Value Creation Structures Research Articles

Adaptive Digital Leadership Approaches for Self-engagement to Overcome Digital Transformation Gaps

Digital transformation, forced by a rapidly changing environment and the increasing speed of technological advancements, enables various valuable opportunities in the business context, like increased efficiency, lower costs, and thus enhanced competitiveness, and manifold, complex challenges, like fast-changing customer expectations, increasing job demands, new value creation structures, and disruptive competition from outside the traditional industry boundaries. This often leads to business process reengineering and urges the strategic realignment of management and leadership styles based on competitive positions and corporate goals. In digital transformation, value impedance defines resistances encountered when integrating new digital technologies and processes into existing systems and workflows. Similarly, digital transformation gaps such as the business model gap are discrepancies preventing organizations from fully exploiting benefits and overcoming the challenges of digital transformation. The connection of digital transformation gaps and value impedance is recommended to avoid conflicts when facing digital transformation. However, as many organizations face difficulties with that alignment, this paper introduces the topic of digital transformation gaps, specifically the business model gap, and discusses its bridging with digital leadership aspects regarding self-engagement. Self-engagement enhances employee motivation, innovative work behaviors, performance, and a positive attitude toward change. This research thus answers the following research question: what digital leadership factors contribute to the development of self-engagement of employees in organizations to bridge the business model gap in digital transformation? This qualitative research is based on the Design Science Research method and elaborates four matrices with four strategic options each to enhance the self-engagement of employees, based on validated questionnaire items from the existing literature, and iteratively evaluated and further developed through semi-structured interviews with domain experts. Consequently, these four matrices build the basis for bridges to overcome the business model gap in digital transformation. Further research is suggested, on the one hand, to validate the proposed strategic options quantitatively and, on the other hand, to extend the approach with more strategic options also for other focus areas.

An intelligent platform-based tool for the development of digital transformation strategies

Digital transformation strategies are of elementary importance for organizations competing in the digital age. Challenges such as faster changing customer needs, new value creation structures in digital eco-systems, or the use of collective intelligence to innovate business models require leveraging digital technologies. To achieve this and remain competitive, appropriate digital transformation strategies need to be in place. Yet, studies show that organizations struggle with strategy formulation and implementation. Based on workshops with practitioners the authors obtained concrete needs, pains, and gains as requirements for the development of an own, new intelligent and platform-based assessment tool. The proposed tool collects, calculates, and visualizes in a self-service manner, relevant company data to support decision-makers and organizations in digital transformation strategy development and implementation.

How big data alters value creation: through the lens of big data competency

PurposeAs various different and even contradictory concepts are proposed to depict a firm's capabilities related to big data, and extant relevant research is fragmented and scattered in several disciplines, there is currently a lack of holistic and comprehensive understanding of how big data alters value creation by facilitating firm capabilities. To narrow this gap, this study aims to synthesize current knowledge on the firm capabilities and transformation of value creation facilitated by big data.Design/methodology/approachThe authors adopt an inductive and rigorous approach to conduct a systematic review of 185 works, following the “Grounded Theory Literature-Review Method”.FindingsThe authors introduce and develop the concept of big data competency, present an inductive framework to open the black box of big data competency following the logic of virtual value chain, provide a structure of big data competency that consists of two dimensions, namely, big data capitalization and big data exploitation, and further explain the evolution of value creation structure from value chain to value network by connecting the attributes of big data competency (i.e. connectivity and complementarity) with the transformation of value creation (i.e. optimizing and pioneering).Originality/valueThe big data competency, an inclusive concept of firm capabilities to deal with big data, is proposed. Based on this concept, the authors highlight the significant contributions that extant research has made toward our understanding of how big data alters value creation by facilitating firm capabilities. Besides, the authors provide a future research agenda that academics can rely on to study the strategic management of big data.

