This research project was begun during the financial crisis of 2009 with the objective of increasing the competiveness of SMEs’ (Small and Medium sized Enterprises) by developing their innovation-management capabilities. The research presented in this licentiate thesis (thesis) is a part of the project in which newly-formed innovation groups at two SMEs in Eskilstuna, Sweden have been studied before they began innovation work. Prior research has indicated a need to observe processes within on-going innovation projects. My overall hypothesis that reaches beyond this thesis, is that an innovation group that improves its innovation-related knowledge, reduces knowledge gaps and increases innovation-related awareness, generates positive additional values such as motivation or enthusiasm above the results such as patents or project costs that are traditional measurements within innovation projects. The first study in the iterative research process focused on the innovation-related knowledge of newly-formed innovation groups. The results led to further immersed studies, in total five case studies, in which 21 respondents participated. A theoretical framework consisting of theories from Knowledge management and System theory was used to analyze the results and the research question of this licentiate thesis emerged as: “What would a model that describes a newly-formed innovation group’s innovation-related knowledge, knowledge gaps, information flow and awareness look like?” Four sub-questions, one per each aspect of the research question, have been used to analyze prior research, theories and the conducted case studies. A model, Innovation Group Model (IGM), was created according to the research question and goal for this thesis. A one-sentence-explanation could be: “The organization, the innovation group and the individuals must have the opportunity to be motivated to learn innovation management in theory and practice to achieve innovation-readiness and awareness to detect and utilize innovation-related information available within the internal and external information flow.” This thesis contributes to the research area of Innovation and design with knowledge concerning newly-formed innovation groups. Three practical applications of the research results are suggested; (1) IGM can be used in organizations to understand the complex situation when an innovation group is created. (2) IGM can be used when planning for physical or virtual environments in which an innovation group consisting of professionals and customers is intended to develop or generate ideas. (3) IGM can be used when developing innovation-related audits intended to provide a deeper understanding of a respondent’s knowledge. On the basis of the results from this licentiate thesis, I suggest further research according to the overall hypothesis. With IGM as a starting point, one could study the progress of innovation groups and where necessary, provide support in specific areas.

Bakgrund: Fastighetsbranschen klassificeras som en stabil bransch med fastigheter som fortsatt kommer behöva driftas och förvaltas, vilket har lett till få incitament att driva innovation i branschen. Spridningen av innovationer i branschen utgör en brist, även om tillgänglighet av innovationsmöjligheter finns. Medvetenhet om nödvändigheten av innovation inom fastighetsbranschen har dock ökat under de senaste decennierna, vilket har lett till att fastighetsbolagen gjort satsningar på att driva innovation i högre grad. Innovationsarbetet i fastighetsbranschen påverkas av flera externa och interna faktorer. Här råder det en kunskapslucka, då innovationsprocessen i fastighetsbranschen inte är tillräckligt studerat.   Syfte och Frågeställningar: Studiens syfte är att med hjälp av en komparativ studie utforska skillnader och likheter i olika fastighetsbolags innovationsarbete. För att besvara detta syfte har följande frågeställningar använts: “Vad är drivkraften till innovation för fastighetsbolagen inom branschen?” samt “Hur ser processen ut för innovationsskapande för aktörer inom fastighetsbranschen och finns det några skillnader samt likheter?”  Metod: Denna kvalitativa studie har en abduktiv ansats eftersom studiens teoretiska ramverk har utformats utifrån förintervjuer och en litteraturstudie. Empiriska data har samlats in genom primärdata i form av semistrukturerade intervjuer med fem olika fastighetsbolag vilka sedan har analyserats med en tematisk analysmetod.  Slutsats: Vad som driver innovation inom branschen visade sig vara följande områden: omvärldsanalys, hållbarhet, kunder, samarbeten samt intern vilja och drivkraft. Processen för innovationsskapande för de olika bolagen ser olika ut och processerna är individuella för bolagen. Bolagen har flertalet likheter i sina innovationsprocesser med tanke på medarbetarnas involvering, pilotprojekt och hur de mäter om en innovation har uppnått sitt syfte. Olikheter i processerna grundar sig ofta i initiativet till varför bolaget bedriver innovation och hur innovationsprocessen startas. Studien tyder på att de finns olika samarbets-nätverk kopplat till innovation. Samarbetet inom branschen är en viktig komponent i bolagens innovationsprocess och driver innovation i branschen. Ur intervjudatan framkommer det att hinder för branschen framför allt är den stora kapitalintensiteten och att incitament till innovation saknas på grund av den stabila konjunkturen i branschen. / Introduction: The real estate industry classifies as a stable industry with properties that will still need to be operated and managed, which led to few incentives to drive innovation in the industry. The spread of innovations in the industry constitutes a deficiency, even though there is an availability of innovation opportunities. Awareness of the necessity of innovation in the real estate industry has increased in recent decades which has led real estate companies to make efforts in pursuing innovation to a greater degree. The innovation work in the real estate industry is affected by several external and internal factors. There is a knowledge gap here because the innovation process in the real estate industry has not been sufficiently studied.   Purpose and research questions: The purpose of the thesis is to explore differences and similarities in the innovation work of different real estate companies through a comparative study. To answer this purpose, the research questions used are: “What are the driving forces for innovation for real estate companies in the industry?” and “What does the process look like for innovation creation for players in the real estate industry and are there any differences and similarities?”.   Method: This qualitative study has an abductive approach, which has meant that the study has designed a theoretical frame of reference based on preliminary interviews and a literature review. This qualitative study has an abductive approach. The empirical data has been collected through primary data in the form of semi-structured interviews with five different real estate companies which then have been analysed using a thematic analysis method.   Conclusion: What drives innovation in the industry turned out to be the following areas: external analysis, sustainability, customers, collaborations, and internal will and drive. The process of creating innovation for the different companies looks different and the processes are individual for the companies. The companies have several similarities in their innovation processes in terms of employee involvement, pilot projects, and how they measure whether an innovation has achieved its purpose. Differences in the processes are often based on the initiative for why the company conducts innovation and how the innovation process is started. The study indicates that there are various collaborative networks linked to innovation. Collaboration in the industry is an important component in the companies' innovation process and drives innovation in the industry. The interview data shows that obstacles for the industry are primarily the large capital intensity and that incentives for innovation are lacking due to the stable economic situation in the industry.