Innovation ecosystem strategies of industrial firms: A multilayered approach to alignment and strategic positioning

Klaasjan Visscher; Katrin Hahn; Kornelia Konrad

doi:10.1111/caim.12429

Innovation ecosystem strategies of industrial firms: A multilayered approach to alignment and strategic positioning

Klaasjan Visscher^*, Katrin Hahn, Kornelia Konrad

^*Corresponding author for this work

Digital Society Institute

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Academic › peer-review

24 Citations (Scopus)

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Abstract

There is a growing interest in innovation ecosystems. Embedding innovation processes in ecosystems comes with several opportunities and managerial challenges. This paper's aim is to increase our understanding of the strategies that industrial firm managers use to deal with innovation ecosystems. How do they align partners and activities while securing and developing their role in the ecosystem? Drawing on 98 interviews with CEOs, CTOs and innovation managers in Germany and the Netherlands, we identify two layers in innovation ecosystems: an explorative layer, which is open and aimed at identifying opportunities for innovation, and an exploitative layer, which is semi-closed and aimed at enacting these opportunities to create new value propositions for customers. We analyse how companies act upon these two layers productively, particularly in relation to alignment and strategic positioning; how they create synergies between the different layers; and how they cope with the existing tensions. Furthermore, we discuss differences in strategic choices regarding ecosystem strategies, and propose a maturity model for the development of innovation ecosystem strategies.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	619-631
Number of pages	13
Journal	Creativity and innovation management
Volume	30
Issue number	3
Early online date	16 Feb 2021
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1111/caim.12429
Publication status	Published - Sept 2021

Keywords

UT-Hybrid-D
Industrial firms
Innovation ecosystem strategies
Innovation ecosystems
Multilayered systems
Exploration and exploitation

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

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Visscher-2021-Innovation-ecosystem-strategies-of-Final published version, 903 KBLicence: CC BY

Cite this

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title = "Innovation ecosystem strategies of industrial firms: A multilayered approach to alignment and strategic positioning",

abstract = "There is a growing interest in innovation ecosystems. Embedding innovation processes in ecosystems comes with several opportunities and managerial challenges. This paper's aim is to increase our understanding of the strategies that industrial firm managers use to deal with innovation ecosystems. How do they align partners and activities while securing and developing their role in the ecosystem? Drawing on 98 interviews with CEOs, CTOs and innovation managers in Germany and the Netherlands, we identify two layers in innovation ecosystems: an explorative layer, which is open and aimed at identifying opportunities for innovation, and an exploitative layer, which is semi-closed and aimed at enacting these opportunities to create new value propositions for customers. We analyse how companies act upon these two layers productively, particularly in relation to alignment and strategic positioning; how they create synergies between the different layers; and how they cope with the existing tensions. Furthermore, we discuss differences in strategic choices regarding ecosystem strategies, and propose a maturity model for the development of innovation ecosystem strategies.",

keywords = "UT-Hybrid-D, Industrial firms, Innovation ecosystem strategies, Innovation ecosystems, Multilayered systems, Exploration and exploitation",

author = "Klaasjan Visscher and Katrin Hahn and Kornelia Konrad",

note = "Funding Information: The data collection has been carried out as part of the Industrial Innovation in Transition project, which was funded by the European Commission, under the Horizon 2020 programme funding scheme H2020 RIS/EURO-2-2014 under grant agreement no. 649351. We are grateful to our colleagues and collaborators in the IIT project team, both at the University of Twente and at the partner institutes, as well as to the managers who participated in the interviews. Funding Information: The data collection has been carried out as part of the Industrial Innovation in Transition project, which was funded by the European Commission, under the Horizon 2020 programme funding scheme H2020 RIS/EURO‐2‐2014 under grant agreement no. 649351. We are grateful to our colleagues and collaborators in the IIT project team, both at the University of Twente and at the partner institutes, as well as to the managers who participated in the interviews. Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2021 The Authors. Creativity and Innovation Management published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.",

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AU - Hahn, Katrin

AU - Konrad, Kornelia

N1 - Funding Information: The data collection has been carried out as part of the Industrial Innovation in Transition project, which was funded by the European Commission, under the Horizon 2020 programme funding scheme H2020 RIS/EURO-2-2014 under grant agreement no. 649351. We are grateful to our colleagues and collaborators in the IIT project team, both at the University of Twente and at the partner institutes, as well as to the managers who participated in the interviews. Funding Information: The data collection has been carried out as part of the Industrial Innovation in Transition project, which was funded by the European Commission, under the Horizon 2020 programme funding scheme H2020 RIS/EURO‐2‐2014 under grant agreement no. 649351. We are grateful to our colleagues and collaborators in the IIT project team, both at the University of Twente and at the partner institutes, as well as to the managers who participated in the interviews. Publisher Copyright: © 2021 The Authors. Creativity and Innovation Management published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

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N2 - There is a growing interest in innovation ecosystems. Embedding innovation processes in ecosystems comes with several opportunities and managerial challenges. This paper's aim is to increase our understanding of the strategies that industrial firm managers use to deal with innovation ecosystems. How do they align partners and activities while securing and developing their role in the ecosystem? Drawing on 98 interviews with CEOs, CTOs and innovation managers in Germany and the Netherlands, we identify two layers in innovation ecosystems: an explorative layer, which is open and aimed at identifying opportunities for innovation, and an exploitative layer, which is semi-closed and aimed at enacting these opportunities to create new value propositions for customers. We analyse how companies act upon these two layers productively, particularly in relation to alignment and strategic positioning; how they create synergies between the different layers; and how they cope with the existing tensions. Furthermore, we discuss differences in strategic choices regarding ecosystem strategies, and propose a maturity model for the development of innovation ecosystem strategies.

AB - There is a growing interest in innovation ecosystems. Embedding innovation processes in ecosystems comes with several opportunities and managerial challenges. This paper's aim is to increase our understanding of the strategies that industrial firm managers use to deal with innovation ecosystems. How do they align partners and activities while securing and developing their role in the ecosystem? Drawing on 98 interviews with CEOs, CTOs and innovation managers in Germany and the Netherlands, we identify two layers in innovation ecosystems: an explorative layer, which is open and aimed at identifying opportunities for innovation, and an exploitative layer, which is semi-closed and aimed at enacting these opportunities to create new value propositions for customers. We analyse how companies act upon these two layers productively, particularly in relation to alignment and strategic positioning; how they create synergies between the different layers; and how they cope with the existing tensions. Furthermore, we discuss differences in strategic choices regarding ecosystem strategies, and propose a maturity model for the development of innovation ecosystem strategies.

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Innovation ecosystem strategies of industrial firms: A multilayered approach to alignment and strategic positioning

Abstract

Keywords

UN SDGs

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