Co‐creating value innovation through resource integration

Abstract

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to analyse innovation in the light of service-dominant (S-D) logic and service science as a value-creating process occurring through a many-to-many network resource integration. Design/methodology/approach – The paper utilises S-D logic and network theory to present case study research of a highly innovative Italian firm. The study investigates three innovation projects and the processes of interaction and integration that take place among the members of the networks involved in each project. Findings – The traditional understanding of innovation, in which the supplier is the innovator and the customer is the recipient of (or perhaps the stimulus for) innovation, is replaced by an understanding of innovation based on S-D logic in which customers and other stakeholders become real co-innovators who exchange and integrate resources to co-create value. Research limitations/implications – Future studies could examine the antecedents and implications of the interaction and integration processes of collaborative innovation. Practical implications – Innovation should be pursued as an open process in which all of the network's actors mobilise resources to become co-innovators who co-create value for themselves and other stakeholders. Originality/value – This paper offers a widened perspective of innovation by using S-D logic to emphasise the role of the network and the many-to-many interaction between stakeholders in developing value-creating innovation.