Open collaborative innovation and digital platforms

Abstract

This study uses contract theory to analyse the relationship between open collaborative innovation strategies and digital platforms. We argue that a collaborative mechanism and governance of the platform affect how operations are run and impact firm ambidexterity. We also explain how the twofold revealing strategy, both selective and free occurs via the platform and how governance positively impacts the coordination mechanism. A case study analysis on TIM OPEN draws a ground-breaking framework for future investigations. The analysis suggests that the combination of digital platform and collaborative innovation can facilitate the creative process and be a driver of operational synergies. Results confirm that the adoption of digital platforms for collaborative innovations reduces transaction costs.     

The evolution of intellectual property strategy in innovation ecosystems: Uncovering complementary and substitute appropriability regimes

In this article, we attempt to extend and nuance the debate on intellectual property (IP) strategy, appropriation, and open innovation in dynamic and systemic innovation contexts. We present the case of four generations of mobile telecommunications systems (covering the period 1980–2015), and describe and analyze the co-evolution of strategic IP management and innovation ecosystems. Throughout this development, technologies and technological relationships were governed with different and shifting degrees of formality. Simultaneously, firms differentiated technology accessibility across actors and technologies to benefit from openness and appropriation of innovation. Our analysis shows that the discussion of competitiveness and appropriability needs to be expanded from the focal appropriability regime and complementary assets to the larger context of the innovation ecosystem and its cooperative and competitive actor relations, with dispersed complementary and substitute assets and technologies. Consequently, the shaping of complementary and substitute appropriability regimes is central when strategizing in dynamic and systemic innovation contexts. This holds important implications for the management of open innovation, innovation ecosystems, platforms, and coopetition.     

Improving innovation performance through environmental practices in the fashion industry: the moderating effect of internationalisation and the influence of collaboration

In recent years, the scientific literature on supply chain management has increasingly debated on environmental sustainability as well as collaboration, presenting these issues as an important source of innovation along the supply chain. By combining literature streams on environmental sustainability, supply chain collaboration and innovation at the supply chain level, this paper aims to analyse whether the adoption of environmental sustainability practices and collaboration along the supply chain implies better innovation performance, in terms of differentiation from the competitors for higher quality, product or process. The paper also investigates whether the internationalisation, in terms of both production and distribution activities, negatively moderates this relationship. The study focuses on the fashion industry, and a survey of major Italian fashion companies was conducted. The main results of the research clearly show the positive impact of these practices on innovation performance. The paper also proves the existence of a moderating effect exerted by internationalisation on the relationship between environmental sustainability and innovation performance.     

Trust,partner selection and innovation outcome in collaborative new product development

A key feature of collaboration in general and collaboration for innovation in particular is the existence of trust. Trust is important because it reduces the costs and risks involved in collaboration, while also increasing the overall performance. This article explores the role that trust plays during the selection of suppliers in new product development (NPD), and the outcome that reliance on trust has on the innovation effort. The research involves a case study of two organisations following contrasting approaches to NPD sourcing, but both relying on collaborative, long-term relationships. In both cases, we find goodwill trust as the key variable explaining the reliance on collaboration. We also find that over-reliance on goodwill trust and geographical proximity in selecting NPD suppliers leads to an emphasis on incremental innovation which hampers the ability of both organisations to engage in radical NPD.     

Assessing the lead market potential of countries for innovation projects

This paper presents an approach to assessing the potential of countries to lead the global adoption of an innovation and to set a global product or process standard. It can be observed that the specific design of an innovation diffuses worldwide after it has been adopted in a single country. We suggest that there are nation-specific characteristics that increase the likelihood that a locally preferred innovation design will become successful in other countries, too. Once users in a market that has lead market characteristics have adopted a specific innovation design, the possibility increases that users in other countries subsequently adopt it as well. We present a lead market concept for the development of global innovation designs. By focusing on the design of the innovation that responds to the preferences within the lead market, a company can leverage the success experienced in the lead market for a global market launch. In order to follow a lead market strategy of new product development, it is necessary to assess the lead market potential of countries before an innovation is developed and tested in the market. We use an indicator-based methodology that approximates the lead market attributes of countries. The assessment methodology is applied to two innovation projects at the truck division of DaimlerChrysler.     

