How Innovation Happens: Practical Insights from Cox Industries, Inc.

Authors

  • Eric Hansen Oregon State University
  • Barry Breede Cox Industries, Inc.

Keywords:

innovation, business model innovation

Abstract

The forest sector is often characterized as mature, resistant to change, and lacking innovation. To address this situation, the forest sector literature is replete with calls to company managers to embrace innovation and foster innovative culture. However, the process of innovation, i.e., how innovation actually takes place within forest sector firms has not been previously described. We address this important knowledge gap. In so doing, we also aim to bridge the practitioner - researcher gap through our novel methodological approach. Our findings suggest that a committed and patient leadership is required to bring about the culture change needed for improved innovation. Another critical element is the integration of business strategy and innovation strategy. Finally, our results show that smaller operations, navigating in an intensely competitive sector, have the potential to experience significant success via innovation efforts.  

Author Biographies

Eric Hansen, Oregon State University

Professor of Forest Products Marketing

Department of Wood Science and Engineering

Barry Breede, Cox Industries, Inc.

Chief Innovation and Marketing Officer

Cox Industries, Inc.

860 Cannon Bridge Rd.

Greenville, SC 29115

References

Augusto, M., & Coelho, F. (2009). Market orientation and new-to-the-world products: Exploring the moderating effects of innovativeness, competitive strength, and environmental forces. Industrial Marketing Management, 38(1), 94-108.

Avenier, M. J., & Cajaiba, A. P. (2012). The dialogical model: developing academic knowledge for and from practice. European Management Review, 9(4), 199-212.

Bartunek, J. M., & Louis, M. R. (1996). Insider/outsider team research. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications. 85 pp.

Bartunek, J. M., & Rynes, S. L. (2014). Academics and practitioners are alike and unlike the paradoxes of academic–practitioner relationships. Journal of Management, 40(5), 1181-1201.

Björkdahl, J., & Börjesson S. (2011). Organizational climate and capabilities for innovation: A study of nine forest-based Nordic manufacturing firms. Scandinavian Journal of Forest Research, 26(5), 488-500.

Bull L., Hansen E., & Jenkin B. (2015) Maximising the potential of Australia’s forests – collaborating and innovating to realise the opportunity. Workshop Report and Response to the Forest Industry Advisory Council’s Strategic Directions Issues Paper. Lynea Advisory. Melbourne Australia. 25 pp.

Bullard, S. H., & West, C. D. (2002). Furniture manufacturing and marketing: Eight strategic issues for the 21st century. Forest and Wildlife Research Center, Bulletin. FP-227, Mississippi State University. 24 pp.

Crespell, P., & Hansen, E. (2008). Work climate, innovativeness, and firm performance in the US forest sector: In search of a conceptual framework. Canadian Journal of Forest Research, 38(7), 1703-1715.

Crespell, P., Knowles, C., & Hansen, E. (2006). Innovativeness in the North American softwood sawmilling industry. Forest Science, 52(5), 568-578.

Deshpande, R., & Webster Jr, F. E. (1989). Organizational culture and marketing: defining the research agenda. The Journal of Marketing, 53(1), 3-15.

Dobni, C. B. (2010). The relationship between an innovation orientation and competitive strategy. International Journal of Innovation Management, 14(02), 331-357.

Elenkov, D. S., & Manev, I. M. (2005). Top management leadership and influence on innovation: The role of sociocultural context. Journal of Management, 31(3), 381-402.

Han, X., & Hansen, E. (2015). Marketing sophistication in private u.s. sawmilling companies. Canadian Journal of Forest Research, 46(1), 181-189.

Hansen, E. N. (2010). The role of innovation in the forest products industry. Journal of Forestry, 108(7), 348-353.

Hansen, E. (2006). The state of innovation and new product development in the North American lumber and panel industry. Wood and Fiber Science, 38(2), 325-333.

Hansen, E., Nybakk, E., & Panwar, R. (2014). Innovation insights from North American forest sector research: A literature review. Forests, 5(6), 1341-1355.

Hansen, E. & Bull, L. (2010). An illustration of lessons for forest sector researchers and managers from current new product development research. Journal of Forest Products Business Research, 7(4),1-7.

Hansen E., Juslin H., & Knowles C. (2007). Innovativeness in the global forest products industry: Exploring new insights. Canadian Journal of Forest Research, 37(8),1324-1335.

