It is part of the open innovation business model that involves opening up a company’s innovation processes of external inputs and contributions from individuals and companies in order the complement the internal competitive base of the company.
Published in Chapter:
Open Innovation: A Successful Case Study of a Portuguese Company Seeking Complementary Resources
Ana Inês (University of Aveiro, Portugal), Maria Hespanha (University of Aveiro, Portugal), Mariana Leite (University of Aveiro, Portugal), Patrícia Pires (University of Aveiro, Portugal), and António Carrizo Moreira (University of Aveiro, Portugal)
Copyright: © 2022
|Pages: 31
DOI: 10.4018/978-1-7998-8665-5.ch003
Abstract
Open innovation practices are recurrent in the business environment due to resource and technology limitations in most companies. The search for complementary resources, especially among SMEs, begins to be a current practice due to the possibility of resorting to partnerships and collaborative processes. Thus, through a case study analysis of a Portuguese SME based in Aveiro, Portugal, it was possible to analyze the innovation process and the adoption of open innovation practices in this SME. Through a qualitative study, it was possible to understand the importance of SMEs in the Portuguese business fabric, as they increasingly seek to apply innovative processes in their processes. However, the case analyzed reveals that open innovation may involve an inter-organizational partnership where the company analyzed uses an intermediate model of open innovation, since it does not sell surplus technology, internalizing only external resources. This case study serves as a teaching case as well as a pedagogic tool.