Effects of intellectual capital and university knowledge in indigenous innovation: evidence from Indian SMEs

Abstract

Intellectual capital and collaboration with universities are vital knowledge management practices for small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to innovate and improve the effectiveness of their operations. This study investigates empirically the impacts of intellectual capital and university knowledge on indigenous innovation and how business and institutional environments affect the relationships. The research model is tested using moderated regression analysis and data collected from 150 SMEs in India. The results show that intellectual capital and university knowledge improve indigenous innovation, both individually and interactively. The effect of intellectual capital in indigenous innovation is amplified by dysfunctional competition whereas the effect of university knowledge in indigenous innovation is attenuated by environmental uncertainty. In addition, we find that indigenous innovation is positively associated with business performance. The impact of indigenous innovation on business performance is enhanced by dysfunctional competition but reduced by environmental uncertainty.     

A framework for evaluating the benefits of collaborative technologies in engineering innovation networks

In times of rapid economic change, the decrease in knowledge value becomes inversely proportional to its speed of obsolescence, with successful organisations seeking to connect more rapidly and more effectively with others in the creation of new knowledge. The past decade has seen a growing interest in communities of practice as a method for transferring and generating knowledge within product development, rooted as they are in the nature of knowledge creation as a socially embedded process. Given the widespread adoption of collaborative technologies as facilitative platforms for innovation in the interactions of contemporary communities of practice, the objective of this research is to develop an evaluation paradigm and employ it to examine how such interaction is facilitated through the medium of Web 2.0 technologies. The contribution of this research to theory and innovation technology practice will be to further the understanding of collaborative technologies by examining the impact of Web 2.0 technologies on engineering innovation networks. Furthermore, it brings together the three diverse research areas of technology innovation, internet collaborative tools and psychological barriers and enablers.     

Open innovation and organizational features: An experimental investigation

This paper reports experimental results on open innovation in which free-riding, efficiency and spillover depend on the ability to affect the number of innovation contributors, and the modularity of the innovation task. This paper provides a tractable laboratory setting that relaxes the restrictive assumption of the theoretical literature that costs of development are independent across individuals. We have induced more distributed problem solving and spillover of knowledge when the process is more non-modular. When efficiency is measured as the percentage of profits made over maximum profits, small groups were more efficient than large groups in the non-modular production environment and efficiency was higher in the modular production environment irrespective of group size. Significantly, there was a higher percentage of spillover in the non-modular production environment, especially for large groups.     

External knowledge search,absorptive capacity and radical innovation in high-technology firms

Open innovation and absorptive capacity are two concepts based on the idea that companies can leverage the knowledge generated externally to improve their innovation performance. The aim of this paper is to analyse the joint effect of open innovation and absorptive capacity on a firm's radical innovation. Open innovation is expressed in terms of external search breadth and depth strategies and absorptive capacity is described by distinguishing between potential and realized absorptive capacity. In order to test our hypotheses, we carried out empirical research in firms operating in high-technology industries. The results indicate that internal routines and processes for absorbing external knowledge help explain radical innovation as they show a significant effect of potential and realized absorptive capacity. Also, there is a moderating effect of absorptive capacity on open innovation. Specifically, potential absorptive capacity exerts a positive effect on the relationship between external search breadth and depth and radical innovation. Realized absorptive capacity moderates the influence of external search breadth. These findings confirm the complementary nature of absorptive capacity and open innovation search strategies on radical innovation.     

