Idea Generation in SMEs : when does market-based partnership pay off most?

• Small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) strongly depend on idea generation to improve the front-end of innovation performance, yet internal resource and capability limitations may hamper successful idea generation in SMEs. Therefore, many SMEs may choose to collaborate with market-based partners such as customers and suppliers to compensate for lack of internal resources. We ask when and under which circumstances does such collaboration provides’ highest benefit towards front-end innovation performance? By drawing on a survey of 142 Swedish manufacturing SMEs, this paper provides two key findings. First, systematic idea generation and front-end performance relationships is non-linear, such that disproportionally higher levels of performance are achieved when idea generation is highly systematic. Second, the pay-off from high level of idea generation is largely influenced by presence of market-based partners. Thus, our findings show that external collaboration in idea generation does not pay off unless SMEs have internal systematic processes for idea generation in place before external input is sought. This implies a contingency perspective on external collaboration and provides implications for research into the front-end of innovation and open innovation, in addition to novel managerial implications about how to better involve partners in idea generation and selection.

Ämnesord

TEKNIK OCH TEKNOLOGIER  -- Annan teknik -- Övrig annan teknik (hsv//swe)

ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY  -- Other Engineering and Technologies -- Other Engineering and Technologies not elsewhere specified (hsv//eng)

Nyckelord

SMEs

idea generation

Publikations- och innehållstyp

ref (ämneskategori)

kon (ämneskategori)