experimentation matters unlocking the potential of new technologies for innovation
Abstract
Every company's ability to innovate depends on a process of experimentation whereby new products and services are created and existing ones improved. But the cost of experimentation often limits innovation. New technologies—including computer modeling and simulation—promise to lift that constraint by changing the economics of experimentation. Never before has it been so economically feasible to ask "what-if" questions and generate preliminary answers. These technologies amplify the impact of learning, paving the way for higher R&D performance and innovation and new ways of creating value for customers.In Experimentation Matters, Stefan Thomke argues that to unlock such potential, companies must not only understand the power of experimentation and new technologies, but also change their processes, organization, and management of innovation. He explains why experimentation is so critical to innovation, underscores the impact of new technologies, and outlines what managers must do to integrate them successfully. Drawing on a decade of research in multiple industries as diverse as automotive, semiconductors, pharmaceuticals, chemicals, and banking, Thomke provides striking illustrations of how companies drive strategy and value creation by accommodating their organizations to new experimentation technologies.As in the outcome of any effective experiment, Thomke also reveals where that has not happened, and explains why. In particular, he shows managers how to: implement "front-loaded" innovation processes that identify potential problems before resources are committed and design decisions locked in; experiment and test frequently without overloading their organizations; integrate new technologies into the current innovation system; organize for rapid experimentation; fail early and often, but avoid wasteful "mistakes"; and manage projects as experiments.Pointing to the custom integrated circuit industry—a multibillion dollar market—Thomke also shows what happens when new experimentation technologies are taken beyond firm boundaries, thereby changing the way companies create new products and services with customers and suppliers. Probing and thoughtful, Experimentation Matters will influence how both executives and academics think about experimentation in general and innovation processes in particular. Experimentation has always been the engine of innovation, and Thomke reveals how it works today.
... The process will promote adaptation through double-loop learning, an interactive process of examining assumptions underlying actions (Argyris & Schon, 1974;Argyris, 1993). The process will also encourage continuous experimentation as a learning discipline (Thomke, 1998(Thomke, , 2003Thomke & Manzi, 2012;Edmondson, 2008;Liedtka & Hess, 2009;Liedtka & Kaplan, 2019). Experimentation is important for another reason: transformative solutions to wicked problems will likely emerge from the accumulation of small wins (Weick, 1984;Vermaak, 2013;Termeer & Dewulf, 2019;Termeer & Mertz, 2019). ...
... They also include convergent thinking, such as project planning and designing experiments to learn (Thomke, 1998(Thomke, , 2003. ...
... These experiments generate new information and knowledge about what works and what does not. The ability to experiment quickly drives innovation (Thomke, 1998(Thomke, , 2003Thomke & Manzi, 2014). Each of these four learning processes generates new knowledge that forms the basis for an emerging strategy. ...
This thesis presents a new model for developing and implementing strategy in open networks. Most of the strategy literature, indeed virtually all of it, addresses the challenge of one organization attempting to survive and thrive in the world. Over the last 30 years, since the 1990s, strategic management has had to make two big adjustments. First, the environments in which we operate have become far more turbulent. Second, our organizations have become more porous, more networked, and less hierarchical. The enormous impact of the Internet has accelerated both trends.
... Third, uncertainties distributed in an ecosystem scale require experimentation activities to be executed in local small-scale societies, such as college campuses (Han et al., 2018), hospitals (Hyysalo & Hakkarainen, 2014), or specific urban districts (Noel & Sovacool, 2016). The underlining principle is that unlike in-house experimentations restricted to economic (technical) uncertainties (Ansell & Bartenberger, 2016;Thomke, 2003), experimenters could collect both economic and socio-political uncertainties within real-world local societies (Mahmoud-Jouini & Charue-Duboc, 2017;Pekkarinen et al., 2020). Taking such local societies as the springboards, managers through experimentation activities have possibilities to know how different local social and political stakeholders treat the novel products or services. ...
... Given LIE scale is unavailable in previous literature, we developed relevant scales by following theoretical guidelines (Diamantopoulos & Winklhofer 2001). First, we propose initial dimensions and indicators by referring particularly to Thomke (1998Thomke ( , 2003, whose characterizations of experimentation in developing new products has seven key aspects: fidelity, refinement, cost, duration, timing in progress, knowledge target, and participants involved. Relevant items were initially co-developed by authors according to these seven aspects. ...
... Second, we considered "firm age" (year), "firm size" (the number of full-time employees), and "firm structure" (number of management layers and departments). Our choice of these is grounded on their acknowledged influence on learning agility (Atuahene-Gima & Wei, 2011) and our dependent variable LIE (Thomke, 2003). Third, "TMT number", "TMT industry diversity", "TMT education diversity" needed to be controlled as capability literature has already suggested that they correlate positively with the level of managers' metacognitive capability (see Mitchell et al., 2011) networking capability (see Mitręga et al., 2017), and learning agility (Sambamurthy etal., 2003), which in turn might influence LIE performance. ...
... Ries (2011) called this method Lean Startup since it keeps all processes as lean as possible, including all experiments, to find out how to build a viable business model. Unlike in traditional strategic planning, the Lean Startup method uses experiments from the first day on and includes real products, tested on real customers, instead of developing them in Research and Development departments (Ries, 2011 (Thomke, 2003). ...
... Business experimentation is a useful identifier for doing business better (Thomke and Manzi, 2014). According to Thomke (2003), it is common that the direction of results is not obvious at first. Therefore, business experimentation is seen as a Four-Step Iterative Cycle, in which several solution concepts are generated and consecutively tested "against an array of requirements and constraints" (Thomke, 2003, p. 92). ...
... Afterward, different experiments are chosen, which run in parallel and are analyzed simultaneously. The tester usually brainstorms different designs, which show radical changes compared with the existing design (Thomke, 2003). Interestingly, practice has shown that radical changes are not necessary, and minor changes would be sufficient to reach the learning goals (Thomke and Manzi, 2014). ...
Digital platform business models are disrupting traditional business processes and reveal a new way of creating value. Current validation processes for business models are designed to assess pipeline business models. They cannot grasp the logic of digital platforms, which increasingly integrate Artificial Intelligence (AI) to ensure success. This study developed a new validation process for early market validation of digital platform business models by following the Design Science Research methodology. The designed process, the Smart Platform Experiment Cycle (SPEC), is created by combining the Four-Step Iterative Cycle of business experiments, the Customer Development Process, and the Build-Measure-Learn feedback loop of the Lean Startup approach and enriching it with the knowledge of digital platforms. It consists of five iterative steps showing the startup how to design their platform business model and corresponding experiments and how to run, measure, analyze, and learn from the outcomes and results. To assess its efficacy, applicability, and validity, SPEC was applied in the German startup GassiAlarm, a service marketplace business model. The application of SPEC revealed shortcomings in the pricing strategy and highlighted to what extent their current business model would be successful. SPEC reduces the risk of building a product or service the market deems redundant and gives insights into its success rate. More applications of the SPEC are needed to validate its robustness further and to extend it to other types of digital platform business models for improved generalization.
... To diminish the uncertainty, business experimentation undergoes a Four-Step Iterative Cycle that tests an array of solution concepts repetitively (Thomke, 2003). ...
... Business experimentation is a useful identifier for doing business better (Thomke and Manzi, 2014). According to Thomke (2003), it is common that the direction of results is not obvious at first. Therefore, business experimentation is seen as a Four-Step Iterative Cycle, in which several solution concepts are generated and consecutively tested "against an array of requirements and constraints" (Thomke, 2003, p. 92). ...
... Afterward, different experiments are chosen which run in parallel and are analyzed simultaneously. The tester usually brainstorms different designs, which show radical changes compared with the existing design (Thomke, 2003). Interestingly, practice has shown that radical changes are not necessary, and minor changes would be sufficient to reach the learning goals (Thomke and Manzi, 2014). ...
Digital platform business models are disrupting traditional business processes and reveal a new way of creating value. Current validation processes for business models are designed to assess pipeline business models. They cannot grasp the logic of digital platforms, which increasingly integrate Artificial Intelligence (AI) to ensure success. This study developed a new validation process for early market validation of digital platform business models by following the Design Science Research methodology. The designed process, the Smart Platform Experiment Cycle (SPEC), is created by combining the Four-Step Iterative Cycle of business experiments, the Customer Development Process, and the Build-Measure-Learn feedback loop of the Lean Startup approach and enriching it with the knowledge of digital platforms. It consists of five iterative steps showing the startup how to design their platform business model and corresponding experiments and how to run, measure, analyze, and learn from the outcomes and results. To assess its efficacy, applicability, and validity, SPEC was applied in the German startup GassiAlarm, a service marketplace business model. The application of SPEC revealed shortcomings in the pricing strategy and highlighted to what extent their current business model would be successful. SPEC reduces the risk of building a product or service the market deems redundant and gives insights into its success rate. More applications of the SPEC are needed to validate its robustness further and to extend it to other types of digital platform business models for improved generalization.
... The build step for this paper undertakes a literature review to shape a framework based on existing knowledge and practical experiences of respected practitioners (Thomke, 2003;Ries, 2011;Blank, 2012;Ellis, 2017), as well as previous research conducted in this field (Thomke, 2003). Practical knowledge is very popular among entrepreneurs. ...
