New product development management in emerging markets : case Study Analysis of Prodac

Details

Supervisors

Semal, Pierre ; Lejeune, Christophe

Faculty

Louvain School of Management

Degree label

Master [120] en Ingénieur de gestion

Abstract

In a context where organisations tend to orient themselves more and more towards emerging markets in order to capture a piece of the growing pie, it is crucial to understand how to differentiate yourself from your competitors by enhancing innovation abilities which is nowadays the number one driver of corporate growth and prosperity (Cooper, 2013, p. 3). When looking at innovation from an organizational perspective, three distinct approaches can be differentiated: • Innovation of the business model; • Innovation in processes; • Innovation concerning products and services. The scope of this thesis will focus on the third proposition, looking at how a company can efficiently and successfully develop and launch new products on the market. Which isn’t an easy task when almost one on two new products launched on the market is considered a failure (Adams, 2004). New product development has been a research topic for quite a long time: Robert Cooper, considered as a pioneer in this domain presented his stage-gate methodology of developing new products in the mid-1980s (Fuerst, n.a.). Nevertheless, although a lot of literature can be found about traditional new product development, I noticed that there wasn’t a lot of reliable research already available concerning new product development in emerging markets. As an advocate of the saying ‘Think globally, act locally’, I believe that processes that work perfectly in established markets such as Europe can usually not be effectively copied in developing markets such as Asia or Latin America. Which ultimately leads to the concept of ‘glocalisation’: A product or service has a higher probability of being successful if it is adapted to the local culture, i.e. if innovation is localised (Cassiolato & Lastres, 2000; McFarlin & Sweeney, 2014). Additionally, as a student selected for the International Business Program of the Louvain School of Management, I was able to undertake a six months internship abroad. An opportunity to accomplish this internship at Prodac, the Peruvian leader in steel wire transformation and coatings in terms of market share, and a partner of the multinational company Bekaert, was proposed to me. This unique international experience allowed me, as a member of the business development team, to be involved in the development and launch of new products on the Peruvian market. It also granted me the opportunity to have a clear picture of the company in general, and the steel wire industry in specific. I noticed that, although Prodac is strongly focused on bringing new products to the market, it didn’t have a clear methodology for this kind of process. Subsequently, this allowed me to frame a clear problematic as the foundation of my thesis with as title: New Product Development Management in Emerging Markets.