In terms of business product innovation or innovation of the product is the introduction and development of a completely new, redesigned, or substantially improved product or service. More precisely, innovation of the product is not just developing an original or a new product, but also taking information from previous products and eventually making them better as per the demand of the customers, to provide a sustainable product. In addition to this, it should also be considered that research and study-based innovation is required to have pivotal results in terms of having development in the business sector. Although, implementing such a significant amount of research requires support from the administration or research council available in the nation. If proper steps are taken by the research council and administration then required facilities (including new technologies and sufficient funds), as well as social innovation, could be easily provided to the business sector. Moreover, this paper will be a research proposal for further research on the topic of “Innovation of product design and development for sustainability”.
According to Shin, Kim, & Yang, (2018), sustainability is one of the most important objectives when the major aim is of implementing or introducing innovation. However, the impact of sustainability is over performance is still unanswered. Moreover, it is believed that innovation is nothing new but a collection of already existing data in a new way or with a better representation for the improvement of the current situation. It is also believed that innovation is a basic study of change processes, integration of knowledge, and development of knowledge, to generate new combinations. They also stated that innovation should be described as something that is continuous and which could be counted as a cumulative process and not just a single moment. Innovation is counted as the major capability of the companies that are based on sustainable products or is counted as a sustainable company; thus, as a result of this, it could be said that innovation and sustainability are interlinked or connected. While talking or discussing innovation and its objectives, generally the major focus of the businesses is on the economic domain. According to this, factors like environmental and societal factors are unnoticed, and similarly, even if they are also the major concerns of society as well as business. Similarly, the factors related to sustainability as the objective are also unanswered.
Various techniques, processes, and theoretical approaches like manufacturing based on Computer systems, Manufacturing design, and Quality Function Deployment are all integrated to achieve the stages of the PLC process in order to implement product development and customer requirements (Ginting et al. 2020). In addition to this, it is also required to mention that the PLC process has stages which include, introduction, growth, maturity, and decline (Saputra, & Hendriarto, 2020). Moreover, to skip the disadvantages of decline, it is required the businesses to re-introduce something new and innovative, so that the required growth could be maintained. Similarly, if the following business also includes sustainability in its product, it eventually joins as a perk for the customers and their satisfaction. Moreover, all of them eventually showcase how much important both of these factors are for businesses.
Innovation is not a linear process, especially the one where the input implemented itself gets converted into the required output, and thus innovation should not be measured based on performance. instead of performance, innovation should be measured based on efficiency, where both the factors i.e., inputs and outputs should be considered. From the very earliest times, innovation has been studied by several authors and researchers, especially about how it affects and impacts firm performance. In addition to this, it is also required to mention that the paper provided by Shin, Kim, & Yang, (2018), results in facts like environmental enhancement negatively affects efficiency, whereas enhancement of safety positively affects efficiency.
According to Lv, (2018), approximately all companies and all prominent businessman believes that sustainable development has no alternative. Moreover, several companies believe that involving sustainability in their products is beneficial for them as it will eventually destroy the rest of the competition they have in a similar market. Moreover, the main reason for such a benefit is because of the environmental protection and safety improvement involved with sustainability. However, the only issue which is faced by the companies is that improvements aimed while considering sustainability are not achieved instantly, rather it is a slow or gradual process. As a result of this, the cost involved in involving sustainable development is recovered slowly. Although, once it is recovered, then the growth in the market, not just in terms of reputation but also in terms of economic stability is very significant.
Furthermore, as per Kneipp, (2019), when a company builds sustainability into innovation, it can create products that are beneficial for both organizations as well as society. Innovation is something that plays a vital role in a company’s survival as well as expected growth. Moreover, a business that does not look for innovation or does not introduce innovative ideas in their work, especially by providing innovative products, eventually fails in the market. Even there are situations where companies have to shut down their businesses, just because of the reason that their competitors have changed their business plans by implementing innovation in their work and they haven’t.
