Florence Crespin-Mazet, Karine Goglio-Primard, Malena I. Havenvid and Åse Linné
The purpose of this study is to address the problematic yet under-researched issue of the disconnectedness of the temporary and permanent levels of organisation in project-based…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to address the problematic yet under-researched issue of the disconnectedness of the temporary and permanent levels of organisation in project-based firms in terms of learning and innovation diffusion.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper is based on a longitudinal case study of a pioneering French construction firm introducing the partnering method in France. Based on an abductive approach, the analytical framework combines insights of the literature on community and networks of practice to investigate the processes and mechanisms of diffusion of innovation in project-based firms.
Findings
The function of semi-permanent organisational levels in connecting the temporary and permanent levels of the firm – the communities of practice (CoPs) and network of practice (NoP) exists besides the formal organization of the firm. As a social learning process, innovation diffusion involves both formal (i.e. vertical) and informal (i.e. horizontal) forms of organising and learning. Intermediary and informal ways of organising enables the embedding of innovation both in terms of content and connections. Foremost, CoPs/NoPs contribute to relational embeddedness. Boundary actors and objects are essential in crossing the different levels of embeddedness to overcome the learning boundaries between temporary projects and the permanent firm.
Research limitations/implications
The investigation is built on a single case study and further empirical research is needed, preferably longitudinal case studies, as this allows greater capture of the diffusion process. The authors suggest further studies using practice-based perspectives to capture the formal and informal ways of organising innovation diffusion.
Practical implications
Managerial interventions should favour the development of the informal dynamics of community and networks to foster both innovation and its diffusion. The managerial challenge lies in creating the right prerequisites for the existence of both the informal community logics of organising and the formal top management decision-making, and to orchestrate their timing in the diffusion process.
Social implications
The study reveals the importance of both formal and informal networks in driving innovation. As such, project-based firms should be aware of these dynamics when striving for change.
Originality/value
The study contributes to the literatures on diffusion of innovation, project marketing and construction management. It includes new insights related to the function of intermediary and informal organisational levels of project-based organisations, the dynamics and connection between the temporary and permanent levels of the project-based firm related to communities and networks of practice, and the boundary spanning activities that are involved between the formal and informal levels of the firm.
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Florence Crespin-Mazet, Karine Goglio-Primard and François Scheid
Little research focuses on the conditions under which companies open up to co-develop knowledge with external actors. Spatial proximity has been proved insufficient to generate…
Abstract
Purpose
Little research focuses on the conditions under which companies open up to co-develop knowledge with external actors. Spatial proximity has been proved insufficient to generate successful open innovation processes: socio-economic proximity also seems required. This paper aims at better understanding how this new form of proximity can be organized and investigates the role of third parties or tertius iungens in this process.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper is based on an exploratory case of successful open innovation between a software editor and a systems integrator located in the same cluster, relying on 50 face-to-face in-depth interviews, documentation and analysis of physical artifacts.
Findings
It confirms that socio-economic and in particular coordination proximity favors open innovation processes. This proximity is facilitated by a third party acting as a sustained iungens to initiate contact between development partners and key customers, and to practically organize knowledge transfer. The paper suggests that to be effective this tertius iungens needs to occupy a central position in the local network and to exhibit the characteristics of an epistemic community.
Research limitations/implications
Due to its exploratory design, the authors' research exhibits several limitations in terms of generalization. It does not fully appreciate the specific interaction between the various dimensions of proximity and in what respect spatial proximity positively influences or reinforces the development of socioeconomic proximity. Further research is needed to analyze the relationships between these various forms of proximity and understand whether spatial proximity is required in a context where new information technologies ease up relationship and coordination mechanisms. Another limitation is linked to the character of the open innovation project analyzed which focused on an innovation of exploitation.
Practical implications
This paper suggests that territorial engineering should favor the emergence of organizations playing the role of tertius iungens in the local network. Such organizations need to have the technical expertise and image of benevolence and integrity to manage knowledge transfer.
Originality/value
Little research analyzes the role of third parties or tertius iungens in the emergence and management of open innovation processes. The literature on clusters has mostly highlighted that inter-organizational cooperation emerges from spatial proximity and can be organized by public authorities whereas most of the open innovation literature on software describes cooperation patterns that do not require any third party.
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Francesco Capone and Vincenzo Zampi
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the impact of the different drivers of the establishment of innovation relationships in an aerospace cluster. In particular, the work…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the impact of the different drivers of the establishment of innovation relationships in an aerospace cluster. In particular, the work investigates the impact of the various forms of proximity in the formation of inter-organisational collaborations for innovation.
Design/methodology/approach
The analysis is based on primary data collected through interviews and questionnaires on innovation collaborations, administered to all the firms operating in the aerospace cluster in Tuscany. The work applies social network analysis and Exponential Random Graph Models to analyse the forces that drive inter-organisational collaborations for innovation.
Findings
Results confirm the importance of geographical proximity in the formation of ties in the cluster, but social proximity is one of the main drivers for tie formation. Reciprocity shows that companies develop innovations in a reciprocal way and that most relationships are bidirectional. Triadic closure is also relevant, where the role played by trust and previous relationships is evident. Finally, hierarchy network processes are underlined, where the most central actors of the network are the most popular confirming a processes of preferential attachment. The central organisations gradually are more important, whereas the marginal ones are left in the periphery.
Originality/value
The work presents some novelties. First, it measures the different impacts of the various forms of proximity together with more advanced measures of network analysis. It allows pointing out the relevance of a firm’s network position in clusters and the fact that clusters assume hierarchical structures similar to centre-periphery networks, where most relevant nodes are in the inner core and marginal organisations are relegated.