User-producer Interaction Research Articles

The potential of innovation contests in articulating demand for system-level transformation: The case of the Helsinki Energy Challenge

As local authorities and providers of services and infrastructures, cities can advance sustainability transformations through instruments like public procurement. However, a disconnect exists between broad (supra)national sustainability challenges and public procurers’ local needs. We examine innovation contests as a tool for articulating societal challenges as local demands for innovation. We study Helsinki Energy Challenge, where the city of Helsinki, Finland, sought solutions for decarbonizing its heating system, offering a million-euro reward. We explore how innovation contest-related activities contribute to articulating demand for system innovation locally and their influence on participants’ problem-solving approaches. The case demonstrates how innovation contests could localise demand for sustainable solutions and direct innovation processes toward a societal challenge, while supporting solutions’ broader scalability. We identify six demand articulation activities: expressing strategic intent, scoping, boundary-setting, user-producer interaction, evaluation, and embedding. We enhance understanding of demand articulation processes for system innovation and the potential of innovation contests for transformative innovation missions.

User innovation and network effects: the case of video games

AbstractNew models of knowledge creation are emerging, where the user community is a major source of innovation development. But, how does user innovation impact on producer sales, and the other way round? In this article, the mutual benefits deriving from the user–producer interaction are analyzed in terms of network effects and on a basis of a unique panel dataset of weekly observations in the context of video games and their user-generated, free modifications. The estimates of a system of equations modeling the original good’s retail demand function and the user innovation dynamics show that user-generated complements spur the demand for the original product and smooth the consumer price sensitivity. User innovation increases with the crowd of complementors up to a certain threshold and decreases afterwards, thus following a non-monotonic pattern.

The innovation process in firms with border region location

The paper focuses on how the uncertainty in innovation processes created by intertwined technological and commercial forces is managed in border region (BR) firms. The aim of the research is to study the firms' capability to innovate, and to investigate the firms' innovative status within a framework of high-involvement innovation. In the three cases in the study, the managers of the researched firms focus on the need for innovation management and organisational change to thrive in the manufacturing industry in Ostfold and Vastra Gotaland characterised by global competition and advanced technology. The empirical findings show that diffusion of innovations is not only dependent on the flow of information on user characteristics in a user-producer interaction, but also on the organisational structure of a firm. A producer organised as a cost-centre in a corporation might be a factor that influences the close relationship needed to innovate successfully. The major findings describe the innovative status of the researched firms, and provide analysis of and discuss the firms' capabilities to involve employees in innovation. Based upon the firms' level of high involvement innovation and organisational culture, the framework applied provides insight into how to identify capabilities, or cluster of behaviour, required to develop the investigated organisations.

The Sensing Paradox: Should Customizing Service Providers Listen to Their Users? (WITHDRAWN)

Recent literature on user-producer interaction has been urging firms to develop capabilities for sensing user needs. The strategic value of such capabilities, however, is contested by research show...

Measurement of Technological Change in India’s Textile Machinery Industry Using the Malmquist Productivity Index

This article measures technological change in India’s textile machinery industry, and examines how user–producer interaction affects this. Employing the non-parametric Malmquist productivity index, we find there has been little technological change in the textile machinery industry from 1998–99 through 2007–08. It is proposed that poor and unsustainable demand and the shrinking share of domestic demand for textile machinery owing to the technological upgradation fund scheme—meant for providing interest reimbursements or capital subsidies to textile manufacturers—may have weakened the user–producer interactions, thereby bringing down innovative activities and innovations in the textile machinery industry in India. JEL Classification: O14, O33, C14

User-Producer Dialogue, Workplace Innovation, and Knowledge in a Regional Innovation System