Hansen, E., Dibrell, C., & Down, J. (2006). Market orientation, strategy, and performance in the primary forest industry. Forest Science, 52(3), 209-220.

Hogan, S. J., & Coote, L. V. (2014). Organizational culture, innovation, and performance: A test of Schein’s model. Journal of Business Research, 67(8), 1609-1621.

Hurley, R. F., & Hult, G. T. M. (1998). Innovation, market orientation, and organizational learning: an integration and empirical examination. The Journal of Marketing, 62(3), 42-54.

Husso, M., & Nybakk, E. (2010) Importance of internal and external factors when adapting to environmental changes in SME

sawmills in Norway and Finland: The manager’s view. Journal of Forest Products Business Research, 7, 1-14.

Hämäläinen S., Näyhä A., & Pesonen H. L. (2011) Forest biorefineries–A business opportunity for the Finnish forest cluster. Journal of Cleaner Production, 19(16),1884-1891.

Knowles C., Hansen, E., & Shook, S. R. (2008) Assessing innovativeness in the North American softwood sawmilling industry using three methods. Canadian Journal of Forest Research, 38(2), 363-375.

Kilic, K., Ulusoy, G., Gunday, G. & Alpkan, L. (2009). Innovativeness, operations priorities and corporate performance: Analysis based on a taxonomy of innovativeness. Journal of Engineering and Technology Management, 35(1),115-133.

Korhonen, S., & Niemelä, J. (2005). A conceptual analysis of capabilities: Identifying and classifying sources of competitive advantage in the wood industry. The Finnish Journal of Business Economics, 54(1), 11-47.

Leavengood, S., Anderson, T. R., & Daim, T. U. (2014). Exploring linkage of quality management to innovation. Total Quality Management & Business Excellence, 25(9-10), 1126-1140.

Leavengood, S., & Bull, L. (2013). Innovation in the global forest sector. 377-404. In, The global forest sector: Changes, practices, and prospects. C Eds. Hansen, E., Panwar, R., & Vlosky R. RC Press, Boca Raton, FL. 462 pp.

Nakamura, M., Nelson, H., & Vertinsky, I. (2003). Cooperative R&D and the Canadian forest products industry. Managerial and Decision Economics, 24(2‐3), 147-169.

Narver, J. C., & Slater, S. F. (1990). The effect of a market orientation on business profitability. The Journal of Marketing, 54(4), 20-35.

Roos, A., & Stendahl, M. (2016). The emerging bio-economy and the forest sector. In, Forests, Business and Sustainability. 179-201. Eds.

R. Panwar, R. Kozak & E. Hansen. Earthscan Routledge. 213 pp.

Rubera, G., & Kirca, A. H. (2012). Firm innovativeness and its performance outcomes: A meta-analytic review and theoretical integration. Journal of Marketing, 76(3), 130-147.

Spetic, W., Kozak, R. and Vidal, N. (2016). Critical Factors of Competitiveness for the British Columbia Secondary Wood Products Industry. Bioproducts Business, 1(2), 13-31.

Stendahl, M., & Roos, A. (2008). Antecedents and barriers to product innovation–a comparison between innovating and non-innovating strategic business units in the wood industry. Silva Fennica, 42(4), 659-681.

Stendahl, M., Roos, A., & Hugosson, M. (2007). Product development in the Swedish and Finnish sawmilling industry–a qualitative study of managerial perceptions. Journal of Forest Products Business Research, 4(4), 1-24.

Tushman, M. L., & O’Reilly III, C. A. (1996). Ambidextrous organizations: Managing evolutionary and revolutionary change. California Management Review, 38(4), 8-30.

Weiss, G., Pettenella, D., Ollonqvist, P., & Slee, B. (2011). Innovation in forestry: Territorial and value chain relationships. MPG Books Group. 331 pp.

Van de Ven, A. H. (2007). Engaged scholarship: a guide for organizational and social research. Oxford University Press. New York. 330 pp.

Välimäki, H., Niskanen, A., Tervonen, K., & Laurila, I. (2004). Indicators of innovativeness and enterprise competitiveness in the wood products industry in Finland. Scandinavian Journal of Forest Research, 19(sup5), 90-96.

Yin, R. K. (2009). Case study research: Design and methods. Sage Publications. Thousand Oaks, California. 219 pp.

Downloads

Published

2016-05-20

Issue

Section

Empirical Manuscripts