According to Bartumeus (2019), as far as sustainable innovation is concerned, it could be defined as something that includes intentional changes to a company’s goods, services, and other procedures and activities. Such changes are implemented to generate long-term environmental and social advantages along with working for the increment in the economic situation. However, it is also said that this method is slow in terms of offering economic growth, but alongside it is also needed to be noticed that it is the only way to help society and thus the reputation it improves is beyond any imagination.
Apart from sustainable innovation, another type of innovation is traditional innovation (Desmarchelier, Djellal, & Gallouj, 2018). When looked apparently, both type of innovation is the same, especially because of the reason that both of them have their major focus on the changes implemented in the products, services, and processes, to work for the betterment of the company. But small or basic features of sustainable innovation make it different and unique from another type of innovation i.e., traditional innovation (Bohnsack, et al., 2020). In the case of sustainable innovation, the major focus is to take care of all the factors including environmental factors as well as social factors. Besides this, it is also required to mention the sustainable innovation that their focus is to help the people of the current generation, without affecting or compromising the situation of the people from the upcoming generation, especially by taking care of their needs. In the case of such sustainable innovation, people require to keep the focus of their work on issues like social effects, human rights, climate change, and other environmental issues so that proper care of the earth or our surrounding could be taken. Since such companies are following sustainable innovation; thus, they very easily improve their reputation in the market. The major reason for this improvement in the reputation of the image is because the company is working not just in favour of their benefits but also for the benefits of environmental and social factors along with taking considerable care of their potential customers. Furthermore, in such cases, companies have to keep their major focus on the natural environment of the place, as well as on the whole market, to acknowledge the current situation of the market and further plan their proceedings (Bohnsack, et al., 2020). Lastly, it is also required to mention here that, such companies are also aware of how and in what way will the separate companies and other natural aspects will affect their company and accordingly how they have to plan for the same.
Moreover, Adomako, (2020), also stated that whenever a company is implementing innovation in their product design with the development of sustainability, it is obvious for them to further achieve the success that they are aiming at. However, there might be chances where the companies might take a longer time to reach success, but the main fact is that in such a case success is inevitable. Moreover, sustainable companies attract talented people, as they would also love to work under organizations that are reputed and thus cares about their people, especially in terms of their mental health and wellbeing as well as regarding the natural environment of the society. With such significant care for nature and society companies also gets involved with better people. For instance, people have admitted that their ethics and ethical considerations have eventually played a very major role in their career choices.
Now, it will be discussed the processes and procedures with the help of which sustainable innovation could be introduced. Although it might sound very easy and general to introduce such an innovation, ultimately it is not an easy task to do. To be precise, achieving such a sustainable innovation takes time. In addition to this, achieving a state where significant profits are also visible comes very late. Besides that, a certain amount of commitment and effort is also required for the same. Generally, we could put sustainable innovation among three categories or three types, which are organizational transformation, systems building as well as operational optimization.
In the case of organizational transformation, the major focus is to implement good things, especially by working upon new things (Selig, Gasser, & Baltes, 2018). Moreover, if an organization is looking for implementing organizational transformation, then it will be required for them to first change its mindset. As it is required by such companies to not work on making things better than before, they need to focus on how they can bring a new change in their work, products, or services. Lastly, it is also required to mention that, since the major concern is over sustainable development, thus the company also needs to focus on taking care of the social and environmental factors.
Furthermore, in the case of system building, the companies which are looking for involving sustainable innovation in their work, look for collaborating with other companies or the working style of other companies, which will be new and innovative at the end of the day (Van der Loos, et al., 2021). Moreover, such companies also need to focus that the company with which they are collaborating are beneficial for the planet or environment or not, to check the availability of sustainable factor. Thus, in the end, such companies after collaboration create a certain positive impact in terms of people as well as the environment. The main of system-building innovation is to do good things by doing new things, with others.