This study aims at creating new knowledge about the connections between regional innovation systems, the enterprises they enclose, and their individual employees in order to better understand the enterprises’ innovation processes. A particular focus is directed at the interaction of these employees both within their own enterprises and with individuals and institutions outside them, along with the types of knowledge being involved, and their function in the innovation process. Two research questions are posed: (1) What sort of interaction takes place between individuals inside and outside of an SME when it innovates, within the context of an RIS? and (2) What types of knowledge are involved in this interaction, how are they developed and shared, and what is their function in the innovation process? The study is designed as a qualitative, explorative case study of nine small- and medium-sized enterprises in a Norwegian region. Interaction with customers was identified as the most significant form of interaction driving innovation, and practical knowledge was judged more important than scientific knowledge. This practical knowledge, moreover, was seen as comprising not only production skills but also the practical lifeworld knowledge of customers, and cooperative skills. In addition, a high degree of employee participation in workfloor decisions was judged to promote the innovation process. The paper argues for a revision of the notion of a regional innovation system that takes greater account of these dimensions. Four implications for policy are emphasized: (1) stimulating user-producer interaction within a regional innovation system, (2) involving the right employee groups, (3) utilizing the full potential of various types of practical knowledge, and (4) promoting employee participation within enterprises.

Nurturing user–producer interaction: inclusive innovation flows in a low-income mobile phone market

Understandings of inclusive innovation in developing country low-income markets have typically taken one of two perspectives. On the one hand, a business perspective on the role of top-down, strategic innovation from larger-firm actors. And on the other hand, a more developmental perspective that highlights the role localized practices play in making new goods and services applicable to local needs. Both are demonstrably important to successful inclusive innovation but, to date, there has been little analysis of the link between these two perspectives. The goal of this paper is to explore the interaction between top-down and localized elements of innovation, and to provide an understanding of the conditions by which these two perspectives might be complementary. Drawing on the case of the mobile phone sector in Kenya, and adapting Lundvall's concept of user–producer interaction, a conceptual model to understand such innovation flows is outlined. This highlights the centrality of operational links between producers and users which serve as a medium for interactive learning.

Exploring the Relation Between the Degree of Novelty of Innovations and User–Producer Interaction Across Different Income Regions

Summary User–producer interactions have been recognized as important for innovation. With the rapid growth of emerging economies’ markets, and an increasing degree of technological sophistication of both users and producers in those markets, user–producer interaction is becoming global. Using original firm-level data, this paper explores how collaboration with users in different income regions affects the degree of innovations’ novelty. We find that collaborating with international users is positively related to higher degrees of novelty. Furthermore, firms in low- and middle income countries will benefit more from south–south user collaboration than a south–north one.

User-Producer Interaction in the Brazilian Oil Industry: The Relationship between Petrobras and its Suppliers of Wet Christmas Tree

The objective of this work is to analyze the importance of the user-producer interaction for the innovative process of the Brazilian oil industry from the 2000s. To do so, we selected two of the three providers installed in Brazil that produce the set of valves used in the oil wellhead to control its production, set which is called wet Christmas tree (WCT), the Norway's Aker Solutions and the American FMC Technologies. The results of this analysis indicate not only the development of the oil industry in Brazil is marked by a strategy of cooperative innovation, but they also reveal the importance of geographical proximity and direct cooperation, especially between the centers of engineering and research and development of companies. Furthermore, these partnerships are not limited to the adaptation of products to new needs, but they also include the development of new systems.

User producer interaction in context

User producer interaction (UPI) increases chances for successful innovations. It is not always clear, however, what type of interaction is necessary in a particular context. This article identifies seven different types of UPI: constructing linkages, broadening, characterizing users, upstream involvement, first user enrollment, feedback, and downstream innovation. Specific contextual dimensions from which these UPI types derive relevance are discussed. The technological dimension of this context is conceptualized based on a distinction between types of technologies that differ in the degree to which they are customizable to user demands. Four case studies show that technological characteristics indeed matter for UPI, as do the heterogeneity of users and the phase of technology development.

