In this thesis I show how various theories and methodologies borrowed from complexity science, organisation science, and network science can be suitably integrated to provide a comprehensive and interdisciplinary approach to the study of innovation processes. I study the network foundations of success in innovation ecosystems and I conduct several empirical investigations to identify those network characteristics that are expected to correlate with positive outcomes and success. I assess the extent to which the diversity and the strength in the networks of relationships boost the performance and success of scientists and early-stage firms. To this end I analyse two large-scale data sets about scientific publishing and start-up firms by making use of already existing topological network measures and by proposing novel measures to characterise the degree of interdisciplinarity and access to diverse pools of knowledge in scientific collaborations. Results provide empirical support to the idea that collaboration sustains innovation and performance by facilitating knowledge diffusion, acquisition and creation. First, results indicate that the networks of interaction between start-ups have a strong impact on the firms' longterm success. Second I find that, while abandoning specialisation in favour of moderate degrees of interdisciplinarity deteriorates scientific performance, very interdisciplinary scientists tend to outperform specialised ones. Additionally, I address the computational challenges related to the size of the data sets used and their time-varying nature. In particular I focus on the scalability challenges of incremental graph algorithms. The thesis contributes in this direction by proposing new efficient algorithms and data structures to handle and to analyse large graphs whose nodes and edges change rapidly over time. These efforts have been collected and made available to the public in the form of a web platform (http://lab.startup-network.org/) and an open-source python package, NetworkL (https://networkl.github.io/).

This dissertation evaluates and elevates the perception of the strategic use of design for airlines, especially a Silent Design airline like Saudia Airlines. Saudia Airlines is an international airline located in the Gulf region in the Middle East. In comparison to some other Gulf state airlines, Saudia Airlines benefits from its large geographical coverage, and is considered to be one of the richest and longest established carriers in the industry. However, the rapid growth during the past few years of other Gulf carriers (e.g. Emirates Airlines, Etihad Airways and Qatar Airways) highlights the necessity for improvements to be made by Saudia Airlines so that it can sustain its position in the global market. These three mega Gulf airlines have shown major developments in their strategic use of design in delivering innovative and differentiated design touch points in their customer journeys. The purpose of this research is to ‘create a design management conceptual framework (DMCF) to assist Saudia Airlines in evaluating and elevating the perception of the strategic value of design.’ To date, airlines adopting a Silent Design approach have rarely been addressed in empirical studies. To achieve this, secondary research investigated several topics, mainly the perception of the strategic use of design, the operational use of design and how design was managed based on design management evolution. Furthermore, design outcomes are presented after implementing the strategic use of design, to deliver innovative and differentiated results. Moreover, the case studies of several companies are presented that use design at a strategic level, especially in the airline industry. The primary research investigated key stakeholders’ views (customers, design experts and Saudia Airlines’ employees and design consultants). The findings from these investigations, and emergent key themes and sub-themes created the prototypes that led to the formulation of the DMCF, which is the main contribution of this study. The DMCF was developed and tested with experts in the field. The proposed framework is considered a significant starting point for airlines that want to evaluate and elevate their perception of the strategic use of design. The DMCF addresses the significant results of this study and key points are made, as follows: 1) Four key dimensions are identified: a) organisational mind-set, b) structure and design capabilities, c) design process and communication, and d) customer experience, which could evaluate and elevate the strategic use of design. 2) The Silent Design culture is identified as pertaining to Saudia Airlines in this study. This culture emphasises the moderate ambition of the strategic use of design by using it at an operational level. It also includes an ill-defined structure for managing design and a lack of design capabilities. In addition, it has an unclear design process and ad hoc cross-departmental collaboration. The overall result is that the Silent Design organisations’ customer experiences are characterised by undifferentiated products and services. 3) The Strategic Design culture is identified and addresses the airlines that make good use of design. This culture emphasises the strong ambition of the strategic use of design by using it at a strategic level. It also includes a systematic and clear structure for managing design. It has a clear design process and clear cross-departmental collaboration. The overall result is that Strategic Design organisations maintain their position as innovators and differentiators within the airline industry. 4) Some recommendations are made that target how to bridge the gap between these two cultures, including appointing a design leader within a Silent Design culture airline. This would elevate the airlines’ perceptions of the strategic use of design.