Lastly, in the case of operational optimization, the company focuses on doing the same thing which they have done for a very long, but just with a change in which the things will be done or implemented in a better way (Schram, et al., 2020). Moreover, in this case, they do not need to change the business model or framework, but just a change in their working style in a better way could be helpful in such cases. In addition, it could also be said that, just by involving social or environmental criteria in the earlier procedures of the company. Lastly, this type of innovation is also referred to as eco-efficiency.
The aim of this research proposal is to understand the sustainable process used in product development and how organizations use innovation.
To achieve the aim of the following research, here are some objectives that will eventually help the researcher to be on the right path, to achieve the required outcomes.
Question 1. What are the factors related to innovation that help the concerned companies to grow in the potential market?
Question 2. How does the development of sustainability and innovation is required in the PLC process of product development?
Question 3. What are the aspects which are ultimately reasonable for links between the innovation and sustainability of a company’s products and services?
H1a – Innovation and sustainability are interlinked to each other.
H1b – Innovation and sustainability are not interlinked to each other.
H2a – Sustainability has no other alternative when it comes to working upon innovation in product design.
H2b – Sustainability has an alternative when it comes to working upon innovation in product design.
Research design is an approach that eventually helps the researcher in acknowledging and further implementing a suitable framework for the rest of the procedures of the research. Generally, there are three types of research design. To begin studying these three research designs, let’s begin with a qualitative research design (Sileyew, 2019). As the name suggests, in the case of qualitative research design, the major focus of the research procedures is on the quality of data gathered for evaluating the findings and outcomes of the research (Johnson, Adkins, & Chauvin, 2020). Beyond this, it is also required to mention that here the researcher conducts an interview of certain participants or samples for the research, who are in some way or the other related to the major research concern (Sileyew, 2019). Moreover, qualitative research designs have limited responses with the appropriate quality of data.
Apart from that, another considerable research design is the quantitative research design. In this type of research design, the major focus of the researcher is on the quantity of the responses, especially to gather the data diversely so that it could be applied to the majority of the population. Besides this, a survey is conducted here by certain samples and participants, which are selected based on their relevance to the research concern (Ishtiaq, 2019).
Lastly, in the case of the third research design i.e., the mixed research design is the one that is nothing else but a combination or as the name suggests a mixture of the other two research designs. The major benefit of using this research design is that it helps the researcher to enjoy the perks of both other research designs at a single time (Schoonenboom, Johnson, & Froehlich, 2018).
Furthermore, after acknowledging the basic nuances of the research designs, it could be easily evaluated that selecting a quantitative research design would be suitable here. For instance, the quantitative research design will allow the researcher to acknowledge the diverse data about the research concern and thus will eventually help the researcher to evaluate the findings of the following research more easily and comfortably.
After selecting the research design, another major step of research is related to the collection of the required data for the further procedure, especially to eventually obtain the required outcomes (Zhou, et al., 2018). Moreover, such a method is known as data collection. There are two types of data collection methods i.e., primary data collection and secondary data collection (Littlejohns, et al., 2020).
In the case of primary data collection, the researcher will conduct a survey, where certain questions will be asked from the samples selected for the research (Windle, & Silke, 2019). Moreover, the majority of data gathered here will be the latest and updated, especially because the data is gathered from real-life people or participants. Apart from that, the data gathered here is more relevant to the current time, especially when compared to data gathered from another method of data collection (Windle, & Silke, 2019).
A secondary method of data collection will also be used herein in this research. The main reason for using this method is to collect data that is more valued and more authentic (Olabode Olateju, & Bakare, 2019). Generally, the data gathered in this process is gathered from previously published papers; for instance, research papers, journal articles, news articles, peer-reviewed articles, and other papers, written by prominent authors and researchers. Another beneficial reason for selecting this method is that it is cost-friendly.
