This All-Academy Symposium updated the earlier Open Innovation book with new empirical research on the practice of open innovation.

• Abstract
• Session Presentations including slides
• Overview of the session’s research issues
• Papers

Two of the three papers are adapted from the forthcoming book Open Innovation: Researching A New Paradigm

Papers

Here are the latest versions of the papers:

• †Kira Fabrizio, “The Use of University Research in Firm Innovation,”version as of May 25, 2005
• †Jens Frøslev Christensen, “Wither Core Competency for the Large Corporation in an Open Innovation World?” version as of August 4, 2005
• Keld Laursen and Ammon Salter, “The Paradox of Openness: Appropriability and the Use of External Sources of Knowledge for Innovation” version as of July 14, 2005

†Drafts of the chapters to appear in Henry Chesbrough, Wim Vanhaverbeke, and Joel West, eds., Open Innovation: Researching a New Paradigm, Oxford University Press, 2006.

Abstract

“Open innovation” describes a new paradigm for the management of industrial innovation in the 21st century, in which firms work with external partners to both commercialize their internal innovations and to obtain a source of external innovations that can be commercialized. But thus far, the empirical evidence for the paradigm consists primarily of a series of a small number of cases, published in managerial book intended to influence managerial practice.

In this symposium, we will focus on one half of the “open innovation” equation — the supply and use of external innovation by the focal firm. The changes for industrial innovators are potentially wrenching, as they must develop new innovation processes to identify, acquire and incorporate these innovations into their firm.

Here we present empirical papers on the use of external innovation in a wide range of industries, including electronics, pharmaceuticals, and general manufacturing. They suggest the appropriate domain and processes for maximizing the returns to external innovation.

We use this evidence to discuss key questions as for innovation and competitive advantage of the firm. For firms using external innovation, what is the source of differentiation and barriers to imitation? Is it identification or integration abilities? Is it a supply of complementary assets such as distribution and branding?

More generally, with the rise of the external innovation paradigm, what activities belong inside and outside the boundaries of the firm?