An apple a day \u2013 how the platform economy impacts value creation in the healthcare market

The healthcare industry has been slow to adopt new technologies and practices. However, digital and data-enabled innovations diffuse the market, and the COVID-19 pandemic has recently emphasized the necessity of a fundamental digital transformation. Available research indicates the relevance of digital platforms in this process but has not studied their economic impact to date. In view of this research gap and the social and economic relevance of healthcare, we explore how digital platforms might affect value creation in this market with a particular focus on Google, Apple, Facebook, Amazon, and Microsoft (GAFAM). We rely on value network analyses to examine how GAFAM platforms introduce new value-creating roles and mechanisms in healthcare through their manifold products and services. Hereupon, we examine the GAFAM-impact on healthcare by scrutinizing the facilitators, activities, and effects. Our analyses show how GAFAM platforms multifacetedly untie conventional relationships and transform value creation structures in the healthcare market.

Adaptation of the business model canvas template to develop business models for the circular economy

The Business Model Canvas as a template for strategic management serves the development of new or the documentation of existing linear business models. However, the change towards a Circular Economy requires new value creation structures and thus changed business models. To develop business models for circular economies, it is necessary to adapt the existing template, since the actors involved along the value chain take on changed roles. In the context of this paper, a template is presented, based on the existing Business Model Canvas, which allows to develop and document business models for a Circular Economy.

Identifying Value Creation Patterns for Smart Services

In manufacturing industry, digital services that build up on product’s data are gaining significantly in importance. These so-called smart services induce a profound change in value creation for involved stakeholders. Due to new value creation structures and mechanisms, the planning of value networks for smart services becomes a highly sophisticated matter. This paper aims to facilitate the strategic planning of value networks for smart service providers by presenting a collection of value creation patterns. These patterns were identified in a combined approach that includes a comprehensive literature analysis, a best practice review, and a validation in four case studies.

To Buy Green or Not to Buy Green: Do Structural Dependencies Block Ecological Responsiveness?

Despite the significant increase in interest in sustainable business practices, decisions on switching to more environmentally friendly input materials are understudied. In a conjoint experiment, we presented 267 Finnish manufacturing firms with an opportunity to acquire an alternative, more ecological input material and investigated their willingness to switch to that material. We find that in general, firms are willing to substitute their current principal input with a more ecological alternative under conditions of functional parity. However, such willingness is contingent on the firm’s value creation structures. Specifically, if the products and processes driving the firm’s value creation rely more on tangible materials (high materiality), firms anticipate higher input-switching costs, which leads to inertia and slows the adoption of alternative, environmentally friendlier inputs. However, if a firm’s value creation is driven more by intangible assets, like intellectual property and amortizable development costs, input-switching costs appear lower. Such firms not only find it easier to adopt ecological inputs but may also derive greater benefit from leveraging the positive reputation effects associated with ecological improvements. By exploring how willingness to switch to an alternative input material is constrained by organizational structures, our findings contribute to research on input substitution and theories of external influence, like demand-side research, stakeholder theory, and ecological responsiveness.

Sheet Metal Forming Using Additively Manufactured Polymer Tools

Due to various trends, such as e-mobility, a long-term change in the automotive value creation structure is foreseeable. Shorter development cycles demand early prototypes and cause more changes. Currently, there is no cost-effective production process for originally deep drawn sheet metal parts in series quality at small production volumes. In this paper, the application of additively manufactured functional elements in deep drawing tools is investigated. Besides the first concept of such tools, first experimental test series are described and analyzed.

Digital lifecycle records as an instrument for inter-company knowledge management

Digital lifecycle records provide a high potential for securing and passing of plant-specific information. Today, however, their use is limited to individual life phases and in-house applications. Further use cases such as the use in the context of an inter-company knowledge management are not yet implemented. The potentials and challenges of digital lifecycle records in networked value creation structures are examined and evaluated in this article using the example of inter-company knowledge management. As a result, recommendations for action and a specification of further research needs are presented.