User–producer interaction as a driver of innovation: costs and advantages in an open innovation model

While drawing on theories of distributed innovation and search, we conjecture that because a lot of important knowledge can only be obtained through the use of a product, the use of customer knowledge is beneficial for firms' innovative performance. However, the use of customer knowledge also has an important downside as customers may often be conservative (for many good reasons), forcing producer firms to search for new solutions along established paths, while shying away from truly new and promising opportunities. In this paper these two forces are reconciled through an argument stating that there is an inverse U-shaped relationship between the intensity of the use of customer knowledge and innovative performance. We hypothesize that the negative effect at high levels of intensity of the use of customer knowledge is offset by firms' broader search strategies in terms of the breadth of external search among other sources of innovation: If firms search more broadly among several sources of innovation, they are much more likely to enjoy the benefits of customer knowledge, while avoiding important negative aspects. Overall, we find empirical support for these conjectures.

The Impact of Functional Integration and Spatial Proximity on the Post-entry Performance of Knowledge Intensive Business Service Firms

Knowledge intensive business service firms (KIBS) are an important element of modern economies and thus attracting increasing interest in scientific research. In the existing literature it is argued that due to the important role of knowledge, innovation and user-producer interaction in the KIBS sector, functional integration and spatial proximity are particularly decisive for a firm's development. Nevertheless, due to the absence of suitable micro data there is a lack of studies empirically analysing the impact of functional integration and regional proximity using micro firm data. Based upon newly-conducted firm micro data in three German metropolitan regions, this paper supplements the literature by giving a multivariate empirical analysis of the determinants of post-entry performance of KIBS. The results of the estimation of firm growth equations show that functional linkages to knowledge providers, customers and co-operation partners indeed matter for the performance of young KIBS. Regarding spatial proximity, however, especially a high diversification of geographical reach is proved to be crucial.

User-producer interaction in Web site development: Motives, modes, and misfits

User-producer interaction in Web site development: Motives, modes, and misfits

Exploring user-producer interaction in an online community: the case of Habbo Hotel

This article attempts to explore the user-producer interaction in the online community of Habbo Hotel. Based on desk research, interviews, an online survey among more than 3000 Habbo Hotel users in The Netherlands and online discussion groups with 45 Habbos, three specific issues that illustrate the interactions between the users and producers are highlighted. First, different levels of user-generated content in Habbo Hotel will be discussed. Second, the communication between the users and producers will be analysed and, finally, the matter of online safety will be reviewed.

USER-PRODUCER INTERACTIONS IN EMERGING PHARMACEUTICAL AND FOOD INNOVATIONS

In order to study user-producer interaction (UPI) in emerging pharmaceutical and food innovation processes, a classification of user involvement has been developed, including a contextualised view on UPIs. Case studies are performed on two types of UPI: demand articulation in intermediary organisations and interactive learning in consortia, in the pharmaceutical and food sector, respectively.Regarding demand articulation processes, articulation of problems, needs, demands and expectations through agenda-setting practices is important. Expression and evaluation of demands with other factors leads to moblization of creative potential of prospective users and facilitation of emerging innovation processes.Regarding interactive learning, geographical, organisational, regulatory and cognitive proximity conditions could facilitate structures for emerging technology development, and codes and networks for frequent interaction between complementary stakeholders. Demands, concerns and opportunities are articulated by shared visions. Organised UPIs via intermediary user organisations or consortia seem to be the important tools for demand articulation and interactive learning involving patient organisations, researchers and private and public organisations.

Interactive Communication in Pharmacogenomics Innovations: User-producer interaction from an innovation and science communication perspective

Pharmacogenomics is a quickly evolving field of research that increasingly impacts individuals and society. As some innovations in biotechnology have experienced strong public opposition during the 1990s, interaction between producers and users of these innovations may help in increasing their success in social and economic terms. However, conditions for effective interaction have so far remained under-explored. This paper explores user-producer interactions in pharmacogenomics from an innovation and science communication perspective in the Netherlands. To find possible ways of engaging stakeholders in an early stage of technology development, ie, when science policy is in the making, we present communication activities derived from the field of policy analysis. To articulate motives for two-way public participation in genomics innovation processes, we describe two levels at which pharmacogenomics developments will have an input:1) at the meso-level of medical practice with already established medical technologies, values and routines, suppliers and health professionals (general practitioners, pharmacists), and 2) at the macro-level of society at large, with established institutions, infrastructures, and broadly shared values and beliefs among citizens in general. Thereby we offer a starting point for optimising decision-making processes in the field of pharmacogenomics innovations, including important aims to be reached, stakeholders to be involved, and some criteria for designing interactive communication activities.

