Managing communication at the interface between R&D and marketing

Abstract

It is noted that reducing the time to market is a top priority in most technology-based organizations. Ways of doing this frequently emphasize the need to pay attention to the management of interfaces between functions and, in particular, between R&D and marketing. Research has identified important characteristics of this interface, but few studies have specifically considered the influence of project type. The authors discuss a simple framework which focuses attention on the uncertainty dimension, and then draw upon case examples from a research intensive industry to identify characteristics of the R&D-marketing interface which have an impact on management and organization performance.<>