Building trust in multi-stakeholder collaborations for new product development in the digital transformation era

Purpose: The study aims to explore the critical approaches adopted by innovative organizations and to build an environment of trust between the multiple stakeholders collaborating for new product development (NPD). Design/methodology/approach: A qualitative research approach is adopted in this study. Fifteen semi-structured interviews were conducted with experts from the wood product industry in Quebec, Canada. These organizations have successfully adopted the latest technological developments and have developed a strong collaboration with their stakeholders. Findings: The study identified eleven strategies for the innovative organizations that included early involvement of the stakeholders in the design process, developing long-term relationships and fostering a transparent environment using Industry 4.0 technologies. A novel framework for using this strategy is presented with three stages of application, namely, planning, enactment and review. Practical implications: Inter-organizational collaborations in NPD are more successful when imbued with trust. The NPD strategies must allow innovative organizations to achieve a balanced ecosystem in which value created through the adaption of new technology can be thoroughly captured through commercialization on time with no field failure. Originality/value: The study adds to the body of knowledge in stakeholder theory and NPD research and practice.