This study attempts to find a solution to the problem of a lack of employees and focuses on the role of the lead user in the success of fast-growing industries, especially in the field of the game industry. The comput...This study attempts to find a solution to the problem of a lack of employees and focuses on the role of the lead user in the success of fast-growing industries, especially in the field of the game industry. The computer game industry is one of the youngest and fastest growing new media industry sectors. Finnish gaming company, Rovio, is an excellent example of this phenomenal growth. The company hired up to 10 new people per week last year. However, labor shortages in the gaming industry make finding employees difficult. Utilizing lead users might be one solution for labour shortages in the gaming industry. A lead user is a user of a offering who currently experiences needs still unknown to the public and who also benefits greatly if he obtains a solution to these needs. This research describes one case where lead users in a game development process were utilized successfully. This research results indicate that lead users are a willing, untapped, and limitless source of innovation for the development process in industries where users feel passionately about the service.展开更多
The purpose of this study is to investigate the effects of collaboration with suppliers and lead users in new product development (NPD) on innovation behavior. Such collaborations are regarded as advanced forms of ext...The purpose of this study is to investigate the effects of collaboration with suppliers and lead users in new product development (NPD) on innovation behavior. Such collaborations are regarded as advanced forms of external alliances. Survey data from two hundred and fifty-two manufacturing companies were collected from the European Union. The results of multiple regression analysis showed that both suppliers’ and lead users’ collaboration in NPD significantly affected innovation behavior. Lead users’ collaboration showed higher impact on innovation behavior compared with suppliers’ collaboration.展开更多
文摘This study attempts to find a solution to the problem of a lack of employees and focuses on the role of the lead user in the success of fast-growing industries, especially in the field of the game industry. The computer game industry is one of the youngest and fastest growing new media industry sectors. Finnish gaming company, Rovio, is an excellent example of this phenomenal growth. The company hired up to 10 new people per week last year. However, labor shortages in the gaming industry make finding employees difficult. Utilizing lead users might be one solution for labour shortages in the gaming industry. A lead user is a user of a offering who currently experiences needs still unknown to the public and who also benefits greatly if he obtains a solution to these needs. This research describes one case where lead users in a game development process were utilized successfully. This research results indicate that lead users are a willing, untapped, and limitless source of innovation for the development process in industries where users feel passionately about the service.
文摘The purpose of this study is to investigate the effects of collaboration with suppliers and lead users in new product development (NPD) on innovation behavior. Such collaborations are regarded as advanced forms of external alliances. Survey data from two hundred and fifty-two manufacturing companies were collected from the European Union. The results of multiple regression analysis showed that both suppliers’ and lead users’ collaboration in NPD significantly affected innovation behavior. Lead users’ collaboration showed higher impact on innovation behavior compared with suppliers’ collaboration.