... The build step for this paper undertakes a literature review to shape a framework based on existing knowledge and practical experiences of respected practitioners (Thomke, 2003;Ries, 2011;Blank, 2012;Ellis, 2017), as well as previous research conducted in this field (Thomke, 2003). Practical knowledge is very popular among entrepreneurs. ...
... the design, build, run, and analyze steps iteratively until it achieves desired outcomes. The first step design uses existing insights from observations and previous experiments to formulate testable hypotheses, and design suitable experiments (Thomke, 2003). In the build step, researchers build physical or virtual prototypes or models to conduct experiments (Thomke, 2003). ...
... In cases when small-scale innovation failure is publicly visible, it can be expected to attract little negative attention and pose mild threats, if any, to legitimacy. Oftentimes, stakeholders understand failure of this kind as an expected, valuable, and critical aspect of the innovation process (Sitkin 1992, Kelley and Littman 2001, Thomke 2003, Cannon and Edmondson 2005) that allows firms to search for and identify faulty assumptions, discover unexplored lines of inquiry, test new hypotheses, and iterate toward a successful innovative outcome (Fleming 2001, McGrath 2011. Indeed, few studies exist on how firms engage with stakeholders when small-scale innovation failures do occur. ...
... As a firm pursues radical innovation, some facets of the innovation process become well known, whereas others remain poorly understood or even unknown. Hence, catastrophic innovation failure may originate in the firm's inability to obtain or adequately deploy the resources, capabilities, and management skills necessary to consistently and reliably run the facets of the innovation process it understands (Anheier 1999, Vaughan 1999 or in errors that arise from the trialand-error nature of the facets it has not yet understood (Thomke 2003). In the aftermath of catastrophic innovation failure, it is not clear whether the failure occurred because of the firm's negligence in a part of the process where sufficient knowledge existed so as to prevent it or because of difficulties inherent to the innovative activity itself. ...
... First, our study situates catastrophic innovation failure as a distinct and understudied failure category. We conceptually distinguish catastrophic innovation failure from other types of failure frequently examined in the literature-particularly, small-scale innovation failure (Sitkin 1992, Kelley and Littman 2001, Thomke 2003, Cannon and Edmondson 2005 and large-scale operational failure (Turner 1976(Turner , 1976Gillespie and Dietz 2009;Bundy and Pfarrer 2015), and we provide an in-depth look into the firm-stakeholder interactions that ensue in its aftermath. In particular, previous work has shown that catastrophic operational failure almost exclusively threatens organizational legitimacy: the consensus is that the firm is likely to blame and must take remedial action. ...
We examine how catastrophic innovation failure affects organizational and industry legitimacy in nascent sectors by analyzing the interactions between Virgin Galactic and stakeholders in the space community in the aftermath of the firm’s 2014 test flight crash. Following catastrophic innovation failure, we find that industry participants use their interpretations of the failure to either uphold or challenge the legitimacy of the firm while maintaining the legitimacy of the industry. These dynamics yield two interesting effects. First, we show that, in upholding the legitimacy of the industry, different industry participants rhetorically redraw the boundaries of the industry to selectively include players they consider legitimate and exclude those they view as illegitimate: detracting stakeholders constrain the boundaries of the industry by excluding the firm or excluding the firm and its segment, whereas the firm and supporting stakeholders amplify the boundaries of the industry by including firms in adjacent high-legitimacy sectors. Second, we show that, in assessing organizational legitimacy, the firm and its stakeholders differ in the way they approach distinctiveness between the identities of the industry and the firm. Detracting stakeholders differentiate the firm from the rest of the industry and isolate it, whereas the firm and supporting stakeholders reidentify the firm with the industry, embedding the firm within it. Overall, our findings illuminate the effects that catastrophic innovation failure has over high-order dynamics that affect the evolution of nascent industries.
... The Four-Step Iterative Cycle describes a structured procedure of business experimentation by undergoing the design, build, run and analyze steps iteratively until the desired outcomes are achieved. In the first step design, existing insights from observations and previous experiments are used to formulate testable hypothesis and suitable experiments are designed (Thomke, 2003). In the step build, the researcher builds physical or virtual prototypes or models to conduct the experiments (Thomke, 2003). ...
... In the first step design, existing insights from observations and previous experiments are used to formulate testable hypothesis and suitable experiments are designed (Thomke, 2003). In the step build, the researcher builds physical or virtual prototypes or models to conduct the experiments (Thomke, 2003). The higher the fidelity and functionality of the prototype, the stronger the generated evidence (Thomke, 2003). ...
... In the step build, the researcher builds physical or virtual prototypes or models to conduct the experiments (Thomke, 2003). The higher the fidelity and functionality of the prototype, the stronger the generated evidence (Thomke, 2003). Subsequently, the experiment is run either in a more controllable laboratory setting or in a real setting which produces higher external validity (Thomke, 2003). ...
Startups searching for a business model are faced with uncertainty. Previous studies have shown that uncertainty can be reduced systematically with experimental approaches. This research extends previous findings and investigates how startups in a B2B setting can use business experiments to discover and validate the desirability of their business model quickly and cost-effectively. Based on well-known frameworks, the B2B-Startup Experimentation Framework was created consisting of the steps (1) implementation of a measurement system, (2) hypothesis collection and prioritization, (3) discovery, and (4) validation. Within its application, business experiments including online and offline advertisements, as well as interviews were conducted. The results improved the existing business model of the German startup heliopas.ai in the areas of customer segment, value proposition, and channels. Furthermore, the results revealed valuable insights that initiated improvements in the operations and workflow of the B2B-startup.
... Given the uncertainty surrounding the development of large systems, the need for CAs is inevitable in practice [5][6][7] . These activities have a critical impact on project cost and schedule 8 , potentially repre-senting between 66% and 80% of the total development time 9,10 , and between 30% and 65% of the total design hours on a project 11 . ...
... Consider that the payload is formed by a signal generator, an amplifier, and an antenna, as shown in Figure 4A We restrict our attention to the following performance parameters. We use as the primary target the effective isotropic radiated power (EIRP) of the payload (denoted by 8 ), which we characterize as a function of the signal generator output power (denoted by 4 ), the Amplifier gain (denoted by 5 ), and the Antenna gain (denoted by 6 ). Furthermore, we consider the output power of the integrated assembly formed by the signal generator and the amplifier as an intermediate system parameter of potential interest for the verification campaign and denote it by 7 . ...
Correction activities (CAs), which can take the form of redesign, rework, or repair, are essential to system development. Whereas verification activities (VAs) provide information about the state of the system, CAs modify the state of the system to facilitate its correct operation. However, existing approaches to modeling and optimizing verification strategies take a simplistic approach to CAs. Specifically, CAs are modeled as an expected cost to achieve a desired confidence level after a VA has failed and are inherent to such VAs. In this paper, we present a modeling paradigm based on Bayesian networks (BNs) that captures the effects of different types of CAs. This modeling paradigm allows for the integration of verification and correction decisions (CDs) under a common framework. The modeling paradigm is illustrated in the notional case of a communication system.
... A company's ability to innovate depends on a series of experiments [successful or not], that help create new products, processes and services or improve old ones. Thomke (2003) explores what would happen if experimentation is adopted by individual organisations. The s-curve maps growth of revenue or productivity against time. ...
... Diffusion of Innovations Source:Thomke (2003) ...
This article presents the concept of innovation capability as a tool for organizational success in small and medium enterprises. Since entrepreneurship is the vehicle that will drive the vision 2030 in Kenya, it is imperative that we-underscore the importance of small scale and medium enterprises (SMEs) as major contributors of this noble course. SMEs operate in a dynamic and turbulent environment yet this sector is a major source of employment for Kenyans. In addition, there is an increasing challenge to build innovation capabilities for organizational success. This paper therefore examines concepts such as innovation, innovation practices, culture, sources of innovation and measurements of innovation while breaking from normal; innovation leaders, role of innovation and SMEs among others with a view to mitigating the challenges faced by SMEs in operating their business enterprises.
... Eric von Hippel, economist and professor at MIT Sloan School of Management, is most known for his work into user innovation. With reference to the work of psychologist Jonathan Baron (1988) and innovation scholar Stefan Thomke (2003), von Hippel ( Problem solvers first conceive of a problem and a related solution based on their best knowledge and insight. Next, they build a physical or virtual prototype of both the possible solution they and envisioned and the intended use environment. ...
... Hippel (2006), Thomke (2003) and Stolzenbach (1993Stolzenbach ( , 1994. In terms of technology, where the innovated technologies hardware, software or socio-technical systems (Dusek 2006;Kline 2003), could the technology be seen as combined, recursive or based on a natural phenomenon (Arthur 2009), and finally, and most importantly, was their evidence of capability extension through the technology (outcomes) (Oosterlaken 2013(Oosterlaken , 2015Lawson 2010). ...
