Collaborative innovation is an important mechanism for firms to exchange and acquire external knowledge. Through collaboration, innovators convene and form networks that, in return, help overcome the boundaries of knowledge transfer. To have a better understanding of actors’ collaborating behaviours in innovation networks, we identify three pairs of roles: 1) do actors make connections or bonds with their partners? 2) do actors exchange their knowledge with internal or external partners? 3) do actors absorb or distribute knowledge? We examine the distribution and evolution of actors’ roles from these three perspectives by using social network analysis. In this thesis, we use thousands of patent data from the United States Patent and Trademark Office, to investigate the actors’ behaviours in the chemical industries of two Canadian regions, i.e. Montreal and Windsor-Sarnia. Based on the results of our analysis, Montreal, acting as a public-dominated region, shows a more complex distribution of roles, while Windsor-Sarnia with a private orientation indicates a simplex pattern. From the evolution perspective, the network of Montreal is more stable and diversified, with key actors being active in the local network for more extended periods. Unlike Montreal, Windsor-Sarnia faces a higher level of mobility and globalization.

Abstract Background: Innovation is a key factor in the development of new businesses as well as in the sustainable success of existing organisations. Especially for family businesses, innovation is the main strategic instrument to ensure economic growth, prosperity, and transgenerational survival. However, many organisations are unable to achieve success by themselves; thus, collaborative innovation becomes increasingly important. While collaborative innovation with start-ups is highly promising for corporations, it remains unclear how feasible the decision for this approach is for family firms due to their distinct attributes. Purpose: This thesis aims to research how particular family business attributes influence the decision for collaborative innovation with start-ups. Thereby we contribute to existing academic literature and provide valuable insights for family firms to further increase their innovation potential. Method: To fulfil the purpose of this exploratory research study, secondary data, in the scope of a literature review as well as additional valuable sources and primary data, in the form of qualitative interviews, are gathered. The in-depth interviews allow us to collect responses on sensitive information on firm insights, while triangulation with secondary data enables us to generate a deep understanding of different perspectives significant to this study. In total, ten semi-structured interviews from six family businesses are conducted. Later, Grounded Theory is used for analysing the data. Conclusion: The results show that two of the examined attributes, namely risk aversion and unwillingness to collaborate with external partners, have a negative influence on the decision for collaborative innovation with start-ups. The other two attributes, long-term orientation and unwillingness to invest in innovation purposes both demonstrate ambivalent findings. Thus, their influence cannot be clearly evidenced in this study.

Collaborative innovation has become increasingly relevant for maintaining competitive advantage. Recent researchers posit that trust, which is core for collaborative innovation can be built through corporate social responsibility (CSR). Yet relatively little is known about the impact of CSR and its dimensions on collaborative innovation. Based on a panel data analysis covering the period 2009 to 2018, this thesis examines the relationship between Collaborative innovation and CSR on publicly listed manufacturing firms around the world and extends the literature by proposing that a firm's absorptive capacity exerts a moderating effect on this relationship. The study finds empirical evidence that supports the assertion that CSR promotes collaborative innovation. Importantly, the effect only manifests through the environmental dimension of CSR. The results also show that firms with higher absorptive capacities are more inclined to collaborate for innovation. However, the effect of CSR, especially the social and corporate governance dimensions on collaborative innovation dwindles in the presence of high absorptive capacity. These results have theoretical implications and provide valuable managerial recommendations for socially responsible firms that seek to form strategic alliances for innovation.

Creativity plays a crucial role in innovation, and innovation is essential for any organization's continuous success and survival. Past creativity research focused on the studies of individual creativity (West, 2009); however, in recent years there has been an increased emphasis on understanding how a group of people work together to produce creative ideas and products (Paulus & Nijstad, 2003). This collaborative creativity process is often referred to as group creativity. Despite the increased interest in group creativity, there is still a lack of empirical studies (Taggar, 2002). This study explored the impact of group collaboration on the improvement of individual creative thinking ability. During the 2009–2010 school year, approximately 120 undergraduate technology and engineering students participated in the Innovation Boot Camp (IBC), a creativity training program. The participants were teamed up with people from different majors and asked to work together to design an innovative solution to a problem. Their individual creativity was also measured before and after the IBC using the Torrance Test of Creative Thinking (TTCT). Interestingly, a significant TTCT score improvement was found only in a few groups, but not in all groups. This study qualitatively analyzed video-recorded team interactions of three groups that significantly increased their creativity scores (improved groups) and three groups who did not (non-improved groups). The findings of this analysis revealed six major differences between the improved and non-improved groups. These differences were (1) idea and information exchange, (2) critique, (3) idea improvement, (4) prototype design, (5) challenging solution, and (6) engagement level. Based on these differences, this report presents a theory that could explain how group collaboration can improve individual creative thinking ability. The implications of the study findings for future research were also discussed.