Sampling is a process implemented under the head of primary data collection. Here particularly certain samples are selected from the survey, where they will take part as participants and will eventually help the researcher in gathering the required data (Lamm, & Lamm, 2019). In this research, a survey will be conducted in certain companies which are either working to involve innovation in product design and sustainable development or are already providing products that are innovative and sustainable as compared to other related products. At first, certain companies will be shortlisted. Further, an order of consent regarding the required survey will be taken. Afterward, samples will be selected who are in some way or the other related to the innovative and sustainable products their company is working on. Moreover, the selection process of the samples will be based on the method of non-probability sampling (Stratton, 2021). As the samples gathered here will be selected based on employees’ relation with working upon products that are innovative and sustainable. Lastly, the sample size for the following research will be 40.
Data analysis is the procedure of analysing the gathered data from previous methods i.e., research design and data collection, to convert or translate the raw data into valued data that could be used to evaluate the required conclusion for the research paper (Lowe, et al., 2018). Generally, there are several types of methods for data analysis purposes, such as thematic data analysis, statistical data analysis, contextual data analysis, disclosure data analysis. however, the data analysis method which will be suitable here use will be statistical data analysis, especially because of the reason that it will help the researcher to analyse the data gathered from both the methods of data collection i.e., primary and secondary data collection (Sarmento, & Costa, 2019). Apart from that another considerable reason for selecting this particular method of statistical data analysis method is that it will help in evaluating the results, findings, and conclusion of the paper by using tables and graphs.
Ethics are the standards that are needed by the researcher to maintain the well-being of all the concerned people with the research (Broesch, et al., 2020). Here in this paper also, while conducting the research, researchers will follow the guidelines provided by the administration of the university. Apart from that, the researcher will also provide proper resources which have provided the required data for the following research. For instance, in the case of primary data collection. The researcher will provide credit to the samples for the data they have shared. Similarly, the researcher will also take the consent of the samples or the participants of the research for the data that will be used in the paper, so that their choice could be given proper consideration, especially to avoid further conflicts (Suri, 2020). Lastly, as far as the case of secondary data is concerned, the researcher will provide proper citations and in-text citations to the used papers.
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Time consumed in completing the Research (In Months) |
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Research Activities |
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Presenting Research Topic |
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Presenting Research Aim, Objective, and Question |
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Gathering Secondary data |
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Presenting Literature Review |
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Gathering Primary data through Questionnaire |
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Presenting Research Methodology |
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Data Analysis and Findings |
As mentioned in the given table, the following timetable will be used, to complete the work related to research in the most effective manner. Since a plan is prepared for all activities, thus while working upon the same the researcher will be already aware of the speed, which they will need to follow, and hence the work could be completed in the given time with proper awareness. To begin with the following timeline, it is required to mention that initially, the research will look for a research topic, to match their topic with the requirements mentioned by the administration. Further, the next step as per the given table for the student will be the research aim, research objective, and lastly researcher question. By implementing the following requirements, a particular platform for the research will be planned according to which all further procedures could be planned for the betterment of the research, especially by working under the concern of aim, objectives, and research questions. All of these aforementioned activities related to the following research will be implemented within the first two months of the research. Further on, the upcoming three months will be focused on data collection. Here in this particular period, processes like primary data collection, sampling, and secondary data collection will be performed. Further, processes like data analysis, findings, and conclusion will be implemented at the last stage, which will eventually complete the research as per the requirements.
The following study will be on the topic of innovation and sustainability, however, the information that will be gathered from the survey or the secondary resources will be focused only on the random companies that have involved innovation and sustainability in their work. However, the research could have been rather focused on a particular country, especially the home country of the researcher, as it would have been helped the readers to get acknowledged about certain country’s particular situation, to be specific. Besides that, the research could also be focused on a certain company or industry, to be more specific about the details of the research topic and research questions.
Conclusion
After going through the entire paper, it could be concluded to a point that the following research related to this research proposal will be focused on facts related to the statement that innovation and sustainability are interlinked. Moreover, the following research will be using the methods like quantitative research design, under the head of which data collection from both the methods I.e., primary and secondary data collection will be done. Besides that, statistical data analysis will be used to analyse the data, especially to help the researcher look for the required outcomes of the research, under the given plan or given timeline.
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