the proposed study, the issue identified is supplier involvement in NPD whiles the research setting will be cross functional teams (CFT) of selected organisations. The case study is expected to be a multiple case study involving several organisations that have CFTs and engaged in NPD. Case study has been described as a very dynamic research strategy that makes it possible to use both quantitative and qualitative research methods. But when used in qualitative research, the defining moment for the researcher is expected to be the data collection procedure used. For this study, the case study will be used in a more exploratory and comparative manner whereby the outcomes of supplier involvement in NDP from different organisations will be explored in a qualitative manner and later compared to each other. From the trend of results from the various organisations, it will be possible to interpret the real impact of supplier involvement in NPD. Population and Sample The population of the study defines all people within the research setting with whom there is some level of possibility of including in the data collection process (Given, 2008). Basing on the nature of the study and the aim set out to be achieved, the population will comprise all CFT members of the targeted organisations. Two organisations will be targeted for the comparative case study. It is expected that the CFT of each of these organisations will comprise an average of 10 members. In all, an average of 20 people is expected in the population. The researcher is however not going to interact with all the members in the population due to time constraint. In effect, a sample size made up of 3 respondents from each organisation will be set. This will form a total of 6 respondents who will be used in the study as sample size. The sampling will take place through the use of purposive sampling technique. This is a type of sampling technique where not all people within the population have an equal chance of becoming part of the sample. Purposive sampling is conducive when it is believed that some people within the population stand a better chance of giving responses that meet the objectives of the researcher than other people (Hart, 2008). In line with this, the project managers at the organisations and their two deputies will be selected with the assumption that they have better access to information and data needed in finding the actual impact of supplier involvement in NPD. Instrumentation The research instrument is the tool that the researcher uses in collecting data from the respondents (Given, 2008). As part of the qualitative method used for the study, it is important that the instrument used will be one that allows for open ended approach to data collection. In line with this, the researcher plans on using an interview guide as the main instrument for collecting data. The interview guide is basically a set of question that guides the researcher during an interview session. As the name implies, the instrument will only be a guide and so actual questions posed to the respondents may be modified as and when it is necessary. The interview guide will be designed with the use of the research questions as an emphasis. This will be done so that the responses from the data collection process can directly represent the aim that the researcher wants to achieve with the study. The reason this is said is that the research questions were directly based on the specific objectives of the study, which were also based on the research aim. To ensure that the research questions are elaborative enough, the researcher shall critically review literature to find gaps in literature relating to the research questions so that the study will be used as a means of addressing the gaps. Data Collection Procedure The actual data collection procedure is expected to take place as a one-on-one face-to-face semi-structured interview. This means that instead of interviewing respondents in a group, the researcher shall engage in each of the 6 respondents in a personal interview. When this is done, it is expected that the respondents will have much freedom to express their personal thoughts and opinions without being influenced by what other people may think or perceive about their responses. This is expected to be a modality that will enhance the credibility of the data to be collected (Kasim, Alexander & Hudson, 2010). The interview is also expected to be face-to-face rather than phone interview so that the researcher shall have the opportunity of collecting not just verbal responses from the respondents but also non-verbal information expressed through means such as gestures, facial expression and mannerisms. Hunter and Leahey (2008) observed that the fact that qualitative research gives researchers the opportunity to such non-verbal forms of information is a useful advantage that ensures that both the behaviour of people and the factors that influence their behaviour are better understood. All necessary ethical considerations shall be observed including the fact that participation in the study shall be strictly voluntary. No personal data of respondents will also be made available. What is more, the interview shall be transcribed instead of tape recorded so that it will be easier to protect the identities of respondents. References Cooper, H. (2008). Synthesizing Research: A Guide for Literature Reviews. Harlow: Pearson Education Limited. Creswell, J. (2007). Review of the Literature, Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications. Dellinger, A. B. & Leech, N. L. (2007). "Toward a Unified Validation Framework in Mixed Methods Research". Journal of Mixed Methods Research; Vol. 1, No. 4, pp. 309–332. Diriwächter, R. & Valsiner, J. (2006) “Qualitative Developmental Research Methods in Their Historical and Epistemological Contexts” FQS. Vol 7, No. 1, Art. 8 Given, L. M. (2008). The Sage encyclopedia of qualitative research methods. Los Angeles, Calif.: Sage Publications. Green, B. N., Johnson, C. D., & Adams, A. (2006) "Writing Narrative Literature Reviews for Peer-Reviewed Journals: Secrets of the Trade". Journal of Chiropractic Medicine; 5(3), pp. 101–114. Hart, C. (2008). Literature Reviewing and Argumentation. United Kingdom. London: Sage Hunter, L. & Leahey, E. (2008). "Collaborative Research in Sociology: Trends and Contributing Factors". The American Sociologist 39 (4): 290. Kasim, R., Alexander, K. & Hudson, J. (2010). A choice of research strategy for identifying community-based action skill requirements in the process of delivering housing market renewal. Research Institute for the Built and Human Environment, University of Salford, UK. Moballeghi, M. & Moghaddam, G.G. (2008). "How Do We Measure Use of Scientific Journals? A Note on Research Methodologies". Scientometrics (1): 125–133. Saunders, M., Lewis, P. & Thornhill, A. (2003). Research Methods for Business Students. Harlow: Pearson Education Limited. Read More