Both the field of Development and discipline of Design were conceived from agendas of capitalist driven economic growth. Despite having to stand against this current, a minority of practitioners and academics in both these arenas have critically realigned their intentions towards more human-centred ideals. This Doctoral thesis adds new knowledge to this pursuit through the use of an original theoretical framework that combines both Activity Theory and the Capabilities Approach to systemically explore how people innovate technology. Within the complex Johannesburg food system, this study made use of an embedded multiple-case study of seven innovative small-scale urban farmers to explore why and how they innovate technology. The use of activity system modelling enabled the complex contradictions within and between the various aspects of the participant farmers’ technology innovation activity systems to become more evident. Despite significant capability limitations in terms of their own education, skills, land tenure and access to labour, it was found that the farmers’ innovated technology as a means to extend and function capabilities, particularly with regards to gaining more control over their material environments. However, there were trade-offs, and it was found that a few of the capability extensions were at the expense of other capabilities. The participant farmers’ actions were contextualised within the precarious positions that most of them found themselves as marginalised Black urban farmers in post-apartheid South Africa. Due to this, a key finding was that the participant farmers tended to seed their innovation activities from their social systems as opposed to their technical systems. Despite some of the innovations seeming to be relatively informal and piece-meal, this study was not about celebrating marginalisation or informality, it rather aimed to show that this is a starting point, with many of the farmers’ technological innovations highly appropriate and sustainable for their local contexts. Such a study was, therefore, beneficial in shedding light on South African grassroots innovation that has for too long remained on the margins of traditionally focused Research and Development in the South African National System of Innovation. For the field of Development, the combination of Activity Theory and the Capabilities Approach provides a practical way to operationalise the Capabilities Approach in a more human-centred way, with higher fidelity for the complexities of human lived experience. For both the field of Development and the discipline of Design, this study provides a pragmatic approach to explore the innovative/developmental/designerly actions of everyday individuals, which with appropriate intervention can then be amplified towards more endogenous, appropriate and positive change-making.
Keywords: Design, Development, Activity Theory, Capabilities Approach, Technology, Innovation, Urban Farming, Johannesburg, South Africa
... Interviews with managers reveal a belief that risk-taking is essential for success (March and Shapira 1987), and firms with CEOs who invest in risky projects tend to inspire innovation (Hirshleifer, Low, and Teoh 2012). Breakthrough innovations are often reliant on a firm's ability to experiment, and although experimentation has uncertain outcomes and increases the rate of failure, this can be buoyed by successful cases (Sorescu and Spanjol 2008;Thomke 2003). ...
... The Wall Street Journal has published dozens of articles lauding risk-taking behavior and promoting a "fail fast" mentality with titles such as, "Memo to Staff: Take More Risks" (Kwoh 2013) and "Better Ideas through Failure" (Shellenbarger 2011). While experts contend that risk-taking is crucial for growth and innovation (Davila, Epstein, and Shelton 2012;Krueger Jr and Dickson 1994;Shiv 2016;Thomke 2003), and the for-profit sector frequently upholds this belief, the freedom to take risks might not equally be granted to nonprofit firms. ...
Experts generally agree that risk taking is necessary for progress and innovation, however, the current research finds that consumers penalize nonprofits that take risks to a greater extent than they penalize for-profits that take the same risks. Eight preregistered experiments (N = 8,596) document that consumers punish nonprofit risk taking more harshly than for-profit risk taking, even when a risky venture offers large expected returns. Process evidence shows that this pattern occurs because consumers view nonprofits as existing in a moral domain, rendering the choice to take risks as morally fraught. By contrast, consumers do not view risk taking by for-profit companies as morally problematic to the same degree. Follow-up studies demonstrate important implications for these findings, including that consumers show a greater decrease in financial support for nonprofits relative to for-profits after each pursues risky ventures. In addition, when for-profit companies operate in a moral domain, they too are penalized for taking risks. These findings demonstrate that consumers exhibit lower risk tolerances for firms operating in moral domains (i.e., most nonprofits) in ways that can limit innovation and growth for nonprofits and other morally focused organizations.
... Entrepreneurship theories emphasize the benefits of starting with small experiments that require little investment (Ries, 2011) and increasing commitment when demand is validated (e.g., Nelson, 1961;Loch, Terwiesch and Thomke, 2001;Thomke, 2003;Kerr, Nanda and Rhodes-Kropf, 2014;Ewens, Nanda and Rhodes-Kropf, 2018). On the other hand, it may be optimal to invest in early hires ahead of market demand in order to develop unique resources and capabilities, and to scale faster once the product and the market are proven. ...
... Contrasting research on traditional waterfall development, which entailed costly investments before demand was proven (Petersen, Wohlin and Baca, 2009), numerous studies show the benefits of a "lean startup" methodology: founders start with small experiments to avoid the costly redeployment of resources if a new product fails to gain traction (e.g., Ries, 2011;Blank, 2013). From this perspective, building simple and inexpensive versions of the potential product and continuously iterating based on user feedback (Blank, 2013) is preferred to making large, sunk investments (Ries, 2011;Nelson, 1961;Loch et al., 2001;Thomke, 2003;Kerr et al., 2014;Ewens et al., 2018). The key insight behind advocating for small, easily reversible bets is that startups cannot know ex-ante what customers are willing to pay for, and the development process itself entails discovery of a product that customers desire. ...
The timing of talent acquisition is a central decision for new ventures. On one hand, starting small and hiring after demand is proven minimizes losses in case of low demand. On the other hand, hiring before demand is proven allows new ventures to start developing unique capabilities. We resolve this tension by proposing that the extent to which ventures hire before demand depends on human resource redeployability. We further argue that resource redeployability affects the type of employees hired. We test our theory with the population of Finnish standalone and portfolio ventures showing that portfolio entrepreneurs hire more employees early on because they have the option to redeploy them and that they hire employees with more transferable skills in order to benefit from the redeployment.
... Esta prática ainda é adotada em casos específicos que envolvem o desenvolvimento de chips de grande complexidade. Entretanto o custo de um protótipo é muito caro e restrito a demandas de grandes volumes (THOMKE, 2003). ...
... Bibliotecas e outros módulos pré-desenvolvidos e testados são parte importante de qualquer plataforma de desenvolvimento por usuários (toolkits), evitam que usuários tenham que reinventar soluções e permitem o foco nos elementos realmente novos do projeto (THOMKE, 2003;VON HIPPEL, 2001). ...
Este artigo tem como objetivo produzir subsídios que auxiliem a compreensão de implicações da difusão de tecnologias computacionais embarcadas sobre práticas de design e de design da informação. Para tanto foi conduzida uma revisão bibliográfica e documental visando caracterizar artefatos com computação embarcada (artefatos computacionais) e evidenciar particularidades de projeto e desenvolvimento destes artefatos. A trajetória tecnológica dos sistemas computacionais embarcados é introduzida, com ênfase nos aspectos relacionados à sua difusão. Em seguida os artefatos computacionais são caracterizados em termos de sua estrutura e em termos comparativos com artefatos existentes. Particularidades de projeto e desenvolvimento de artefatos computacionais são evidenciadas e formas típicas de aprendizagem são identificadas, incluindo as comunidades de prática que se formaram em torno desta difusão tecnológica. Por fim, discute-se as implicações desta difusão tecnológica para o design. Sugere-se uma ampliação de escopo e de objeto de estudo e projeto para o design da informação a fim de viabilizar contribuições efetivas para o design de artefatos computacionais.*****This article aims the production of subsidies that help the understanding of the implications of the difusion of embedded computational technologies for information design and design practices. In this sense a bibliographic and documental review was conducted to characterize computing artifacts and to highlight particularities of design and development of these artifacts. The technological trajectory of the embedded systems is introduced with emphasis on the processes related to its diffusion. Next, computational artifacts are characterized in terms of their structure and comparred with existing artifacts. Particularities of design and development of computational artifacts are evidenced and typical forms of learning are highlighted, including the communities of practice that are formed around these technologies. Finally, implications of this technological difusion for design are discussed. It is suggested an extension of the scope and the object of study and practices of information design in order to make feasible effective contributions for the design of computational artifacts.
... The purpose and reasons to adopt an open collaboration approach should be considered if a more integrated view of the open collaboration benefits is pursued (Gaule, 2011). Among the purpose and reasons are leadership and learning; access to new markets and business models (Chesbrough, Vanhaverbeke, & West, 2006;Enkel, Gassmann, & Chesbrough, 2009;Hung & Chou, 2013;Ritter & Gemünden, 2003;Spithoven, Clarysse, & Knockaert, 2011); or reducing costs, time and risk (Piller & Ihl, 2009;Simoes-Brown & Hardwood, 2011;Thomke, 2003). All these presented points require a very active role from the management team (Chesbrough & Brunswicker, 2014), which must establish what level of information should be obtained and made available and is directly related to the definition of the target audience, the level of collaboration expected and the ultimate purpose (Laursen & Salter, 2014;Piller & Ihl, 2009). ...
Abstract
Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate how the business model and the strategic intent to
adopt an open collaboration initiative influence the perceived quality of collaboration outcomes.
Design/methodology/approach – This paper presents a framework to analyze the role of the strategic
dimension and the operational dimension in open collaboration initiatives through multiple case studies in
three companies to understand how the open collaboration initiative was deployed and how was the level of
the alignment between these two dimensions.
Findings – The studied cases revealed that when an open collaboration initiative starts in the strategic
dimension and there is an alignment between the organizational dimension and operational dimension, the
collaboration outcomes are clearer and more traceable.