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Purpose: The study primarily aims to examine the effect of internal innovation in determining the firm performance for the textile industry of Pakistan by testing the research framework of innovation diffusion theory. Additionally, the study also explores the moderating role of collaborative innovation in explaining the relationship between internal innovation and a firm’s performance in the target population. Methodology: The study used a self-administrative questionnaire-based survey technique to collect data from the participants. Due to the prevailing Covid-19 pandemic situation globally, the data was collected online using the Convenience sampling approach. The outcome variable of the study was firm performance, while the explanatory variable is internal innovation, which is measured by product and process innovation. Additionally, collaborative innovation was used as the moderating variable of the study. The population of the study was the textile sector of Pakistan. The unit of analysis was managerial employees (at all levels) working in the textile industry of Pakistan. The online questionnaire was shared with approximately, 100 target people successfully and completely provided their unbiased responses using online means. The researchers analyzed the collected data using SPSS software. The analysis techniques include descriptive statistics, correlation, reliability analysis (using Cronbach alpha), convergent reliability & validity (using outer loadings, composite reliability, and average variance extracted), VIF, and regression for testing the hypotheses. Findings: The study found that product innovation and process innovation both serve as critical drivers for the firm performance in the textile industry of Pakistan. Moreover, collaborative innovation plays a complementary role as the significant moderator between the internal innovation process and the firm’s performance in the target population. The results concluded the acceptance and support of the required hypothesis of the study, including the acceptance of innovation diffusion theory for the textile industry of Pakistan, and finally the consistency of results with existing literature. Implications:  Contribution of Study: Existing literature lacks to provide the mechanism and understanding that how internal innovation (product innovation and process innovation) collaborative innovation shapes the effective and efficient performance of the firms in the textile industry of Pakistan. Therefore, the lack of research work and clarity in the existing literature makes this study meaningful. Moreover, the contributions of the study are multifaceted as the first time this study is being conducted in an emerging economy Pakistan. Novelty: The findings of the study add the literature for the domain of innovation and performance, especially, in the case of the textile sector of Pakistan with the partially moderating impact of collaborative innovation. The study also contributes towards the acceptance of innovation diffusion theory in the textile industry of Pakistan. Limitations & Recommendations: The findings of the study apply to the Textile sector only due to the specific nature of their operations. The prospective researchers in this domain can consider further dimensions of innovations to examine their impact on a firm’s performance. Additionally, innovation performance can also be considered for future studies. Furthermore, cross-sector analysis can be performed for understanding how innovation works in different sectors.

This research examines the manifestation of collaborative relationships among technological individuals involved in innovation across corporate alliances on scale. Collaboration “on scale” refers to the necessity for global companies to work together to innovate, thus developing ways of cooperating across multiple alliances. ‘Organizations’ do not do this – it is the individuals who work for them that do. However, traditional research defaults to a corporate culture focus on innovation processes and tools, with the result that little is known about how individuals representing their companies collaborate with individuals in numerous other companies in order to achieve innovation. The research therefore looks through the lens of the individual with the aims of (i) understanding how individuals relate and collaborate with others in a range of companies; (ii) finding ways of improving those relationships, and (iii), actively bridging the gap between academia and business so that the learning from this project can be applied in practice. A qualitative, interview based methodology is used to identify individual attributes and gain an understanding of their impact on collaborative relationships. Five main themes are discovered that explain the individual behavioral influences that stimulate or hinder collaborative relationships in innovation practice. They are Make it Personal, Value Relationships, Champion the Cause, Offer Tribute, and Trust Your Intuition. The conclusions call for leaders to develop a deeper focus on individuals contributing to collaboration, strengthen relationships, integrate collaboration and innovation, improve intuitional skills, and re-examine measures and rewards. Academically, this research proposes new theory related to influencing variables in collaborative relationships. A bridge between academic theory and business practice is established firstly through developing a writing style designed to bridge that gap, and secondly through use of a practical rubric framework and self-assessment package to enable individuals to learn how to instill these findings in their collaborative relationships and get more out of innovation results. The report highlights areas and suggestions for future research study. / Royal Dutch Shell