开放式创新社区集体智慧涌现的生态演化分析——基于知识开放视角

开放式创新社区是企业实施开放式创新的重要载体,部分领先企业通过开放式创新社区集聚全球的创新者,凝聚集体智慧,攻克创新难题;然而很多企业却无法从中获得预期收益。融合知识管理、生态学理论,本文从知识开放视角深入探讨开放式创新社区集体智慧涌现的内在机理。运用Lotka-Volterra模型,分别探讨"用户主导"与"企业引导、用户主导"型社区中多主体知识交互的生态演化规律,并对演化过程予以数值模拟。研究发现：企业知识开放是开放式创新社区集体智慧涌现的关键影响因素;在不同的生态关系中,集体智慧涌现的水平会有所差异。     

用户-企业共享价值诉求与企业创新能力关系研究——以顾客授权为中介

企业吸纳用户参与创新过程,是构建并提升创新能力的重要途径。但作为外部创新源,用户参与创新虽然将价值创造与价值消费形成闭环,却以企业开放创新过程为条件,这加剧了创新过程的复杂性,也使用户参与提升企业创新能力的内在机理难以洞悉。基于价值共创理论、用户创新理论与创新能力理论,本文从企业方面探索如何吸纳用户参与创新过程进而提升创新能力的内在规律。基于202份国内企业样本,首先探索了用—企共享的价值诉求构念内涵与结构。在此基础上,以"动机构建→授权导引→能力发展"为脉络研究价值共创视角下企业创新能力提升机理。发现：（1）用户参与的社会性价值预期能够有效提升企业二元性创新能力;（2）用—企共享的独异价值预期（功能性价值）能够有效提升企业渐进性创新能力;（3）顾客授权在"用—企"共享的社会性价值诉求与渐进性创新能力之间起到局部中介的作用。     

Open innovation and quality management: the moderating role of interorganisational IT infrastructure and complementary learning styles

This study seeks to explain the influence of quality management on the relationship between open innovation and performance. We propose that, to contribute to open innovation performance, an organisation’s commitment to quality improvement must rely on the combination of its own resources and capabilities and its open innovation partners’ resources and capabilities. Specifically, we examine the moderating role of an interorganisational IT infrastructure and the complementarity of learning styles among an organisation committed to quality improvement and its supply network. Using data from 270 managers of European firms, our results show that the negative effects of quality management on open innovation performance can be overcome by complementing the organisation’s learning style with that of its open innovation partner, particularly, its supply network, and, most importantly, obtaining information technologies compatible with those of its supply network members.     

Successful innovation through inter-company networks

Companies are now investing in the new technologies of the 1990s. This article deals with the central question of why and how companies work together on technological innovation. First the author looks at the reality of technological innovation, and review reasons why companies might want to work together in this area. They then uncover the different types of collaboration involved in technological innovation. These forms are innovation networks, and they identify several success factors for innovation networks.     

R&D投入与产学研绩效关系的实证研究

利用广东省产学研合作企业的调查数据,探讨了产学研合作中不同属性的R&D投入之间关系及其对创新绩效的影响。研究结果表明:从产学研R&D资金构成来看,政府资金在引导企业增加研发投入方面起到了杠杆作用;政府公共研发投入对企业R&D支出的杠杆效应大于挤出效应;社会资金参与研发活动的总量较低;企业自有研发投入在获取核心竞争优势、提升企业创新绩效中起主导作用;中小企业参与产学研合作的积极性更高,但与大企业相比合作成效不显著;出口导向对合作企业吸收国外技术溢出的促进作用不显著。     

创新互动框架下组织领地氛围对利用性技术创新的影响:一个被调节的中介模型

利用性技术创新是企业把已有的知识、技术和市场转化为商业价值的手段,能够塑造企业的竞争优势。本研究基于创新的互动观点和领地性理论探讨了组织领地氛围对企业利用性技术创新的影响,并识别出其发挥作用的中介机制和边界条件,由此构建出包括组织氛围(领地氛围)、组织结构(控制导向的HRM系统)和各部门主体(跨部门协调)在内的整合模型。本文以146家企业的2113名成员为样本,收集了多源数据,结果发现组织的领地氛围作为约束组织成员行为的"软"的要素会降低跨部门协调进而不利于利用性技术创新的实现。进一步,控制导向的HRM系统作为组织的结构性要素,是约束组织成员行为的"硬"的要素,能够通过调节跨部门协调与利用性技术创新之间的关系来缓冲领地氛围对利用性技术创新的消极的间接效应。研究结果对领地性理论、技术创新和HRM系统研究具有重要的理论意义。     

