مدیریت بهره وری پروژه "تحقیق و توسعه" در صنعت اسپانیایی

This paper shows the results from a survey to Spanish manufacturing firms on the use of indicators and techniques to analyze the efficiency of their R&D projects. Factor analysis revealed that project’s profitability and time indicators were those which most explained the variance of company’s efficiency analysis. On the other hand, ratios and financial analysis are the most used project evaluation methods. The differences in the use of indicators and techniques were significative for the most R&D intensive companies. The use of some evaluation methods was related to the control mechanisms applied to R&D projects.

R&D projects are risky investments for a private company. For example, many studies evidence that a 40% average of new product development projects fail to get benefits from the market [1]. As a consequence, R&D project efficiency is a very critical issue to CEOs and project managers. A survey carried out among the most intensive USA companies found that the main issue facing R&D managers was to measure and improve project efficiency [2]. However, R&D project efficiency is not an easy measurable concept. The measure of R&D efficiency includes not only information about the output and outcomes, such as patents, new products and profits, but also about the process leading to them. R&D project efficiency may be defined as the optimal use and management of R&D inputs and processes in order to achieve the project’s technology and market goals. An efficiently managed project uses more productively than the scarce resources of the R&D organization.

This paper briefs and discusses the results from a survey to Spanish industrial companies on their R&D project efficiency analysis. Seventy seven percent of the surveyed companies carried out efficiency analysis, being the probability greater in the more R&D intensive companies. Both quantitative and qualitative indicators were similarly used. The three most important indicators are related with costs and development times, and with the usefulness and achievement of the project technological goals. Some significative differences have been found within the use of some of these indicators according to the company’s R&D effort.