The Neglected King: The Customer in the New Knowledge Ecology of Innovation

Despite the universal mantra that “the customer is king,” the role of the customer has so far seemed to have been confined to a passive recipient of products. Recently, however, this traditional perception has been challenged. On the one hand, users are increasingly appreciated as reflexive actors who are actively involved in the evaluation, modif ication, and configuration of products. On the other hand, beyond the established repertoire to access external knowledge through interorganizational networks, firms increasingly attempt to harness user knowledge. These two concurrent shifts do not result in a smooth convergence. Rather, they open up a highly contested terrain in which habitual distinctions between the producer and user are blurred. In this article, we map the evolving terrain of user-producer interaction in innovation processes. Specifically, we contrast more traditional approaches to incorporate customer knowledge with an emerging class of innovative user-producer relationships, provisionally dubbed “co-development.” We then propose a typology of different modes of codevelopment that is organized along two dimensions: the degree of user involvement and the prevailing locus of knowledge production. This typology seeks to capture the heterogeneity of co-development approaches and to provide a conceptual template for further empirical research on user involvement in innovation.

Impact of Functional Integration and Spatial Proximity on the Post-entry Performance of Knowledge Intensive Business Service Firms

Knowledge intensive business service firms (KIBS) are an important element of modern economies, and are thus attracting increasing interest in scientific research. In the existing literature, it is argued that due to the important role of knowledge, innovation and user-producer interaction in the KIBS sector, functional integration and spatial proximity are particularly decisive for a firm's development. Nevertheless, due to the absence of suitable micro data there is a lack of studies empirically analysing the impact of functional integration and spatial proximity using micro firm data. Based upon new firm micro data from three German metropolitan regions, this article supplements the literature by giving a multivariate empirical analysis of the determinants of post-entry performance of KIBS. The results of the estimates of fi rm growth equations show that functional linkages to knowledge providers, customers and cooperation partners matter indeed for the performance of young KIBS. Regarding spatial proximity, however, a high diversifi cation of geographical reach is proven to be especially crucial.

Local User-Producer Interaction in Innovation and Export Performance of Firms

This paper studies the effects of local market attributes on local firms’ exports of innovations. Our starting point are three common hypotheses. First, innovations are a major determinant for the export performance of firms. Second, user–producer interaction is an important factor for successful innovations. Third, user–producer interaction is most efficient in close proximity. Taken together this would mean that intense local user–producer interaction increases exports. This reasoning contradicts a main proposition in international management that overt local responsiveness may be hampering export chances of a firm. In order to generate global innovations, an international firm should look at the world market instead, for instance by identifying the global common denominator of national preferences. Yet, many local innovations have become globally successful. This paper investigates the question to what extent local demand is capable of inducing innovations that are export effective. We utilize data from the German innovation survey of 4,786 firms in the manufacturing and service industries. In this survey firms were asked about the sources of their innovation and their export activities. We find evidence that the export orientation and the domestic demand structure stimulate export success.

An Activity-Theoretical Method for Studying User Participation in IS Design

This paper aims to present an activity-theoretical method for studying the effects of user participation in IS development. This method is developed through a case study of the process of designing a diabetes database. The method consists of a historical analysis of the design process, an ethnographical study of the use of the database, and researcher-driven interventions into the on-going user-producer interaction. In the historical analysis, we study particularly which user groups of the database have influenced the design work and which perspectives need to be incorporated into the design in the near future. An analytical model consisting of perspectives on local design, particular technology, and societal domain is introduced as a conceptual tool for this analysis. We also introduce the possibility of employing the historical analysis in guiding an ethnographical study of the user sites and researcher-driven interventions, which provide the participants with tools for improving their design process.