Journal ArticleDOI
The value of a "failed" R&D project : an emerging evaluation framework for building innovative capabilities
Maria Elmquist,Pascal Le Masson +1 more
TLDR
If projects can be evaluated in terms of how they contribute to the building of innovative capabilities of the firm instead of independently, a framework for evaluating projects from an additional perspective is proposed.Abstract:
In literature and R&D organizations alike, project success consists in minimizing the deviations from set targets in terms of quality, cost and time. The main management task is to execute and monitor progress to reduce risks – assuming that project attributes are known, necessary resources can be estimated and a reasonable time table can be agreed upon. In such a context, evaluating project success is easy. However, in an innovative context, setting project targets initially is difficult and the contributions of the projects sometimes are of an unexpected nature. This paper investigates if projects can be evaluated in terms of how they contribute to the building of innovative capabilities of the firm instead of independently. Based on a case study at the Re´gie Autonome des Transports Parisians and the theoretical framework of innovation fields, a framework for evaluating projects from an additional perspective is proposed. Based on the following four criteria: financial resources, the development of a structured, refined and expanded strategic vision, developed competences (with related suppliers) and identification of knowledge gaps (occasionally with related partners for knowledge production), this framework shows how seemingly failed R&D projects can instead be considered as invaluable to the overall innovation process.read more
Citations
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Journal ArticleDOI
How Do Young Firms Manage Product Portfolio Complexity? The Role of Absorptive Capacity and Ambidexterity
TL;DR: Using a sample of 215 young high technology firms, support is found for positive moderating effects of absorptive capacity and ambidexterity on the inverted U‐shaped relationship between PPC and firm performance.
Journal ArticleDOI
Analysis of innovation in SMEs using an innovative capability-based non-linear model: A study in the province of Seville (Spain)
TL;DR: In this paper, organizational characteristics associated with innovative outcomes of SMEs in local economies with a low level of technological and R&D activities are analyzed for the study of innovation in such economies, where the indicators generally used to gauge technological innovation do not offer sufficient data.
Book
Strategic Management of Innovation and Design
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors argue that instead of relying on traditional R&D and project management techniques, the strategic management of innovation must be based on innovative design activities and propose new management principles and techniques that deal with these activities, including innovation fields, lineages, C-K diagrams and design spaces.
Journal ArticleDOI
Sociotechnical agendas : Reviewing future directions for energy and climate research
Benjamin K. Sovacool,David J. Hess,Sulfikar Amir,Frank W. Geels,Richard F. Hirsh,Leandro Rodriguez Medina,Clark A. Miller,Carla Alvial Palavicino,Roopali Phadke,Marianne Ryghaug,Johan Schot,Anntii Silvast,Jennie C. Stephens,Andrew Stirling,Bruno Turnheim,Erik van der Vleuten,Harro van Lente,Steven Yearley +17 more
TL;DR: The sociotechnical concepts or tools from science and technology studies (STS) are useful at better understanding energy-related social science, to reflect on prominent themes and topics within those approaches, and to identify current research gaps and directions for the future as mentioned in this paper.
Journal ArticleDOI
The Challenges of Using Design Thinking in Industry - Experiences from Five Large Firms
TL;DR: It is suggested that there are some unique aspects of DT that makes it particularly challenging for firms to integrate it in innovation work, related to its core themes: user focus, problem framing, experimentation, visualization and diversity.
References
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Journal ArticleDOI
Absorptive capacity: a new perspective on learning and innovation
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors argue that the ability of a firm to recognize the value of new, external information, assimilate it, and apply it to commercial ends is critical to its innovative capabilities.
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Building theories from case study research.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors define a leadership event as a perceived segment of action whose meaning is created by the interactions of actors involved in producing it, and present a set of innovative methods for capturing and analyzing these contextually driven processes.
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Exploration and Exploitation in Organizational Learning
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors consider the relation between the exploration of new possibilities and the exploitation of old certainties in organizational learning and examine some complications in allocating resources between the two, particularly those introduced by the distribution of costs and benefits across time and space.
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Dynamic capabilities, what are they?
TL;DR: Seeks to present a better understanding of dynamic capabilities and the resource-based view of the firm to help managers build using these dynamic capabilities.
Journal ArticleDOI
Knowledge of the Firm, Combinative Capabilities, and the Replication of Technology
Bruce Kogut,Udo Zander +1 more
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors argue that what firms do better than markets is the sharing and transfer of the knowledge of individuals and groups within an organization, and that knowledge is held by individuals but is also expressed in regularities by which members cooperate in a social community (i.e., group, organization, or network).