Identifying purchasing competences and organizational configuration for innovative product development

Along with the increasing involvement of suppliers, the purchasing function's role as a strategic business partner in innovative product development has been well recognized. Also recognized are the resulting organizational configuration issues. The aim of this study is to identify the fundamental competences underlying the purchasing function and the corresponding organizational configuration forces for optimal innovative performance. Based on the literature, a descriptive framework is developed, including thirteen sets of purchasing competences, seven organizational configuration forces, three innovative performance measures, and the interconnections among them. Case studies are performed in local leading innovation companies to obtain practical insights in framework elements and their relationships. The results of these case studies have verified the contribution of the identified purchasing competences and configuration forces to innovative performance. Based on the case study results, managerial analysis is provided, in attempting to provide practitioners with a better understanding of interactions among purchasing competences, organizational configuration forces, and innovative performance measures.