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Submitted by JOSIANE SANTOS DE OLIVEIRA (josianeso) on 2018-09-24T17:57:35Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Rodrigo Ebert Harsteln_.pdf: 3044394 bytes, checksum: db5b1d95a22fb15fcdc3edb9439f30a0 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2018-09-24T17:57:35Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Rodrigo Ebert Harsteln_.pdf: 3044394 bytes, checksum: db5b1d95a22fb15fcdc3edb9439f30a0 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2018-06-12 / Nenhuma / O setor de brinquedos tem como característica o dinamismo em termos de criação, uma vez que as novidades impulsionam as vendas e a procura do novo é uma constante, por parte do consumidor. Em contrassenso, a necessária inovação, analisando os dados disponíveis na Pesquisa de Inovação e Tecnologia (PINTEC), realizada trienalmente pelo IBGE (Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística), se vê que as empresas do setor não são inovadoras. Atualmente iniciativas de participação do consumidor, bem como outros atores externos a empresa no processo de inovação, já estão se destacando em todos os setores, desta forma a inovação colaborativa pode ser uma das formas de tornar o setor, de fato mais inovador. Sendo assim esse trabalho tem como objetivo identificar de que forma uma indústria de brinquedos pode integrar um processo colaborativo de inovação em desenvolvimento de produtos. O trabalho se desenvolveu em três etapas: a primeira foi uma análise documental da empresa pesquisada, para identificar como a inovação e a colaboração estão inseridas no processo formal de Pesquisa e Desenvolvimento (P&D) da empresa, a segunda ocorreu por meio de entrevista semiestruturada com consumidores líderes e a terceira etapa foi um grupo focal, realizado no formato de workshop, com participação de funcionários da empresa estudada, além de outros atores externos a empresa. O resultado foi um framework com uma proposta para inclusão de colaboração para inovação no desenvolvimento de produtos da empresa. / The toy industry is dynamic in terms of creation, new products drives the sales and the demand for of the consumer for the new is a constant. In contrast to the census, the analysis of the data available in the Research for Innovation and Technology (PINTEC), carried out triennially by IBGE (Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics), shows that the companies in the sector are not innovative. Now a days, consumer participation initiatives, as well as other actors outside the company in the process of innovation, are already emerging in all sectors, so collaborative innovation can be one the way to make the sector more innovative. Thus, this work aims to identify how a toy industry can integrate a collaborative process of innovation in product development. The work was developed in three stages: the first was a document analysis of the company researched, to identify how innovation and collaboration is embedded in the company's formal Research and Development (R&D) process, the second occurred through a semi-structured interview with leading consumers and the third stage was a focus group, held in the format of a workshop, with the participation of employees of the company studied, as well as other actors external to the company. The result was a framework with a proposal for inclusion of collaboration for innovation in the company's product development.

This research explores how the web‘s collaborative potential can be harnessed strategically towards sustainability. With the success of web-scale collaborations such as Wikipedia and Linux in mind, we sought to understand how web-enabled collaborations could be used strategically, particularly to support innovation for sustainability. Building on Peter Gloor of MIT‘s research into collaborative innovation networks (COINs), a framework for collaborative organizational networks supporting innovation, we evaluated COINs‘ strategic potential for sustainability utilizing the framework for strategic sustainable development and the approach of backcasting. We found that COINs can provide a strategic and effective way to work towards sustainability because they harness collective intelligence towards innovation and support distributed working styles. Additionally they provide an organizational framework that supports socially sustainable modes of working. However, COINs can amplify the impact of unsustainable innovations, so a strong systems perspective based on principles of sustainability is required to use COINs strategically. The final product of this research is a set of recommendations for people considering utilizing COINs for sustainability.