Aalto Observatory for Digital Valuation Systems

Money is a recognised factor in creating sustainable, affluent societies. Yet, the neoclassical orthodoxy that prevails in our economic thinking remains as a contested area, its supporters claiming their results to be objectively true while many heterodox economists claim the whole system to stand on clay feet. Of late, the increased activity around complementary currencies suggest that the fiat money zeitgeist might be giving away to more variety in our monetary system. Rather than emphasizing what money does, as the main-stream economists do, other fields of science allow us to approach money as an integral part of the hierarchies and networks of exchange through which it circulates. This paper suggests that a broad understanding of money and more variety in monetary system have great potentials to further a more equalitarian and sustainable economy. They can drive the extension of society to more inclusive levels and transform people’s economic roles and identities in the process. New technologies, including blockchain and smart ledger technology are able to support decentralized money creation through the use of shared and “open” peer-to-peer rewarding and IOU systems. Alongside of specialists and decision makers’ capabilities, our project most pressingly calls for engaging citizens into the process early on. Multidisciplinary competencies are needed to take relevant action to investigate, envision and foster novel ways for value creation. For this, we are forming the Aalto Observatory on Digital Valuation Systems to gain deeper understandings of sustainable value creation structures enabled by new technology.

Value Creation Structure and Profiling Management of Public Social Programs with ODA

Value Creation Structure and Profiling Management of Public Social Programs with ODA

Identifying trends in battery technologies with regard to electric mobility: evidence from patenting activities along and across the battery value chain

Abstract Electric mobility is a topic of intense discussions in academia and industry since the stability of future energy supply as well as the associated environmental consequences are uncertain. Therefore, it is necessary to evaluate the research and development status of battery technologies for electric vehicles which are reflecting the interface of the automotive, chemical and electronics sector. The present study applies patent families as technological indicators in order to analyze the research activities of each step of the designed battery value chain individually and in comparison with each other to identify and discuss trends regarding the technologies associated to electric vehicles. By applying this explorative approach to the comparably new field, the study contributes to both the scientific literature on patent analysis as well as on emerging industry and value creation structures related to the electric mobility sector. Although the distribution of patents shows an emphasis on active components, the high number of patents covering more than one value chain step points towards the tendency of considering the whole value chain in systemic research approaches. Furthermore, a detailed analysis of patent assignees reveals insights on the knowledge dissemination across the value chain whereby the major share of industry actors still appears to be focused on their respective core competences but also administers important links to other value chain steps. The increase of collaborative activities across steps further hints towards starting shifts in value creation activities.

Knowledge Management in Value Creation Networks: Establishing a New Business Model through the Role of a Knowledge-Intermediary

The spatial distribution and growing granularity of value chains within manufacturing networks increase the complexity of inter-organizational value creation processes and pose new challenges for their coordination and a common innovation development. “Knowledge” is the essential resource to cope with this complexity. However, in an inter-organizational context conflicts between knowledge management objectives and general management objectives can arise, which have to be compensated. The presented article describes the role of a knowledge intermediary, which represents a support function within value creation networks. The intermediary supports value creation structures, processes and the artifact, which ensure an appropriate symbiosis between knowledge management objectives and general management objectives.

Entrepreneurship through relationships – navigating from creativity to commercialisation

This paper explores the role of relationships in the emergence of a network's value creation structure. The strategic navigation from creative exploration to global exploitation through the use of so‐called transformation networks is particularly highlighted. The creativity phase requires a creator with visionary leadership. The commercialisation phase, on the other hand, requires technology integration and global marketing excellence. Realising that this requires more than a bright inventor, the creator of Anoto brought in the right complementary assets at distinct phases of the commercialisation process. Our case illustrates how integrator and marketeer profiles were brought into a networked act of entrepreneurship for joint navigation across an ocean of relationships that gave birth to a global standard for digital writing. By combining theories on open innovation and networking, a theoretical framework is developed to analyse the different nature of the networks (or the value creation structure) in which complementary assets can be accessed, transferred and transformed into commercialised innovation. The analysis suggests that the value of complementary assets are embedded in and unlocked by three distinct types of networks: creativity networks, transformation networks and process networks. It also suggests that the ideal approach to accessing complementary assets shifts over the research and development management process, and happens through these three different types and levels of networks, requiring fundamentally different approaches to leadership and relationship management. Current literature describes open and networked innovation as a continuous – not dynamic – process of exploration and exploitation without any distinction of how types and structures of networks evolve and interact in the process.