Unilever’s Product Development: Collaborative Innovation

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Table of Contents

Introduction
Research Questions and Objectives
Literature Review
Research Design
Conclusion
Reference List

Introduction

Nowadays organisations become more globally- and socially-oriented, creating innovative solutions with minimal restrictions and maximum opportunities for teamwork. Innovations present essential grounds to enhance the long-known products and services, thus meeting the latest requirements of customers and those of the rapidly changing world. Offering the right solutions to provide relevant products and services to customers, both for their business and personal life – this is innovation per se.

The prospects of collaborative innovation are explained by a range of advantages. There is the possibility of the comprehensive use of the efforts of the project partners at the preproduction, production, and marketing stages, which contribute to the achievement of positive externalities due to the synergistic effect. The unification of the most powerful complementary elements of the productive forces belonging to partners, such as qualification, implicit skills, etc. also serves as the core benefit of collaborative innovation.

Research Questions and Objectives

This paper proposes the research on collaborative innovation as a way to foster Unilever’s product development. The rational for the selection of the mentioned theme is caused by its importance to nowadays environment and demand for high-quality products in the sphere of home care and personal care. Unilever refers to the international corporation that offers the market more than thousand brands, each of which is aimed at facilitating everyday lives of people (Working in partnerships to improve the lives of millions 2017, para. 1). It is worth turning one’s attention to the fact that the high-quality products of this company help plenty of people to look good and feel great as well as have the cleanest and beautiful homes possible.

Unilever strives to continuously develop and initiate new actions to remain competitive and competent in the corresponding field. According to the official website of the company, it states feasible and valuable goals to serve the society that focus on helping more than one billion people to improve their health and well-being, reduce the impact on the environment twice, and enhance the living conditions for millions of people by 2020 (Working in partnerships to improve the lives of millions 2017, para. 2).

In this connection, it becomes evident that the company pursues to develop in terms of corporate social responsibility (CSR) and create as well as maintain customer-oriented and environmentally-friendly products. In the light of the above statements, the key research question may be identified as follows: how collaborative innovation may improve Unilever’s product development? The hypothesis that is to be either verified or rejection in the perspective study assumes that collaborative innovation influences the performance indicators of Unilever positively, increasing its product development.

In order to make the research more specific, it is necessary to articulate several objectives and connect them to each other so that the study would embrace the core issues regarding the theme. Thus, the following objectives are to be pursued in the proposed research:

To reveal the previous and current collaborative efforts conducted by Unilever to develop its products;
To specify the ways, approaches, and instruments that were involved in collaborative innovation;
To reflect on changes that were made in the course of these efforts, pinpointing any positive or negative aspects and analysing them in detail;
To identify potential collaboration options and assume recommendations for the perspective beneficial changes in the long-term perspective.

Literature Review

The global partnerships are an essential part of the contemporary business model, and the growth of companies is directly related to the ability of implementing positive social changes and reducing the environmental impact. First of all, it seems necessary to identify the phenomenon of collaborative innovation. Hartley, Sorensen, and Torfing (2013) argue that the paramount goal of collaborative innovation activity is to enhance the efficiency of production, gain advantages in competition, and, as a result, obtain additional profit and serve the society. Saunière et al. (2013) believe that “collaborative innovation must be embedded in enterprise strategy with a sustainable vision and measurable objectives” (p. 5).

The methodology and principles of the organisation of collaborative innovation provide such an integration of knowledge, in which partners retain their independence and specificity, yet their theoretical constructions are united around systematic methods of the research that amalgamate the recent data in order to boost up their practical effectiveness.

In order to reform and revolutionise the way of production or a product through the implementation of collaborative innovation and, more generally, through the utilisation of new technological opportunities, the production of fundamentally new products or existing goods by new methods requires new resources in the form of intellectual inputs, ground-breaking managing approaches, and the integration of several contributors (Lee, Olson, & Trimi 2012).

The collaborative innovation is defined by Leavy (2012) as innovative entrepreneurship – a special innovative process of creating something new based on the constant search for original opportunities by all the contributors engaged in the process. At this point, the latter is associated with the willingness of partners to take on all the risk of implementing a new product or improving an existing one along with financial, ethical, and social responsibilities that are likely to arise at the same time.

One of the focal advantageous here, as stated by Chesbrough, Vanhaverbeke, and West (2014), concerns the capability of ensuring control by the partners and provide timely correction, fostering the degree of adaptation of products to the conditions of the external environment. Thus, in general terms, collaborative innovation can be defined as the social, technological, and economic process, leading to the creation of the best products and services by means of practical application of shared knowledge and innovations.

Greer and Lei (2012) provide critical insights on collaborative innovation with customers (CIC) that “involves the processes by which firms and customers engage in mutual innovation, instead of the broader OI issues of acquisition or divestiture” (p. 64). Reviewing the existing scholar literature on the mentioned issue, the authors reveal that technological progress made it possible to engage customers from all over the globe in collaborative efforts, focusing on collective product development, idea sharing, and collaborative elaboration of innovative solutions. As Greer and Lei (2012) emphasise, these benefits the companies and their customers as both receive the outcome they strive for and the implementation of their ideas. Moreover, the process of CIC fosters competition on the corresponding market, improves management procedures, and reduces costs required to develop a new product.