Research limitations/implications – The study highlights the need to consider the involvement and
the internal alignment between strategic and operational dimensions when deploying an open collaboration
activity if they want to achieve all the benefits.
Practical implications – The presented framework can help managers to evaluate and understand how
open collaboration activities are deployed within the company.
Social implications – The study shows that when an open collaboration initiative is planned, its results
and benefits can be extended to local communities by developing them
... Recent studies have also described prototyping as having an important role in the rapid learning cycle for innovative solution development [2][3][4]. Specifically, the role of prototyping in companies [5] and guidelines on prototyping [6][7][8] have been studied to reveal the efficient strategies of prototyping. While prototyping by companies is much desired, studies in this area are somewhat sparse [9][10][11]. ...
In recent years, studies on efficient strategies in prototyping have been accelerated in number. Among them, studies on the economies of prototyping, which analyze the relationship between the gained value of prototyping and its fidelity, are being conducted. However, the types of prototyping that improve the economies of prototyping are yet to be revealed. Also, it has been indicated that generating communication in prototyping can lead to performance improvement. Therefore, this study focused on communication during the prototyping process and analyzed the economies of prototyping at a private company. First, the economies of prototyping were explored using 27 prototyping and their gained values and fidelity for the private company. Next, each prototyping was categorized using a prototyping category centered on communication to indicate trends in economies of prototyping in each category. Furthermore, Pearson’s product-moment correlation coefficient was calculated to grasp the data relationship between the economies of prototyping and communication. Considering the results of the above analyses, we proposed a prototyping method that improves the economies of prototyping. Specifically, we proposed the technique of “prototyping that involves external stakeholders early on in the development stage and shortens expended time” as this leads to enhanced economies of prototyping. This study suggests the possibility of improving the economies of prototyping by consciously implementing “prototyping in a way that reduces the time required while involving external stakeholders at an early stage.”
... Our work is related to the literature on sequential innovation which is broadly defined as an ongoing process in which firms engage in sequential experimentation (Thomke 2003) by introducing new versions of the same product over time (Brown and Eisenhardt 1995). The extant literature on sequential innovation is focused on the implications of technological advances in relatively stable industry structures with defined market boundaries, such as industrial products or consumer electronics. ...
Problem definition: In today’s highly dynamic and competitive app markets, a significant portion of development takes place after the initial product launch via the addition of new features and the enhancement of existing products. In managing the sequential innovation process in mobile app development, two key operational questions arise. (i) What features and attributes should be added to existing products in successive versions? (ii) How should these features and attributes be implemented for greater market success? We investigate the implications of three different types of mobile app development activities on market performance. Academic/practical relevance: Our study contributes to the operations management literature by providing an empirically based understanding of sequential innovation and its market performance implications in mobile app development, an important industry in terms of size, scope and potential. Methodology: Using a novel data set of mobile apps in the Productivity category, we leverage text-mining and information retrieval techniques to study the rich information in the release notes of apps. We then characterize product development activities at each version release and link these activities with app performance in a dynamic estimation model. We also incorporate an instrumental variables analysis to substantiate our findings. Results: We find that greater update dissimilarity (i.e., dissimilarity of the features and attributes of a new update from those of previous updates) is associated with higher performance, especially in mature apps. We also find that the greater the product update market orientation (i.e., the greater the similarity of the focal firm’s new features and attributes with respect to the recent additions of its competitors), the higher is the market performance. This finding suggests that the market rewards those developers who have a responsive policy to their competitors’ product innovation efforts. Our results also suggest that a rapid introduction of updates dampens the potential market benefits that the mobile app developers might gain from market orientation. We find no evidence of a beneficial effect of product update scope (i.e., incorporating features and attributes from other product subcategories) on market performance. Managerial implications: Our study offers managerial insights into mobile app development by exploring the sequential innovation characteristics that are associated with greater market success in pursuing and implementing new features and attributes.
... These trajectories could be circular or linear as shown in Fig. 3. A linear trajectory could be an iterative process of understanding (Thomke, 2003), radical innovation, or articulation of new niches that challenge habitual patterns of thinking (Christensen, 2013). Hence, (Leonard, 1997) emphasised the need for sound background knowledge and information flows (or historical transition) to establish acceptable technology, without which the technology is inconsistent. ...
The successful transition of municipal solid waste management (MSWM) in low-income economies towards a more sustainable practice is dependent on socio-political drivers, enablers/interventions, and service delivery practices. However, Environmental and sustainability sub-components influence this transition initiatives regarding sustainable MSWM. Informed by the theory of Multi-Level Perspective (MLP), we developed a nuanced Dimensional Evaluation of Waste Transition (DEWasT) model for MSWM to clarify societal factors and triggers for sustainability. This model elucidates the transition of MSWM, characterised by the three-level MLP, namely, landscape pressures, regimes, and niche innovations. The interaction of these transition levels within this model allows policymakers, institutions, and stakeholders to understand the current structure and dynamics. It will enable practical guidelines for MSWM sustainability practices, influencing a paradigm change towards MSWM innovations in low-income economies and closing the gaps identified by previous practitioners.
... 114-115). These processual approaches are essential for new ventures to cope with uncertainty (Andries and Debackere 2007), actively learn about the environment, generate new information, and further develop a business idea (Andries et al. 2013;Thomke 2003; Thomke et al. 1998). In this context, some of the work on business model processes puts emphasis on cognitive mechanisms and thought experimentation (Baden-Fuller and Morgan 2010, p. 164). ...
This study emphasizes the interplay between thought experimentation (Felin and Zenger 2009) and actor engagement (Brodie et al. 2019) in the pre-seed phase of the business model design process for new ventures (Snihur and Zott 2020). The review on entrepreneurial learning and action revealed that, while the experiential learning benefits of experimentation are largely undisputed, we know little about cognition and thought experimentation in business model innovation. This aspect, however, is crucial to new ventures, which are particularly vulnerable to uncertainty and financial constraints. Experimentation needs to be considered at a more profound level of analysis. This study draws on qualitative interviews with founders to uncover three forms of thought experimentation: purposeful interactions, incidental interactions, and theorising. We perceive thought experimentation as a process by which entrepreneurs cognitively and through interactions with other actors, evaluate their business model. The study also specifies six roles of engagement behaviour, including teaching, supporting, mobilising, co-developing, sharing, and signalling, by which actors influence the three forms of thought experimentation.
... The authors argue that IT platforms have improved the efficiency of experimentation through the ease of interacting with users in testing new ideas. This is consistent with other studies (D'Adderio, 2001;Thomke, 2003;Thomke et al., 1998) that advances in IT have transformed the use of experimentation in how products are developed, especially when firms apply computer simulations to test new product designs or when IT platforms enable iterations and integration of knowledge for prototypes. Benitez et al. (2018) show that IT resources are positively associated with business experimentation and flexibility (adapting to changing business environment), which in turn boost operational competence and creation of new products. ...
This paper explores the role that IT capability (IT-c) plays in firm innovation performance through the channel of organisational learning (OL) in Kenya. It frames OL in two dimensions: explorative and exploitative OL. The former entails seeking new knowledge, which mainly exists outside the firm’s competence. The latter is an activity or process that builds on existing competence and knowledge in the firm. Using mediation analysis of 481 firms drawn from the World Bank Enterprise Survey (2013) and Innovation Follow-up Survey 2014, it demonstrates that IT-c has a significant effect on innovation performance of firms (capability to simultaneously improve products, processes, organising and market development). It finds that the mediative role of OL in the relationship between IT-c and innovation performance is realised mainly through explorative learning, whilst enabling the firm exploit existing (in-house) knowledge base. The paper puts forward some managerial, policy and further research suggestions.
... L'apprentissage expérimental définit les apprenants qui « modifient délibérément les facteurs en entrée en espace cloisonné, dans des contexte comparable (par exemple, évaluer les fonctionnalités d'un produit avec des caractéristiques techniques différentes). Ensuite, ils vont regarder précisément le résultat, pour associer correctement les résultats aux différents facteurs en entrée (Thomke, 2003) » (Bingham & Davis, 2012). Dans l'approche Lean Startup, il est recommandé aux fondateurs de tester les hypothèses sur de petits échantillons, de vérifier les résultats et de prendre la décision de poursuivre leurs hypothèses ou de les changer (proceed or pivot). ...
La plupart des nouvelles entreprises ne parviennent pas à maintenir leur activité au-delà des premières années qui suivent leur émergence. Plusieurs influenceurs de renoms en entrepreneuriat suggèrent que ces échecs sont largement dus à l’inadaptation des projets entrepreneuriaux à la réalité de l’environnement. Dans cette thèse, nous étudions les efforts initiaux des entrepreneurs pour interagir avec certains acteurs (clients potentiels, financeurs) de leur environnement et développer leur projet entrepreneurial. Ces efforts initiaux vont en partie favoriser le développement et la survie du projet entrepreneurial. En même temps, une surcharge d’informations lors de ces interactions pourra au contraire ralentir son développement et altérer les ambitions de croissance des entrepreneurs.