Innovative high-technology SMEs have become a major influencing factor in the success of any modern economy and they increasingly compete in the globalised world with limited resources. Previous research on SMEs at firm level has always taken into consideration the constraints of the resources that an SME faces and the implications of this on their performance and business growth. SMEs have to develop their own unique skills and capabilities, allocating their limited resources appropriately to be able to respond to the changes in the external business environment that pose risks to the success of their innovation and its commercialisation. Having an innovation strategy is very important: to have a clear goal and a path to achieve the set goal. This helps high-technology SMEs to decide which factors can influence the success of their innovations, leading to business growth by developing dynamic capabilities to respond to the external changes by allocating their resources at their disposal. This thesis is an empirical analysis of innovation strategy and its role in the business growth of high-technology SMEs. This research study is carried out at firm level. It draws on Resource-Based View and Dynamic Capability theory to explore innovation strategy factors contributing to the better performance of the firm. Four hypotheses were proposed based on the theoretical framework developed through the literature review. They were tested using empirical data. The primary data were collected using quantitative methods through survey questionnaire. Data was collected from 106 high-technology SMEs in the UK. Technological factor, marketing factor, entrepreneurial factor and risk from the business environment were identified as four important factors which are part of an innovation strategy. The results of the study suggest three revised factors: technology, entrepreneurial and government-related risk factors. The initial risk related to business environment was amended to government-related risk factors based on the measurement variables which were loaded to the factor. However, one hypothesis based on the marketing factor failed to support the proposed positive influence on business growth and hence rejected. This calls for further research on the marketing factor in high-technology SMEs. This study recognises the reason behind this paradoxical result, which could be the nature of the high-technology firms participating in this study, which are more dependent on technology-push rather than marketing pull and they do not confirm with the established norms of marketing for the business growth of their firm. This study contributes to the development of knowledge and practice at multiple levels. The research developed a theoretical framework to establish the innovation strategy factors and its influence on business growth and this is validated through empirical data. At the practice level, the results of the study could be used by high-technology SMEs in the UK, and any other high-technology SMEs which are based in a similar economy and business environment, to have better information about innovation strategy. The study could also help policy makers, propose better policy to support innovation of high-technology SMEs in UK.

The thesis covers the phenomenon of business model innovation. It provides with theoretical background of the concept based on the works of several scientists who stand at the beginnings of the discipline. The paper also introduces the principles of design thinking applied to business model innovation in order to get superior results and serve as a guideline for ideation processes and presenting enhancements to existing business models. The practical part is devoted to applying the described concepts on examples from real life, which can especially help small companies in their battle with incumbents. Three industries are analyzed to see the flaws with the current state of things. New business models that can disrupt corresponding industries are offered at the end of each case.

Thesis (MComm)--Stellenbosch University, 2003. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Given the increased uncertainty and unpredictability prevalent in the business environment, there is heightened pressure for organizations to become radically innovative and to constantly reinvent themselves, and ultimately change the rules of the game in their industry. The concept of new business models is relatively new to business literature. However, its significance cannot be underestimated where operating in a turbulent competitive landscape has made the traditional way of doing business ineffective, and consequently has changed the nature of competitive advantage. Despite the obvious importance of creating new business models, there seems to be inadequate understanding and definition of the term "business model", thereby hindering the understanding of the nature of new business models and the approaches needed for creating new business models. This paper initially investigated the concept of "business model" and its core dimensions, which revealed that the term lacks an adequate and comprehensive definition. In response to this, a comprehensive working definition for the concept was formulated after an analysis of the various definitions proposed in the business literature. Since the key elements of a business model are important sources of competitive advantage, this definition has been used to illustrate how organizations can create new business models by manipulating the basic aspects of the business model. Approaches and techniques that enable organizations to create new business models and to become radically innovative have been selected from those put forward by Govindarajan and Gupta (2001) and Amit and Zott (2001). Finally, an analysis was made of the performance measurement tools for new business models. This revealed a lack of such an evaluation tool and this study has proposed a framework from which its dimensions can be used to expand and develop a measurement instrument for proposed business models and/or industries. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Gegee die verhoogde onsekerheid en onvoorspelbaarheid wat teenwoordig is in die besigheidsomgewing, is daar meer druk op organisasies om radikaal innoverend te word, om hulself konstant te herontdek en uiteindelik om die reels van die spel in hulle bedryf te verander. Die konsep van nuwe besigheidsmodelle is relatief nuut in die besigheidsliteratuur, maar die belangrikheid van die konsep kan nie onderskat word nie, waar die tradisionele besigheidsbenaderings ondoeltrefferd geword het binne 'n fluktuerende mededingende omgewing. As gevolg hiervan, het die hele wese van mededingende voorsprong verander. Ten spyte van die duidelike behoefte aan die skep van nuwe besigheidsmodelle, blyk daar ook om onvoldoende begrip en definisie van die term "besigheidsmodel" te wees. Dit belemmer die begrip van die oorsprong van nuwe besigheidsmodelle en die benaderings benodig vir die skep van nuwe besigheidsmodelle. Hierdie skripsie het eerstens die konsep "besigheidsmodel" en sy kerndimensies ondersoek, wat aan die lig gebring het dat die term ontbreek aan 'n voldoende en volledige definisie. Nadat die verskeie definisies in die besigheids-literatuur is, is 'n volledige gangbare definiesie vir die konsep geformuleer. Aangesien die sleutelelemente van 'n besigheidsmodel belangrike bronne van mededingende voorsprong bied, is die definisie gebruik om te illustreer hoe organisasies nuwe besigheidsmodelle kan skep deur die basiese aspekte van die besigheidsmodel te manipuleer. Benaderings en tegnieke wat organisasies in staat stel om nuwe besigheidsmodelle te skep en om radikaal innoverend te word, is geselekteer vanuit die voorgestel deur Govindarajan en Gupta (2001) en Amit en Zott (2001). Ten slotte, is 'n ontleding gedoen van die instrumente wat gebruik word om die prestasie van nuwe besigheidsmodelle te meet. Dit het aan die lig gebring dat daar nie so 'n evalueringsinstrument is nie, en hierdie studie het dus 'n raamwerk voorgestel waarvan die dimensies gebruik kan word om 'n meetinstrument vir voorgestelde besigheidsmodelle en/of industrieë uit te brei en ontwikkel.