Speaking of Unilever’s contemporary involvement in collaborative innovation, it is possible to pinpoint several studies, media articles, and also the company’s website that present the information regarding the contemporary efforts. In particular, one may exemplify the study by Greer and Lei (2012), in which it is noted that “viewers of an online series, which is sponsored by Sprint and Unilever, submit ideas for story plots and vote on the submissions of the viewer community” (p. 69).

This means that Unilever collaborates not only with other organisations, but also with its customers on the online platform (Frow et al. 2015). To implement these on practice, the company makes significant changes and seeks for the global partnerships that allow working with those who share their values and plans, in particular, the active and creative customer that are interested in participation of the company’s collective actions and promotions.

Furthermore, UN agencies, social investors, government, non-governmental organisations, funds, and other interested stakeholders are engaged in collaborative innovation. According to the studies by Katzy et al. (2014) and Ojasalo and Kauppinen (2016), these partnerships help to exert more influence and implement continuous and sustainable changes in terms of Unilever’s Plan for Sustainable Living.

In accordance with it, Unilever strives to improve the lives of people related to the entire supply chain, “from the millions of smallholders and farmers who grow our ingredients, through the network of entrepreneurs and retailers who sell our products, to the billions of consumers who use them” (Working in partnerships to improve the lives of millions 2017, para 4). The partnerships of the company are established to positively influence health and well-being of people, enhance their care opportunities, and create businesses free of any discrimination.

Unilever collaborates with both local and international companies in order to fit the national market and develop on a large scale, respectively. Syneron Medical, Pfizer, Boehringer Ingelheim, Merck, AstraZeneca, Arrow, and plenty of others are among partners of Unilever (The power of collective action – and the need for more 2016). For example, there is a product for water purification called Pureit Source that was developed in collaboration with Hindustan. There are six strategic centers for development that are located in Netherlands, India, USA, Great Britain, and China. Thus, Unilever expands the strategy of cooperation with partners in order to develop a number of important innovative projects that are expected to support the sustainable growth of the organisation.

Research Design

Research Methodology

The empirical method seems to be the most appropriate for the proposed research due to the fact that it implies the systematic and purposeful perception of an object of interest, including phenomena, properties, states, and aspects, presenting the comprehensive method of study (Saunders, Lewis, & Thornhill 2016). The purpose of the future empirical study is to analyse the impact of collaborative factors on the performance indicators of Unilever.

The research will focus on the mixed method design, involving both qualitative and quantitative data. Bryman and Bell (2015) reckon that the mentioned method “entails making decisions about which kind of research question are best answered using a quantitative research method and which by a qualitative method, and about how best to interweave the different elements” (p. 657). While quantitative estimation will be carried out on the basis of the tools of correlation and regression analysis, using the SPSS software package, qualitative research will be conducted with the help of literature review and interviews with the representatives of the company (Adams & ‎Lawrence 2015).

Such traditional sources of data as the company’s website, the credible Internet sources, media publications, the available data of official statistics, etc. will be taken into account.

The effect of innovation activity will be determined by the commercial and budgetary effects that reflect the financial consequences of implementing collaborative innovation activities of Unilever (Zikmund et al. 2013). It will be calculated as the difference between financial results and expenses and can be either positive or negative. The budgetary effect characterises the financial consequences of implementing the results of innovation and is estimated as the difference between revenues from innovation activities and expenditures of the corresponding budget for its implementation.

Sample Analysis

Speaking of quantitative research method, one may note that the following indicators of collaborative innovation will be properly collected and accurately analysed: the number of new products by year, the share of new types of products in its total volume by years, and competitiveness of products in the world market. More to the point, the degree of progressiveness of collaborative innovation, scope of work on the innovative improvement of production as well as their absolute and relative change by years will also help to address the study objectives. The evaluation of economic, environmental, and social results, for example, the level of profit as a result of innovation introduction, the resource endowment of products, etc. will also be involved (Sekaran & Bougie 2013).

The indicators that are to be assessed in the course of the literature review concern the experience of the company in the field of shared innovation and its role in the company’s performance. A range of studies will provide the complete vision of the situation (Hair et al. 2015). The interviews with Unilever representatives will focus on their perceptions and attitudes regarding the impact of collaborative innovation and will be provided in a free form. The audio recording will make it possible to analyse and interpret the collected data.

Quality Aspects and Potential Limitations

First, the lack of official statistical indicators of collaborative innovation may impede or limit the complete implementation of the study, since statistical bodies do not collect data, for example, on the duration of joint innovation projects to assess the sustainability of the choice of cooperation partners, which requires additional expert interviews and quality interviews (Creswell 2013). Secondly, it is not always clear whether the indicators to be analysed may serve as a sign of competitiveness of the company or the factor that determines this competitiveness. Nevertheless, the consideration of potential shortcomings provides the opportunity to improve work on the study in the future.