... Nagyon sok kiváló képességű embert éppen az késztet innovációra, hogy hihetetlen nagy siker ígérkezik, igaz, igen kis valószínűséggel, ehhez képest ennél nagyobb valószínűséggel mérsékeltebb, de azért tekintélyes a siker, és ezért érdemes azt a kockázatot vállalni, hogy a próbálkozás kudarccal jár. (A kísérletezés fontosságáról lásd Thomke [2003].) e) Befektetésre váró lekötetlen szabad tőke, a finanszírozás rugalmassága. ...
A posztszocialista átalakulással foglalkozó irodalom rendszerint az átmenet politikai, gazdasági és társadalmi oldalával foglalkozik, holott az elmúlt húsz évben fontos változások mentek végbe a technikai haladás terén is. A kapitalizmus egyik fő erénye a dinamizmus, a vállalkozás, az innovációs folyamat erős ösztönzése. Valamennyi (polgári célokra használt) forradalmian új terméket a kapitalista rendszer hozta létre, a szocialista rendszer legfeljebb katonai rendeltetésű új termékekkel tudott előállni. A cikk azt elemzi, hogy mennyiben magyarázható ez a mélyreható különbség a két rendszer veleszületett hajlamaival, alapvető tulajdonságaival. Az új termékek térhódítása (köztük a számítógép, a mobiltelefon, az internet, az információs-kommunikációs szféra radikális átalakulása) megváltoztatta az emberek mindennapi életét. Miközben sokan mindezt kedvező változásként élik meg, nem vesznek tudomást a kapitalista rendszer és a gyors technikai haladás közötti okozati összefüggésről. A kapitalizmusnak e fontos erényét a mikroökonómia szokványos oktatása sem világítja meg a diákok számára, és nem kap kellő hangsúlyt a vezető politikusok megnyilvánulásaiban sem.
... On the other hand, as noted above, it is also necessary to establish what level of automation is ultimately to be pursued, given that the most advanced level theoretically possible is not always the optimum choice [39,40]. Furthermore, technologies are continuously evolving, and their application in the field often requires ongoing experimentation [41,42]. In sum, while the main narrative calls for the elimination of uncertainty by means of rational planning, in practice, uncertainty at both the human and technical levels is an inescapable aspect of the change process; it calls for hands-on experimentation whose outcomes will progressively inform decisions on how exactly to implement the automation system. ...
We draw on the grounded theory methodology to analyze an automation project in a global parcel delivery company, as implemented in three parcel sorting hubs in two countries, seeking to identify key factors in successful change and the role of the change leader. We show that a crucial—but often neglected—aspect of successful change is the detection and management of tensions stemming from uncertainty. By recognizing and managing uncertainty and tensions (in this case, manual vs. automated, corporate vs. site, and planned vs. emergent), the change leader, here the industrial engineering function, can orchestrate the differing views and expectations of corporate actors toward a successful implementation of a change program. In line with recent theories on paradoxes and tensions in organizational change, our empirical outcomes imply that effective leadership of change requires the conscious acceptance of uncertainty and tensions between opposite options in key decision areas.
... Hayward et al. (2006) take the idea we present above as the basis for a model of hubristic venture failure. A second area of current literature is the role of experimentation in strategic management and strategic entrepreneurship in the face of uncertainty (Salge and Vera 2013;Thomke 2003;Kerr, Nanda, and Rhodes-Kropf 2014). Kerr et al. (2014) make the important point that at the societal level, all entrepreneurship is experimentation, and subject to a Darwinian selection process; but at the firm level, new ventures are about experimentation "about the likelihood of ultimate success, [whereby] entrepreneurs and financiers gain information about whether to continue the project" (p. ...
At the centenary of Frank H. Knight's Risk, Uncertainty, and Profit (1921), we explore the continuing relevance of Knightian uncertainty to the theory and practice of entrepreneurship. There are three challenges facing such assessment. First, RUP is complex and difficult to interpret. The key but neglected element of RUP is that Knight's account is not solely about risk and uncertainty as states of nature, but about how an agent's beliefs about uncertain outcomes and confidence in those beliefs guide their choices. Second, RUP is Knight's only effort in this area. His subsequent career led elsewhere, so he did not engage with subsequent interpretations of this work. Third, much of the current literature emphasizes that decisions must be different under the two states of nature with a consequent misunderstanding of entrepreneurial agency. This paper addresses each challenge in sequence. First, we explicate Knight's (1921) approach and explain why that approach is murky. Second, as a complement to Knight's interpretation, we examine Frank P. Ramsey's approach to subjective probabilities to help clarify Knight's murky approach. What links Knight and Ramsey is a shared pragmatism about entrepreneurial agency under uncertainty that depends upon the beliefs about, and confidence in, their judgments of possible outcomes. This Knight-Ramsey approach does not require actor's behaviors to be determined by the class of uncertain environment (whether risk, uncertainty, or ambiguity) they face. We focus on the response by the entrepreneur to the existence of uncertainty in all its forms. We argue that this reductive account provides a foundation to examine common problems in management, including managerial hubris, the interaction between entrepreneurs and venture capitalists, and the need for experimentation (such as prototyping and market research) in advance of new product and venture launches. Third, we critique current literature that favors epistemic purism about the ontology of risk and uncertainty and ignores Knight-Ramsey pragmatism in meeting uncertainty, such as using formal and informal institutions for uncertainty mitigation. Our account locates Frank Knight's subtleties in entrepreneurial behavior firmly in the literature on entrepreneurial agency a century later.
... Many authors now deem these methods unrealistic and inflexible in such settings, advising instead that managers should look to accommodate Loch et al., 2008), and at times even encourage (Austin et al., 2012;Furr and Dyer, 2014), accidents, errors and surprises. Accommodation, here, means to organize projects to allow for such things as feedback effects, the reworking of earlier steps and dead ends, with researchers prescribing various forms of 'probe-and-learn' or 'trial-and-error' learning to allow for the agile redefinition of projects as new information emerges (Thomke, 2003;Sommer and Loch, 2004), 'selectionism' entailing the running of multiple parallel trials (Pich et al., 2002;Girotra et al., 2007), and the acquisition of the dynamic capabilities that underpin such practices Lampert et al., 2020). The idea that uncertainty may be something to be embraced is pursued by Austin et al. (2012) who, noting the pivotal role accidents have played in many inventions and discoveries, suggest that managers should design processes to facilitate such mishaps at timely stages of projects. ...
1. Introduction
This Special Issue marks the 100th anniversary of the first publication of two major books by economists on and around the themes of probability, risk and uncertainty: Frank Hyneman Knight’s Risk, Uncertainty, and Profit and John Maynard Keynes’ A Treatise on Probability. Knight’s book was written for economists, went on to become a classic within the discipline, and continues to be widely cited to this day on topics ranging from entrepreneurship to insurance design. Keynes’ book, in contrast, was written for a philosophical audience, initially ignored by economists save for a few early reviews,¹ and subsequently overshadowed by his own magnum opus, The General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money, published in 1936. Yet the General Theory, alongside Keynes’ 1937 reply to its critics, marked something of a return to themes first explored in A Treatise on Probability and this, spurred by rising interest in expectations with the advent of the Rational Expectations Hypothesis and the New Classical Economics in the late 1970s and early 1980s, inspired a small but continuing stream of research on his earlier work by economists.² Partly as a consequence of this research, Keynes’ A Treatise on Probability is now also routinely cited on the subject of uncertainty, sometimes in tandem with references to Knight, predominantly in various branches of heterodox economics, but also in more mainstream contributions to economics, decision theory and management.
... More generally, it could also provide a better understanding of both what happens during experimentation and the results obtained, particularly when they are not as expected. The latest advances in design theory (Le Masson et al., 2017;Hatchuel et al., 2018) may contribute to this explication effort, and integrate and complete the experimentation modelling provided by test theory and Thomke (2003). Concept-knowledge (C-K) theory (Hatchuel and Weil, 2009) was chosen for formalising a general framework to monitor the reasoning mechanisms of exploration and validation in experimentation (Hatchuel et al., 2013) because of its most advanced ability to account for the generativity of a design process (Hatchuel et al., 2011;Hatchuel et al., 2018). ...
The literature on design distinguishes between exploration-based experimentation and validation-based experimentation. This typology relies on an assumption that exploration and validation cannot and should not be performed simultaneously in the same experimentation. By contrast, some practitioners, such as les Sismo, propose that proof of concept might combine these two logics. This raises the question of what design logic might enable this type of combination of exploration and validation. We first use design theory to build an experimentation design framework. This framework highlights a typology of proof logics in experimentation related to proof of the known and proof of the unknown. Second, we show that these proof models are supported by les Sismo's cases and describe a diversity of arrangements of exploration and validation mechanisms: sequential, parallel, and combinational. Through the formalisation of proof of concept as a double proof (proof of the known and proof of the unknown), we show that proof of concept can be more than a tool for the go/no-go decision by gradually validating propositions, questioning the relevance of propositions, and discovering new propositions to be investigated and tested.
