Managers’ search practices at the front end of radical manufacturing technology innovations

Managers of manufacturing firms have important tasks in choosing novel technology solutions for the firm’s production process. The emergence of ideas for radical manufacturing technology innovations and managers’ proactive search for radical ideas and concepts for developing production processes have not been well understood. This study concentrates on managers’ search practices at the front end of radical manufacturing technology innovations. We analyzed managers’ practices in the early phase of nine radical manufacturing technology innovation projects across three firms. Radical manufacturing technology innovations require acknowledging both process innovations for the manufacturer and product innovations for the equipment supplier. The findings revealed alternative patterns regarding the use of directed and autonomous search processes, internal and external information sources, and open and closed supplier search. This study offers new knowledge on the nature of the information processing task that managers face and on the search practices managers use at the front end of radical manufacturing technology innovations. The study contributes by differentiating the managers’ search practices based on the specific innovation scope in terms of the technology, equipment, and production concept. Managers are portrayed as active agents in renewing the production processes of a firm. Propositions are offered concerning the drivers and use of managers’ search practices at the front end of radical manufacturing technology innovations.