Successful innovation and the alignment of knowledge workers at the executive, management, and technical specialist levels

This paper focuses on the critical roles of knowledge workers when a firm pursues a major innovation project. In this context, we consider knowledge workers as those who contribute to a firm's performance at the executive, management, and technical specialist levels. Technical specialists include persons with advanced skills in engineering, analytics, statistics, science, and economics. By analyzing a series of case studies and personal interviews, we demonstrate that alignment (i.e., coordination, integration, and collaboration) among these knowledge workers is critical for the success of an innovation project. The paper concludes with a discussion of the responsibilities of knowledge workers at the executive, management, and technical specialist levels to ensure the necessary alignment occurs for successful innovation.

• 저널Production and Operations Management · 31(12) · 4589–4598
• 토픽Innovation and Knowledge Management · Strategy and Management
• DOI10.1111/poms.13853
• 저자Cheryl Gaimon, Janice E. Carrillo