... Design approaches based around the collaborative construction of prototypes continue to burgeon, fueled by developments in additive manufacturing (i.e., 3D printing), which enables the fast fabrication of physical parts, models or assemblies using computer-aided design in a process referred to as "rapid prototyping" (Sass & Oxman, 2006). The making of prototypes has also spilled out from the domain of design to become a core element of creative thinking in fields such as entrepreneurship (see Brown, 2009, on "design thinking"), management (e.g., Liedtka & Ogilvie, 2011) and business innovation (for developments in "serious play" see Schrage, 1999; for developments in "experimentation" see Felin et al., 2019, andThomke, 2003). ...
Sticky notes abound as a material in design practice, yet their use is under-explored empirically and theoretically. We address the research question: how do sticky notes support design cognition and collaboration when compared to other kinds of design materials? We compare four types of design materials (sketches, prototypes, cards, sticky notes) and the activities afforded by the properties of these materials. We find that the affordances of sticky notes make them well-suited to supporting cognitive processes associated with visualizing and understanding “part/whole” relationships in concept development. Furthermore, sticky notes facilitate design collaboration by enabling shared attention through material anchors and the modulation of turn-taking. We conclude by suggesting new directions for theorizing about sticky-note usage in design.
... Experimentation has been described as a process to learn about future business models (McGrath, 2010) and co-create them in practice. Thomke (2003) refers to the important principles of experimentation, such as 'fidelity', also described as the extent to which experimental conditions are representative of the larger market (Chesbrough, 2010). Testing business models with real customers paying real money provides the highest fidelity (Chesbrough, 2010). ...
The circular economy has become a prominent core concept to drive sustainability transitions in business. However, there is still significant uncertainty associated with the implementation and impacts of the circular economy. Experimentation with circular business models is needed to understand which propositions work in practice and what the impacts on the environment would be, and to kickstart transformations within business. This study first frames the types of innovations in a circular economy, followed by the concept of experimentation and focus on circular business models. Through empirical case analysis of two multinational companies with publicly expressed circular economy goals, H&M and Philips, this study reveals different types of practices and processes, as well as the importance of experimentation as a potential lever for change in business.
... Experimentation has been described as a process to learn about future business models (McGrath, 2010) and co-create them in practice. Thomke (2003) refers to the important principles of experimentation, such as 'fidelity', also described as the extent to which experimental conditions are representative of the larger market (Chesbrough, 2010). Testing business models with real customers paying real money provides the highest fidelity (Chesbrough, 2010). ...
The circular economy has become a prominent core concept to drive sustainability transitions in business. However, there is still significant uncertainty associated with the implementation and impacts of the circular economy. Experimentation with circular business models is needed to understand which propositions work in practice and what the impacts on the environment would be, and to kickstart transformations within business. This study first frames the types of innovations in a circular economy, followed by the concept of experimentation and focus on circular business models. Through empirical case analysis of two multinational companies with publicly expressed circular economy goals, H&M and Philips, this study reveals different types of practices and processes, as well as the importance of experimentation as a potential lever for change in business.
... Considering the underlying features on how successful (innovative) entrepreneurs operate is a first crucial step in improving entrepreneurship policies. As mentioned, the entrepreneurial process is inherently random and involves degrees of unpredictable experimentation (Thomke et al. 1998;Thomke 2003). It involves a series of trial-and-error experimentations that requires many resources. ...
... The objective of open innovation is to obtain information about needs and solutions by involving external actors in the process and hence broadening the scope of the ideas and solutions (Thomke, 2003). Open innovation is expected to improve the company's capacity to reduce market and technological uncertainty at early stages of the innovation process and to identify and integrate knowledge from outside the confines of the company . ...
This edited book presents research results that are relevant for scientists, practitioners and policymakers who engage in knowledge and technology transfer from different perspectives. Empirical and conceptual chapters present original approaches regarding the current practice and policies behind technology transfer. By providing analyses at the macro, meso and micro-level, the respective chapters demonstrate how technology is moving from various organizational contexts into new institutions and becoming a critical aspect for competitiveness.
... Such commitment encourages service providers to consistently work on their service quality by developing new service innovations that can meet guests' expectations (Luangsakdapich et al., 2015). Based on this, service excellence requires the flexibility to adapt and respond to guests and environmental changes in a faster and more targeted manner (Asif and Gouthier, 2014) and 360-degree dedication to internal and external service innovation ideas and their implementation (Thomke, 2003). Internally, service innovation ideas are developed by management and staff, whereas external service innovation ideas are generated by the government, competitors and guests. ...
Purpose
The objective of this study is to investigate the effect of service excellence and guest delight on guest affective commitment to luxury restaurants, more specifically, the mediating effect of guest delight in the relationship between service excellence and guest affective commitment.
Design/methodology/approach
Data were collected from 270 guests with a response rate of 67.5%. SmartPLS software was used for data analysis.
Findings
The findings indicate that service excellence and guest delight had increased guest affective commitment to the luxury restaurant. It has been determined that guest delight acts as a mediator between service excellence and guest affective commitment.
Practical implications
Providing a high level of service excellence and delighting, thereby encouraging luxury guests to have a high level of commitment to the restaurant. Therefore, luxury guests' expectations must be exceeded to obtain their commitment to the restaurant.
Originality/value
This research study provides a substantial contribution to the hospitality literature by providing a significant concept of guest delight that can offer the opportunity to establish a new understanding of guest affective commitment in the luxury restaurant context.
... For example, BMW engineers discovered that overall vehicle safety was improved by weakening a particular frame support (Thomke et al., 1999). Ideally, these tools are integrated into a design methodology that fully explores the recombinant space through systematic generation of variation and experimentation against high-fidelity models (Thomke, 2003). ...
... Second, family firms' long-term, trust-based external networks may give them access to information and resources that are useful for product development but not readily available through market exchanges . For instance, trusted clients or suppliers can provide useful ideas or feedback on the development and testing of prototypes (Thomke, 2003). Third, family firms' idiosyncrasies may enable them to minimize the inefficiencies and delays that typically arise during innovation activities, caused, for example, by internal bureaucracy, political turmoil among middle managers or by ineffective use of allocated resources (Mudambi and Swift, 2011). ...
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to examine how family governance and technological capabilities influence the conversion of new knowledge obtained from exports into various innovation outputs, a phenomenon called “learning-by-exporting (LBE).”
Design/methodology/approach
To properly examine the causal links proposed in the study, first, the control for endogeneity. Second, a propensity-score matching longitudinal analysis is conducted, a particularly robust empirical method that enhances reliability in non-experimental data, over an average sample of 663 manufacturing companies for the period 2007 to 2014.
Findings
Family firms’ innovation strategies and abilities render them more likely to convert the new knowledge from exporting into product innovation and more efficient in this endeavor than non-family firms. This diverts family firms’ typically limited resources from process innovation, and they have a smaller LBE effect than non-family firms in terms of process innovation.
Originality/value
The study contributes to the internationalization literature by producing a more nuanced view of the learning-by-exporting effect which considers the type of innovation outcomes developed following export activity. It also helps to identify some of the firm-specific factors that shape the relationship between exports and innovation, by empirically examining for the first time the role of family governance in innovation capabilities and decisions.
... Research on learning-bydoing methods has singled out learning from data and experiments (i.e., probing) as particularly significant yet challenging for some executives. In particular, executives that lack relevant expertise to interpret data benefit less from experiments, because experimentation by an inexperienced team member is likely to be costly and error-prone (Thomke, 2003); and conversely, because there is some evidence that teams with more experience derive more benefits through better interpretation (cf. Koning et al. (2019) on A/B testing). ...
Research Summary
We examine a learning‐by‐doing methodology for iteration of early‐stage business ideas known as the “lean startup.” The purpose of this article is to lay out and test the key assumptions of the method, examining one particularly relevant boundary condition: the composition of the startup team. Using unique and detailed longitudinal data on 152 NSF‐supported lean‐startup (I‐Corps) teams, we find that the key components of the method—hypothesis formulation, probing, and business idea convergence—link up as expected. We also find that team composition is an important boundary condition: business‐educated (MBA) members resist the use of the method, but appreciate its value ex post. Formal training in learning‐by‐thinking methods thus appears to limit the spread of learning‐by‐doing methods. In this way, business theory constrains business practice.
Managerial Summary
Lean startup methodology has rapidly become one of the most common and trusted innovation and entrepreneurship methods by corporations, startup accelerators, and policymakers. Unfortunately, it has largely been portrayed as a one‐size‐fits‐all solution—its key assumptions subject to little rigorous empirical testing, and the possibility of critical boundary conditions ignored. Our empirical testing supports the key assumptions of the method, but points to business education of team members as a critical boundary condition. Specifically, MBAs resist the use of the method despite being in a strong position to leverage it. Results from a post hoc analysis we conducted also suggest that more engagement with the method relates to higher performance of the firm in the 18‐month period following the lean startup intervention.
... Second, instead of limiting themselves to recognizing the important role of BDA by industry players (Dresner Advisory Services, 2018), BDA companies should keep on building an appropriate BDA mindset, skillset, and toolset, as well as an internal culture of experimentation (Thomke, 2003(Thomke, , 2020. Building such a mindset, skillset, toolset, and experimentation culture might empower BDA companies to educate their prospective clients on the potential of BDA to inform innovation decisions, including business model innovation through iteration and pivoting. ...