Management innovation: a dynamic analysis of the implementation phase over time

Abstract

We develop management innovation theory, providing insights into the role of time in the implementation phase. The management innovation literature has sought to empirically identify factors that facilitate or hinder management innovation implementation from a static perspective. To address the evolution of these factors’ resistance, a temporal perspective is appropriate, but an analysis of these factors’ evolution over time is lacking. We identify the inhibiting factors that influence the management innovation implementation phase over time and address ways in which they evolve.We conduct a comparative longitudinal and dynamic analysis based on two intermediate-sized enterprises and address the obstacles that emerge during the implementation phase of a specific management innovation: lean manufacturing. Our results highlight different categories of inhibiting factors: some inhibiting factors appear at the beginning of the implementation phase with high intensity and then fade over time; conversely, other inhibiting factors appear later and then increase in intensity.     

理性视角下管理创新研究述评

管理创新一直是学术界和实务界积极探讨的焦点问题,基于此,从理性视角采用归纳法和比较法对管理创新研究做了较为系统的梳理。针对管理创新内涵表达的不一致性,在解析4个关键问题的基础上进行了重新界定;针对管理创新影响因素研究呈现多而散的特点,在归纳4个分析层面的基础上构建了一个整合分析框架;针对管理创新研究方法的多元化,在比较各种方法的基础上提议应加大多案例研究法的使用;最后,就未来研究所关注的4个基本问题做了进一步讨论。     

Innovation communities' contributions throughout firms’ innovation processes: An outdoor sports industry case study

Although it is crucial for firms to select openness patterns and strategies to involve innovation communities more effectively, the literature treats innovation communities as homogeneous. However, organizations may mobilize various innovation communities, including external and/or internal members. Similarly, little is known about how firms may involve those different types of innovation community during the distinct phases of their innovation processes. In this context, our main research questions are: For what contributions do companies solicit innovation communities? Do these contributions vary in content and intensity depending on the community and the phase of the innovation process? We distinguish between three types of innovation community (user, practice, and epistemic) and use a dynamic approach, considering four innovation process phases (opportunity recognition, search for solutions, development, and diffusion). The multicase study design includes three iconic firms from the outdoor sports industry and relies on archival data, observations, and 31 semidirective interviews with members of their innovation teams. Our results first show the important involvement of innovation communities during the innovation process. They also highlight the complementary use of those communities to manage their contributions, alongside their dark sides, better. Finally, we emphasize the crucial contribution of internal communities of practice in the firms’ open innovation strategies.     

基于三方演化博弈的政产学研协同创新机制研究

政产学研协同创新是实施创新驱动，推动国家和区域经济发展的重要动力，然而企业牵头、高校参与的协同创新机制存在弊端。鉴于此，本文构建了政府引导、高校牵头、企业参与的协同创新三方演化博弈模型，分析了政产学研三方在协同创新过程中的策略选择，并用仿真分析研究了政产学研协同创新策略选择的影响因素。结果表明：政府、企业和高校受彼此参与意愿的影响程度不同；政府不同的激励机制对企业和高校的影响存在差异；企业对惩罚力度和收益分配更加敏感。     

多主体参与的开放式创新模式研究

针对我国企业由于创新封闭,造成研发经费投入重复浪费等问题,探讨一种更能充分有效地利用企业内外部资源进行创新的多主体参与的开放式创新模式。运用博弈论方法,构建一个基于企业、供应商、顾客三方参与的开放式创新模型,分析在不同开放程度下,各参与主体的福利变化情况。研究表明,随着创新模式的开放,将更多参与者吸引到企业创新中,是有利于提高各方及整体福利的。