This paper investigates the role of design as a knowledge translation mechanism of social creativity in the open innovation practices of technology-intensiveenterprises. In particular, the focus is on how design can be used to connect and combine the contribution of creativity resulting from a plurality of stakeholders, including entrepreneurs, university students and academics in a process where knowledge is openly shared and transferred across theboundaries of companies’ R&D Laboratories, a university and other institutions.Adopting the research approach of grounded theory, the empirical investigation of an initiativein technology-intensive enterprises,developed from 2009 to 2016by the Italian Conference of the University Colleges and the Italian Association of Young Entrepreneurs, is presented. The aim is to provide evidences that design artefacts such as sketches, visual representations and prototypes represent important managerial means to support knowledge translation. In particular, design artefacts support the translation of stakeholders’creativity originally expressed in terms of ideas, technical requirements, documents and knowledge outputs into new formats that can nurture open innovation.This provides relevant implications for theory building and practice.
Creativity and stakeholders’ engagement in open innovation: Design for knowledge translation in technology-intensive enterprises
SECUNDO G.;DEL VECCHIO P.;SCHIUMA G.
2019-01-01
Abstract
This paper investigates the role of design as a knowledge translation mechanism of social creativity in the open innovation practices of technology-intensiveenterprises. In particular, the focus is on how design can be used to connect and combine the contribution of creativity resulting from a plurality of stakeholders, including entrepreneurs, university students and academics in a process where knowledge is openly shared and transferred across theboundaries of companies’ R&D Laboratories, a university and other institutions.Adopting the research approach of grounded theory, the empirical investigation of an initiativein technology-intensive enterprises,developed from 2009 to 2016by the Italian Conference of the University Colleges and the Italian Association of Young Entrepreneurs, is presented. The aim is to provide evidences that design artefacts such as sketches, visual representations and prototypes represent important managerial means to support knowledge translation. In particular, design artefacts support the translation of stakeholders’creativity originally expressed in terms of ideas, technical requirements, documents and knowledge outputs into new formats that can nurture open innovation.This provides relevant implications for theory building and practice.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