The advent and development of digital technologies have brought about a proliferation of online consumer reviews (OCRs), i.e., real-time customers’ evaluations of products, services, and brands. Increasingly, e-commerce platforms are using them to gain insights from customer feedback. Meanwhile, a new generation of big data analytics (BDA) companies are crowdsourcing large volumes of OCRs by means of controlled ad hoc online experiments and advanced machine learning (ML) techniques to forecast demand and determine the market potential for new products in several industries. We illustrate how this process is taking place for consumer goods companies by exploring the case of UK digital BDA company, SoundOut. Based on an in-depth qualitative analysis, we develop the consumer goods company innovation (CGCI) conceptual framework, which illustrates how digital BDA firms help consumer goods companies to test new products before they are launched on the market, and innovate. Theoretical and managerial implications are discussed.
... To overcome the onslaught of innovation challenges, many organizations are increasingly shifting towards a dependence on external knowledge for sustainability. Thomke (2003) opined that it is a combination of the people, processes and tools that are holistically responsible for innovation and development in organizations, in order for the organizations to be successful in innovation it requires not one aspect but an integration of all these elements. The remarkable contribution of innovation in sustaining competitiveness and challenging the commoditization of products and services in the contemporary dynamic business environment is remarkable (Anthony, & Tripsas 2016). ...
There is an unequivocal need for knowledge in providing the coherent structure, for organizations to understand the required knowledge and standard by which they increase the relevance-oriented role of external knowledge. The internal resources of organizations are simply inadequate to deal with the recent innovation challenges. Nevertheless, organizational management is progressively exposing the value of external knowledge as an essential component in retaining a competitive advantage. As such, when the innovative climate changes, the organizations must quickly adopt. The lens of external knowledge enhances the conditions of quality improvements in organizations. Therefore, in a constantly evolving environment encompassing economic changes, ever evolving technology, political influence and social environment, external knowledge becomes an essential mechanism of organizational survival and performance. Hence, the paper examines the contributory role of external knowledge emerging from customers, suppliers and competitors toward creating greater innovations. The paper presents external knowledge as a mechanism for detecting opportunities and possessing a high level of innovation. It explores the impact of external knowledge in organizations. Moreover, the significance of external knowledge necessitates the point of exploring, highlighting and analyzing the unending function of external supports and assets in organizations. The paper conducts a systematic review of literature placing the importance of external knowledge in the innovation. A substantial contribution to the understanding of how organizations develop competency for innovation through external knowledge is provided. The findings establish that external knowledge is a fundamental element that needs adequate attention in the innovation process. Based on the review, external knowledge may be an important factor when the information gathered is shared and tactically applied through the knowledge management processes which plays a key role in influencing innovation within the organizations. External knowledge is vital to the innovative process and for the overall functioning of the organization as it plays a pivotal role in creativity. Furthermore, it serves as an avenue to provide additional information that could not otherwise be garnered from internal sources. In this regard, acquiring knowledge from an array of different sources including external source provides the foundation for a well-rounded problem-solving process for organizations. In general, the literature leans toward the viewpoint that external knowledge substantially motivates employees toward innovation.
... These experiments therefore served to test a prototype of the object being designed, and shed light on dimensions not taken into account in an earlier representation of the agro-ecosystems processes. Therefore these were not tests to validate "what works and what does not work" (Thomke, 2003), but tests that offered an early and exploratory confrontation with the situations of actions that might be taken into account in the continuing design process. We can see here the "reflective conversation with the materials of a design situation" conceptualized by Schon and Wiggins (1992), mentioned in the 'Theoretical Framework' section of this article: putting into action the object under design enriches and even re-orientates the design process, as well as the associated knowledge generation. ...
Innovation is central to the strategic orientations of many agronomic research institutes. Little attention has been paid, however, to the links between knowledge production and design processes, defined as processes resulting in the creation of new objects in pursuit of specific goals. Our aim was to analyze the conditions and specificities of the production of scientific knowledge on agro-ecosystems through design processes. Drawing on design theory, we carried out a cross-analysis of nine research projects that included design processes and produced innovative objects (for example blending rules for variety mixtures in low-input crop management routes). These projects were managed by researchers from a range of disciplines (agronomists, geneticists, crop physiologists, and ecologists), and varied in their duration (from three to 15 years) and scale (from plot to landscape). We combined semi-structured interviews with these researchers and the analysis of various documents (scientific papers, PhD theses, technical publications, and research projects or reports). Our findings show that in all case studies, original and general scientific knowledge on agro-ecosystem functioning was produced at various stages throughout the design processes. The originality of this knowledge lies with the new representations that emerged, either of the agro-ecosystem processes at stake, or of farmers' practices. We show that these representations were formed gradually, through successive iterations of both refined formulations of the design target and new knowledge produced, required for its design. Finally, our results highlight the role of confrontation with real-life situations (particularly through agronomic diagnosis or experiments) in the evolution of these representations. Engaging in design processes can thus be seen as a research practice that leads to the production of original knowledge, allowing for a greater diversity of actors' ways of knowing to be taken into account.
... Design Thinking (Lockwood 2011), creativity workshops, fast and extensive knowledge building. The outcome focus is on rapid collective learning rather than on tangible, clearly specified artifacts (Thomke 2003). The high levels of uncertainty levels in the targeted outcome and action can be embraced more easily and thereby lead to significant uncertainty reduction. ...
Uncertainty is an intrinsic part of every project, in particular of innovation projects. Unclear and changing specifications, lack of experience and skills as well as context influences coming from e.g. stakeholders and legislation are only a few typical sources of uncertainty. In general, uncertainty levels are not homogeneously distributed among individual project tasks. A task’s uncertainty level, however, has a huge influence on how this task shall be managed and executed. In common practice, project managers, project teams and project management tools do not consider this fact systematically, which leads to inappropriate task execution modes with unsatisfying outcomes and negative consequences downstream the project.In this context, this thesis proposes a novel methodology for systematically including uncertainty and context considerations in project planning and analysis from macro- (i.e., project) to micro- (i.e., task) level. It is based on classifying individual project tasks according to the uncertainty they are confronted with. To achieve this, this work first identifies fundamental requirements to management and decision aid tools facilitating the planning, monitoring, and analysis of any kind of projects characterized by a considerable level of uncertainty. Based on a task model that integrates a definition of the input, targeted outcome, the action as well as its context in the form of involved stakeholders, our tool integrates a task classification according to the estimated uncertainty levels of each task’s targeted outcome with respect to its inputs, as well as the task’s actions and context. Context can be taken into account systematically using a novel context classification and measurement framework derived from existing frameworks for capturing project complexity and uncertainty. A modelling language facilitating the practical application of these models using the task and stakeholder network analysis and visualization tools has been implemented.The entire work is based on a grounded field study that has been carried out within the industrial research environment of the Bayer Group over three years, complemented by an in-depth analysis of research literature in the related fields. Expert interviews, workshops and trainings, as well as the active support and accompaniment of concrete corporate innovation projects have been the central practical means of developing and validating the results.
Research Summary
This study proposes that decomposability may generate a trade-off in search. This study compares a decomposed search (i.e., producing and evaluating a decomposed module) and an integrated search (i.e., producing and evaluating a full-scale product). While the former can allow firms to experiment with more alternatives than can the latter, it may be more vulnerable to imperfect evaluation because a larger number of promising alternatives could be omitted after the initial evaluation. The reason for this is that not only do more alternatives face an unlucky draw in their initial evaluation but also a decomposed search may lead firms to set a higher performance target for giving a second-chance opportunity. I test this theory and mechanisms by comparing singles (i.e., decomposed modules) and albums (i.e., full-scale products) in the music industry.
Managerial Summary
This study highlights a hidden cost of experimentation-oriented practices: an increased chance of terminating investment in promising business options (e.g., resources, technologies, and new business projects) after initial small-scale experimentation. A growing number of technological innovations (e.g., software development kits, cloud computing, and e-commerce platforms) have enabled firms to experiment with new business options by producing modules rather than full-scale products. These innovations benefit management practices for experimentation, such as lean start-up or design thinking, and have thus gained popularity among practitioners. This study suggests that while producing and evaluating a module enables firms to experiment with more options, it may increase the chance of terminating investment in promising business options because firms may set a higher performance target for subsequent investment after initial small-scale experimentation.
