Key Success Factors of Collaborative R&D Projects in the Small and Medium-Sized Companies in the Korean Electronic Parts Industry

우리나라 전자부품 중소기업에 있어서 공동기술개발의 성패요인

This study empirically examined different patterns of collaborative R&D project with their key success factors(KSFs), using data from 80 projects in the Korean electronic parts industry The patterns in this study were categorized into 4 types by two criteria : product types(off-the-shelf/unique) and project initiator (focal/partner). The bivariate relationships revealed that project characteristics (technological complexity, demand certainty), partner characteristics(the number of partners, precious experience), process characteristics (participation in the project formulation, specificity of the collaboration process and outcomes) appear to be different among four types of collaboration. Furthermore, this study found that each type of collaborative R&D projects has different KSFs for their commercial success. The KSFs of type 1 (off-the-shelf product and focal organization initiation), for instance, include the strategic importance of the project, the problem solving performance of the focal organization while those of type 4(unique product and partner initiation) are technological complexity, demand certainty, reliability of partner relationship, specificity of the goals, specificity of the process and outcomes, information sharing. Finally, based on this empirical results, managerial, policy, and theoretical implications of the study were discussed.