Previous research has suggested that unlearning is not linked to performance improvements in a team setting. Further, unlearning may have deleterious effects on performance outcomes because when it happens, teams are likely to lose the way they perform tasks and the reasons for their operational existence. In contrast, this study predicts that teams can conduct exploitative and exploratory activities in a balanced manner predicated on unlearning practices to improve new product development (NPD) performance. We hypothesized that while unlearning allows NPD teams to balance exploitative and exploratory learning activities, simultaneous yet balanced exploitation and exploration at high levels, namely innovation ambidexterity, links unlearning practices to NPD performance. This occurs by providing task-relevant knowledge for the replacement of outdated routines and beliefs during NPD processes. Data were collected from 198 NPD teams (i.e., 464 individual participants). The examination of ordinary least squares regression-based path analyses revealed that innovation ambidexterity mediates the relationship of unlearning with NPD performance, operationalized as product development speed, cost, and product success. Overall, this study shows that the unlearning-performance relationship occurs through simultaneous exploitative and exploratory learning activities in a balanced manner.

先前的研究表明，学习与团队环境中的绩效提升没有关系。此外，学习不足会对绩效结果产生有害影响，因为一旦发生这种情况，团队很可能会失去执行任务的方式以及他们存在业务的原因。相比之下，这项研究预测，团队可以平衡地开展基于未学习实践的开发和探索活动，以提高新产品开发（NPD）的绩效。我们假设，虽然不学习使NPD团队能够平衡探索性和探索性学习活动，但同时又平衡但又平衡的高水平开发和探索（即创新的灵活性）将不学习的实践与NPD的绩效联系起来。通过提供与任务相关的知识来替换NPD过程中过时的例程和信念，可以实现这一点。从198个NPD团队（即464个个人参与者）收集了数据。对基于普通最小二乘回归分析的路径分析的检查表明，创新的灵活性在学习与NPD性能之间起到了中介作用，可作为产品开发速度，成本和产品成功进行操作。总体而言，这项研究表明，学习与学习的关系是通过平衡地同时进行探索性和探索性学习活动而发生的。对基于普通最小二乘回归分析的路径分析的检查表明，创新的灵活性在学习与NPD性能之间起到了中介作用，可作为产品开发速度，成本和产品成功进行操作。总体而言，这项研究表明，学习与学习的关系是通过平衡地同时进行探索性和探索性学习活动而发生的。对基于普通最小二乘回归分析的路径分析的检查表明，创新的灵活性在学习与NPD性能之间起到了中介作用，可作为产品开发速度，成本和产品成功进行操作。总体而言，这项研究表明，学习与学习的关系是通过平衡地同时进行探索性和探索性学习活动而发生的。