The significant contributions of female entrepreneurs to both the social and economic development of their various countries have been recognized over the past two decades. The Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) found that between 17 and 41 percent of the female adult population set up new businesses in developing economies. However, these females owning businesses in developing economies generally exhibit limited aspirations for growth, with 84.6 percent of the female entrepreneurs indicating that they expect to add fewer than five employees in the coming five years. Moreover, most of the literature on female entrepreneurs in developing economies has focused on the business start-up phase; limited knowledge exists on the post start-up phase. This study addresses this gap by using institutional theory to investigate the development of businesses run by female entrepreneurs in Nigeria. Qualitative interviews were used to collect data from Nigerian female entrepreneurs. The data gathered was analysed using the thematic method. The finding reveal ways in which Nigerian female entrepreneurs transform their creative ideas into products and services that have potential for growth. Nigerian female businesses exhibit growth characteristics through the concern they have for quality and reputation, organizational design, earlier preparation for business growth, response to changes in technology and strong commitment to business success. The major factors facilitating the development of businesses run by Nigerian female entrepreneurs are membership of clubs and societies, a supportive husband, operating from home as well as their network affiliation with their relatives, friends, professionals, religious groups and NGOs. The factors inhibiting the development of businesses run by female entrepreneurs in Nigeria include poor savings culture, inappropriate business practice, lack of qualified artisan workers, lack of honest and reliable staff, balancing business and family, high-based thinking and fear of pseudo growth. The thesis contributes to the institutional theory framework through the addition of components in three key areas: funding barriers (such as female entrepreneurs in polygamous home, lack of ethical mortgage arrangements, lack of inheritance right by women and loan officers’ perception on women lifestyle), profitability (such as high import and export taxes on raw materials, high cost of transportation and illegal fees charges by government officials), and networking (such as support from NGOs and religious bodies). Methodologically, the present study adds to the growing body of qualitative research in entrepreneurship notably to our understanding of the issues that female small business owners in Nigeria face in sustaining and growing their businesses. The current study has practical implications for policy makers and female entrepreneurs. Areas for further research are also identified.

This research has explored the business model and business model innovation in the context of the healthy food venture (HFV). The HFV is defined as an organised initiative that aims to improve people's health by encouraging healthy food consumption. This research has grown out of the need to find new ways of tackling the public health issues that stem from the way food is currently produced and consumed. Scholars increasingly suggest that business model innovation helps business practitioners to achieve specific value outcomes. Thought leaders increasingly call for new business models to solve the health problems stemming from the food system. However, the literature fails to offer theory and practical guidance about how to design and manage the business models of HFVs. The research seeks to answer two research questions: 1) what are the challenges faced by HFVs? and 2) how do HFVs innovate their business models? The purpose of this research is to help HFVs create multiple (both social and economic) value outcomes. One objective of the research is to contribute to the knowledge about healthy food intervention and more specifically, healthy food intervention through business models. Another objective of the research is to contribute to practice and offer practitioners tools that help them to operate successful HFVs. The research questions and objectives aligned with a qualitative approach. The researcher answered the research questions by studying a sample of HFVs using action research, autoethnography and traditional case study methodologies. The research has produced specific insights and tools that can help HFV practitioners and scholars. The insights highlight the multiplicity of value that is embedded within food. Its value richness creates both opportunities and challenges for HFVs. The research has developed a context-specific business model framework-the Business Model Blossom (BMB), and has also led to the development of a business model innovation language that complements the Business Model Blossom-the Negative Value Diagnostics (NVDs). Besides these specific insights and tools, the research has challenged the current business model literature as to the precision of the business model and business model innovation concepts. It has created future research opportunities for implementing and refining the Business Model Blossom and Negative Value Diagnostics with HFV practitioners, as well as practitioners from other industries.

Zugl.: Sankt Gallen, University, Diss., 2009.

Diss. Nr. 3107 Wirtschaftswiss. St. Gallen, 2005. / Literaturverz.

The dissertation deals with the issue of novel business models based on sustainable multiple customer value creation. The issue is evaluated from the perspective of novel approaches to business models integrating environmental, social, and economic value into corporate activities. The dissertation’s objective is creating novel business model concepts based on sustainable multiple value creation for the Czech chemical industry, namely category CZ_NACE 20.1. Primary and secondary research was conducted in the making of dissertation. Research results are presented as partial conculussions describing individual areas, as well as a general conclussion. For easier interpretation of results, the disseratation emphasizes visual interpretations of provided novel business model ceoncepts. The conclussion provides contributions for theory and research, practictioners and teaching practice.