Conçue dans les années 1960 à la NASA dans le contexte du programme Apollo, la preuve de concept – ou POC pour proof of concept en anglais – a connu un succès grandissant au fil des décennies auprès des praticiens de l’innovation. Davantage encore qu’à l’époque, le régime d’innovation contemporain requiert d’explorer collectivement l’inconnu. Les processus de conception se sont complexifiés : l’identité des objets et des collectifs sont rarement prédéterminés. Ils doivent être conçus collectivement et simultanément. Dans ce contexte, la thèse étudie comment la preuve de concept peut devenir un outil de développement des capacités de générativité collective. Tout d’abord, la recherche a confirmé par une étude généalogique que le POC était et est encore le symptôme d’un régime d’innovation se devant de fédérer et faire travailler ensemble des collectifs d’exploration. Ces collectifs comprennent des acteurs aux expertises et légitimités hétérogènes, souvent issus d’institutions variées. Le POC est un des rares outils de gestion permettant d’organiser l’exploration collective de l’inconnu. Il est particulièrement adapté à ces situations parce qu’il porte une double logique de preuve : une « preuve de connu », processus expérimental permettant de générer de nouvelles connaissances et de les valider (i.e., de les reconnaître collectivement comme vraies ou fausses) et une « preuve d’inconnu », processus expérimental permettant de générer de nouveaux concepts et de guider leur exploration (i.e., de nommer collectivement un inconnu interprétable). Ensuite, grâce à l’étude rétrospective de preuves de concept conçues et réalisées par l’agence de design les Sismo, la thèse a identifié qu’il existe différents arrangements entre preuve de connu et preuve d’inconnu et qu’une cohabitation est possible et bénéfique. De manière contre-intuitive, les travaux ont montré que plus la preuve de connu est recherchée et de qualité, plus elle permet de faire émerger de manière simultanée la preuve d’inconnu, et vice-versa. La question des compétences de l’expérimentateur ressort comme l’élément critique pour permettre cette cohabitation, et avoir un POC à fort pouvoir génératif. Enfin, la thèse propose une étude de cas longitudinale d’une preuve de concept conduite par la Chaire de philosophie à l’hôpital et les Sismo, qui portait explicitement une ambition de (plus forte) générativité. Ces travaux ont affermi l’hypothèse que le POC doit non plus seulement être étudié, et donc évalué, comme un outil de test d’un concept mais, également ou dorénavant, comme un outil de développement de capacités de conception collective. La recherche a également identifié des conditions de gouvernance critiques pour que ce changement de paradigme puisse s’opérer au profit de la société.
Big data analytics constitute one of the driving forces of the fourth industrial revolution and represent one of the founding pillars of Industry 4.0. They are increasingly leveraged to create business insights from online reviews of products and services by a wide range of organizations and firms. In this work, we develop a typology of online review platforms (ORPs) and describe a novel platform, research-driven online review platform (RORP), that combines the science and rigor of very large-scale, low-cost, fast-paced, and complex digital experimentation using real-world customers on digital platforms with the power of modern AI-based big data analytics capabilities (BDAC) to generate novel innovation insights for the digital age. Using multiple real-world case studies, we illustrate how RORPs operate and deliver value through innovation analytics, and serve as a powerful tool for digital innovation experimentation, enabling firms to innovate more effectively and transform their business models to adapt to rapidly changing market conditions. We shed light on the BDAC requirements, as well as the benefits and challenges of using RORPs and innovation analytics, particularly in the post-COVID-19 world, and offer strategic and operational implications for entrepreneurs and innovation managers.
Currently, much innovative potential of university startups is untapped, while companies of the German Mittelstand lack innovation capacity to maintain competitiveness. The operational and organizational structures avoiding loss of time, resources, and momentum are poorly investigated by empirical studies, although cooperation of both entities create major advantages. For future economic success, it is investigated how startups and corporates can cooperatively discover and validate new business models. This research aims to guide the operational and organizational conduct of cooperation. Therefore, the design science research methodology was used to develop a generic process model for cooperative business model exploration. The validation in a real venture case showed decreased organizational friction, saved time, and better operational structuring of business experiments for the business model's discovery and validation. With partner's strategic fit, mutual process model, and phase-appropriate cooperation depth, cooperation leverages a startup's growth and helps corporates gaining innovative capacity.
Economic use of early-stage prototyping is of paramount importance to companies engaged in the development of innovative products, services, and systems because it directly impacts their bottom line. There is likewise a need to understand the dimensions, and lenses that make up an economic profile of prototypes. Yet, there is little reliable understanding of how resources expended and views of dimensionality across prototyping translate into value. To help practitioners, designers, and researchers leverage prototyping most economically, we seek to understand the tradeoff between design information gained through prototyping and the resources expended prototyping. We investigate this topic by conducting an inductive study on industry projects across disciplines and knowledge domains while collecting and analyzing empirical data on their prototype creation and test processes. Our research explores ways of quantifying prototyping value and reinforcing the asymptotic relationship between value and fidelity. Most intriguingly, the research reveals insightful heuristics that practitioners can exploit to generate high value from low and high fidelity prototypes alike.
Digital simulation models have become increasingly important to innovation processes. When used within organisations intent on innovating products, processes or services, the affordances of these technologies can enable the possibility to explain, experiment, and predict complex systems. As complex tools, however, models must become integrated into a social context characterised by differences in technical knowledge about when, how, and why the models are useful. In this paper, we draw on our experiences studying the labour of digital modelling work over the past 10 years to discuss some of the important social mechanisms through which models come to be trusted by stakeholders, and, consequently, integrated into innovation processes. By comparing three very different contexts we show that the work of trust-building requires modellers to create appeals to the credibility of the model’s analysis, the utility of its outputs, and to negotiate unavoidable political issues that emerge from differing values among parties in the innovation process. Revealing this labour positions models as social objects, and leads us to provide practical recommendations for scholars and practitioners who hope to use modelling as a key process for digital innovation.
A knowledge-base that integrates human factor engineering (HFE) principles and prototyping best-practices for the design of human-centered products does not exist. This study fills this gap by proposing a prototyping framework to unify HFE principles and prototyping guidelines along with a prototyping toolbox. The framework is based on the House of Prototype Guidelines (HOPG), which introduces “Prototyping Categories and Dimensions” that are used for understanding the prototyping requirements and identifying the specifications that can be used to build a prototype. Additionally, a prototyping toolbox is introduced to classify tools and technologies to build the proposed prototype. The HOPG and prototyping toolbox are integrated via an MS Excel User-form, which proposes a systematic selection filter based on user input. The overall goal of this framework is to guide the prototyping activities in the right direction before the actual hands-on prototyping activity starts. Additionally, in this study, a cost-benefit analysis tool is proposed to calculate the value of the prototype by measuring the information gained and the resources spent. The cost-benefit analysis helps designers in narrowing down the prototyping options. A prototyping problem taken from the literature is used as a case study to demonstrate the usability and efficacy of the framework.
The use of Internet platforms such as open innovation platforms is a quite new strategy in innovation management that marks a rethinking from classical principles of coordination in innovation processes. Instead of relying exclusively on the internal expertise of their own researchers and developers, companies are increasingly integrating external problem-solvers (often supported by so-called innovation intermediaries) into their innovation processes. As an alternative to conducting traditional research or commissioning engineering service providers or academics with third-party contracts, a large, undefined network of actors are openly invited to participate in the innovative project (known as the “broadcast search” principle). Participants who know an answer to the problem respond by providing solutions—despite never being commissioned to do so by a manager. This procedure offers completely new potential and opportunities for knowledge and technology transfer and gives access to the knowledge held by third parties in new ways.
A tanulmányban a szexkamera-iparág kialakulását és működését elemezzük a platformcégek központi szerepére és az iparágban dolgozók munkájára fókuszálva. Magyarországi példán, az iparágban dolgozókkal folytatott interjús kutatásunk alapján vizsgáljuk, miként változott a digitalizáció nyomán a szexipar és azon belül a szexkamera-iparág a globális gazdaságban, és hogyan működnek azok a platformcégek, amelyek ennek az átalakulásnak központi szereplői – köztük a magyarországi alapítású LiveJasmin. Vizsgáljuk, hogy Magyarország félperifériás pozíciója a kapitalista világrendszerben hogyan határozza meg az itteni szereplők munkakörülményeit, lehetőségeit a globális iparágon belül. Elemzésünkben tehát a platformkapitalizmusban és a digitális munkában megjelenő globális egyenlőtlenségeket mutatjuk be a szexkamera-iparágban magyarországi, félperifériás szereplők szemszögéből, valamint arra is rámutatunk, hogy milyen szerepet játszanak a szexkamera-platformok – mint a LiveJasmin – a szexipar normalizálásában.
‘Open government’ refers to transparent, participative decision-making and platform-based citizen-government collaboration and has emerged as one paradigm at the local government level, in particular. However, substantial disparities exist in open government adoption among municipalities, and the empirical evidence on the determinants of open government adoption is sparse and mixed. This article considers open government adoption by integrating the resource- and knowledge-based views and decision-makers’ open government willingness. We argue that the positive impacts of internal capacity depend on the municipal decision-makers’ open government willingness. Using data from a survey conducted among local decision-makers, we investigate organizational ability to implement open government and decision-makers' preferences and adoption level. The findings indicate that organizational capacity is positively associated with open government. In addition, the effect of ability on adoption is partially mediated by leaders’ perceptions that open government is a meaningful opportunity for the municipality.
In this paper we examine Intel's launch of Centrino and interpret it as platform leader's attempt to restructure a supply chain. We provide a narrative of key actions and how they coordinated changes and offer a framework of the predictable consequences for complementary markets. We then collect data and test these predictions on outcomes in several related complementary markets. The overall findings are consistent with our framework. We show that the launch of Centrino increased the likelihood of exit from internal and external Wi‐Fi cards markets, and we find that the magnitude of the effect was largest for internal cards. We also show that the launch of Centrino's stimulated product introduction in the markets for complements overall and find that the effect varied across type of routers. Finally, we show that experience with producing Wi‐Fi cards shaped product introduction by router providers.
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