Fuqua School of Business - Strategy

The purpose of this paper is to develop and illustrate a performance-centered design (PCD) methodology for finding the underlying structure of ill-defined processes and problems. The context for our theoretical exposition is the fuzzy front-end of new product development (NPD). Within the NPD process, front-end concept definition and selection is central to a firm's innovation capability because it drives the entire NPD process. Yet, despite this fact, these activities are ill-structured and typically the most poorly managed activities in the entire innovation process. We propose that the front-end of NPD can be more effectively enabled through the simultaneous structuring and development of processes and implementation techniques. Through a case study, we illustrate the proposed PCD methodology and illustrate how electronic performance support technology can be utilized to support the fuzzy front-end process.

A new product originates from an idea, or in many cases, integration of multiple ideas. The process of transforming an idea into a robust concept requires definition of the underlying technologies, identification of expected customer benefits, and assessment of the market opportunity. The idea-development and subsequent idea-selection stages of new product development are often referred to as the "fuzzy front end" because they typically involve ad hoc decisions and ill-defined processes. To address this shortcoming, Nortel developed an idea-toopportunity front-end process that provides a consistent and structured approach for idea development and evaluation. This article describes the process and how it was implemented using electronic performance support technology.

Technologically Enhanced Performance (TEP) is the application of technology to improve the performance of knowledge workers. TEP is both an intellectual and ideological complement to the fi eld of Adult Education. As such, much can be learned about ethical issues associated with implementing TEP from the established research and literature base in Adult Education. The application of TEP in organizations brings to light at least six as-yet-unresolved ethical dilemmas that have been identifi ed through empirical research of Adult Education/ Training and Development practitioners: Confidentiality, Ownership of Instructional Materials, Confl icts of Interest, Finance and Financial Issues, Evaluating Student Performance, and Professional Competence and Credentials . Essential to resolving these issues is a framework for effective ethical decision making. McDonald's model on ways to reconcile ethical dilemmas in practice proposes that individual characteristics, the organization's ethical environment, and the profession's views of ethics are key factors which can contribute to this framework for ethical decision making. As organizations wrestle with these ethical issues in TEP, they should consider how well they support ethical decision making.

Training became more broadly utilized by management as a technique for standardizing characteristics of the organization that were much less directly related to task performance than ever before. The new objectives ranged from instructing organization members on more general information, values, and behaviors that management wanted to see followed in the workplace, to training-initiated programs intended to improve employee morale, motivation, or quality of worker's lives…. Training was soon treated as a near-universal methodology for the design of classroom events to ensure communication with employee groups, to change attitudes and behaviors, and to perform cultural transformations. Whenever there was an employee issue, so it seemed, the solution must be training. Practical limitations in training's capability and effectiveness were ignored (Pepitone, 1995 , p. 60). This shift away from task training to improving task performance and productivity was arguably the key event that caused the initial rift between corporate trainers and instructional technologists.