- Communities of Innovation
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Communities that support innovation have been referred to as Communities of Innovation (CoI) [1][2][3], Communities for Innovation [4], Innovation Communities [5], Open Innovation Communities [6], Communities of Creation [7].
Overview
Origin
Coakes and Smith (2007) define Communities of Innovation (CoI) as a form of Communities of Practice that are dedicated to the support of innovation. They suggest that CoI can be formed from champions of innovation and their social network and that CoI are safe places for the creation and support of innovatory ideas.[1] COI are groups made up of motivated individuals working together towards a common goal, not because of orders from their superiors, but because they are convinced of their common cause.[2]
Development
Communities of Creation
Sawhney and Prandelli (2000) proposed the model of Communities of Creation as a new governance mechanism for managing knowledge found in different companies for the purpose of innovation. Intellectual property rights are considered to be owned by the entire community although the community is governed by a central firm which acts as the sponsor and defines the ground rules for participation. This model lies between the closed hierarchical model and the open market-based model. [7]
Communities of Innovation compared to Communities of Practice
Examples of Communities of Innovation
The COI that developed Linux
Traditionally, the company is the most efficient mean of managing knowledge belonging to different people. The primary motivation is job security, career advancement and recognition. Lee and Cole (2003) argue for a community structure for knowledge creation that crosses firms’ boundaries. [8] To substantiate their argument they put forth the case of how “thousands of talented volunteers, dispersed across organizational and geographical boundaries, collaborate via the Internet to produce a knowledge-intensive, innovative product of high quality,” the Linux kernel (Lee and Cole 2003, p. 633). The Linux community has proved to be a very efficient mean of managing knowledge belonging to different people. The primary motivation is value system, recognition and potential career advancement or hop. Lee and Cole (2003) argue that research on knowledge management has to date focused on hierarchy and therefore has not adequately addressed the mobilization of distributed knowledge, knowledge that is dispersed among many people. They note that, as illustrated by the Linux case, “the advent of the Internet and Web-based technologies has enabled specialized communities to convene, interact, and share resources extensively via electronic interfaces,” even across firms’ boundaries (Lee and Cole 2003, p. 633). People are able to contribute effectively outside their working hours. Coordination of the work (including feedback) is possible even when people are working from different locations. The catchment area is therefore much larger and the critical mass of software engineers required to develop and maintain the Linux project was therefore achievable.
Benefits of Community of Innovation
Organizational Ambidexterity
Successful COIs increase innovations within an organization. They therefore have the potential to contribute to organizational ambidexterity, which refers to the organization’s dual capabilities of managing current business and being flexible and adaptable to meet future changes and demands.[9]
Nurturing Communities of Innovation
Interest in the practicality and concept of Communities of Innovation
Google search on “Communities of Innovation” generated 83000 findings on 27 November 2010.
See also
Contrast with: Community of Practice
References
- ^ a b Coakes, E. and P. Smith. 2007. Developing communities of innovation by identifying innovation champions. The International Journal of Knowledge and Organizational Learning Management 14 (1) 74-85.
- ^ a b Grimaldi, M. and F. Rogo. 2009. Mindsh@re in Fimmecanica: An organizational model based on communities of innovation. Proceedings of the European Conference on Intellectural Capital 236-245.
- ^ Schloen, T. 2005. Expertennetzwerke als Innovationsschmiede - das Konzept der Communities of Innovation. In Sylke Ernst, Jasmin Warwas, and Edit Kirsch-Auw¨arter, editors, wissenstransform, 40–53. LIT Verlag.
- ^ Judge, W. Q., G. E. Fryxell, and R. S. Dooley. 1997. The new task of R&D management: Creating goal-directed communities for innovation. California Management Review 39 (3) 72-85.
- ^ Fichter, K. 2009. Innovation communities: The role of networks of promoters in open innovation. R&D Management 39 (4) 357-371.
- ^ Fleming, L. and D. M. Waguespack. 2007. Brokerage, boundary spanning, and leadership in open innovation communities. Organization Science 18 (2) 165-180.
- ^ a b Sawhney, M. and E. Prandelli. 2000. Communities of creation: Managing distributed innovation in turbulent markets. California Management Review 42 (4) 24-54.
- ^ Lee, G. K. and R. E. Cole. 2003. From a firm-based to a community-based model of knowledge creation: The case of the Linux Kernel development. Organization Science 14 (6) 633-649.
- ^ Raisch, S. and J. Birkinshaw. 2008. Organizational ambidexterity: Antecedents, outcomes, and moderators. Journal of Management 34 (3) 375-409
External links
- "Communication on Innovation policy: updating the Union's approach in the context of the Lisbon strategy" – The European Commission.
- Commission proposes 2009 to become European Year of Creativity and Innovation – The European Commission.
- PRO-INNO Europe - Innovation policy analysis and development throughout Europe (Initiative of the European Commission).
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