Accordingly, the analysis will be complemented by qualitative sources of information as well as the corresponding analysis mechanisms, thus ensuring the overall quality and also specifics of the proposed research.

Ethical Considerations

The proposed research will be conducted according to the ethics that ensure safety and security of respondents. The researcher will refrain from any actions that may cause physical or psychological harm, using methods that are least likely to confuse or insult respondents. Miller et al. (2012) claim that ethical considerations are especially important in the process of the qualitative research as it is associated with sensitive information. The participation in the study will be voluntary, and participants will be informed about all the features of the study, including its content and possible consequences in advance so that they can decide on their participation. No additional information will be collected either in the written form or the audio format. The respondents will be free to ask any questions regarding the study before and after it.

The consent form will clearly present all the ethical issues and will be provided in advance.

Timeframe and Resources

The identification of timeframe is necessary in order to plan and conduct the study on time (Forsyth 2013). In case any complications occur, it will be possible to adjust the research details without spending considerable time and efforts. The following Graph 1 presents the estimated timeline that may be utilised to track the progress of the perspective study:

As for the required resources, there are human, temporary, and intellectual ones. In particular, the researcher will mobilise his or her intellectual resources and spend some efforts and time to collect the achievable data, analyse it, and make adequate conclusions.

Conclusion

With this aforementioned speculation in mind, it becomes evident that this proposal opens the way for the further research on the role of collaborative innovation in Unilever’s product development. The research question and objectives along with the hypothesis are identified to outline the core goals of the perspective study. The brief yet comprehensive literature review provides some essential insights regarding the concept of collaborative innovation, its role in nowadays environment, and application in Unilever context, in particular. The detailed research design clearly identifies the issues related to methodology, sample, potential limitations, ethics, and timeframe.

The focal rationale for the initiation of the proposed research is that it is expected to reveal the significant role of collaborative innovation and analyse its characteristics, thus suggesting appropriate strategies to develop these initiatives and contribute to the company’s growth in accordance with its mission and values.

Reference List

Adams, KA & ‎Lawrence, EK 2015, Research methods, statistics, and applications, Sage Publications, Thousand Oaks, CA.

Bryman, A & Bell, E 2015, Business research methods, 4th edn, Oxford University Press, London.

Chesbrough, H, Vanhaverbeke, W, & West, J (eds) 2014, New frontiers in open innovation, Oxford University Press, Oxford.

Creswell, JW 2013, Research design: qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches, Sage Publications, New York, NY.

Forsyth, P 2013, How to write reports and proposals, Kogan Page, London.

Frow, P, Nenonen, S, Payne, A, & Storbacka, K 2015, ‘Managing co‐creation design: a strategic approach to innovation’, British Journal of Management, vol. 26, no. 3, pp. 463-483.

Greer, CR & Lei, 2012, ‘Collaborative innovation with customers: a review of the literature and suggestions for future research’, International Journal of Management Reviews, vol. 14, no.1, pp. 63-84.

Hair, JF, Celsi, MW, Money, AH, Samouel, P, & Page, MJ 2015, Essentials of business research methods, 2nd edn, Sharpe, Armonk, NY.

Hartley, J, Sorensen, E, & Torfing, 2013, ‘Collaborative innovation: a viable alternative to market competition and organizational entrepreneurship’, Public Administration Review, vol. 73, no. 6, pp. 821-830.

Katzy, B, Turgut, E, Holzmann, T, & Sailer, K 2013, ‘Innovation intermediaries: a process view on open innovation coordination’, Technology Analysis & Strategic Management, vol. 25, no. 3, pp. 295-309.

Leavy, B 2012, ‘Collaborative innovation as the new imperative–design thinking, value co-creation and the power of “pull”’, Strategy & Leadership, vol. 40, no. 2, pp. 25-34.

Lee, SM, Olson, DL, & Trimi, S 2012, ‘Co-innovation: convergenomics, collaboration, and co-creation for organizational values’, Management Decision, vol. 50, no. 5, pp. 817-831.

Miller, T, Birch, M, Mauthner, M, & Jessop, J 2012, Ethics in qualitative research, 2nd edn, Sage Publications, New York, NY.

Ojasalo, J & Kauppinen, H 2016, ‘Collaborative innovation with external actors: an empirical study on open innovation platforms in smart cities’, Technology Innovation Management Review, vol. 6, no. 12, pp. 49-60.

Saunders, M, Lewis, P, & Thornhill, A 2016, Research methods for business students, 7th edn, Pearson, Harlow.

Saunière, JC, Leroyer, S, Boudin, S, & Jean, G 2013, Collaborative innovation and intellectual property. Web.

Sekaran, U & Bougie, R 2013, Research methods for business, 6th edn, Wiley, Chichester.

The power of collective action – and the need for more 2016. Web.

Working in partnerships to improve the lives of millions 2017. Web.

Zikmund, WG, Babin, BJ, Carr, JC, & Griffin, M 2013, Business research methods, 9th edn, Cengage Learning, Mason, OH.

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