Weak Ties Are Stronger in Innovation Networks

8/8/2019 Weak Ties Are Stronger in Innovation Networks

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Weak Ties are Stronger in Innovation Networks?

PhD. Burak Kuzucu

Istanbul University

Management Faculty

21/12/2010


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Introduction

Innovation networks can provide firms with access to

information

resources

new markets technologies

whatever they need

to integrate theircore competence


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Introduction

Growing interest in understanding the nature and

characteristics of innovation networks

Collaboration impact on the degree of innovation

novelty have not analyzed yet

Main Question:

In innovation networks,

which type of (sectoral) linkages

is more efficient for

which type of innovation?


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Literature Review

Innovation Network

Linkages in Innovation Network

Novelty of Innovation


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Innovation Network

Network is a set of nodes and relationships that

connect them

Nodes can be anything

In case of innovation networks; the nodes might be mainly considered as companies linked by

innovation-oriented relationships


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Innovation Network

Innovation: new combination of knowledge

No single company with all resources of knowledge

required to innovate on its own

Innovation-focused collaboration

Different actors with the aim of accessing knowledge:

suppliers, competitors, universities and other knowledge-based

organizations

Partnership takes on many forms with network actors


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Innovation-focused Collaboration


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Different Ties in Network Theory:


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The Strength of Weak Ties (Granovetter, 1973)

weak ties rather than strong ties are appropriate

for access to new information


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Strong Ties: Intra-sectoral linkages

Partners in the same core technological field

Strong ties broaden basic knowledge of relative mature products

and technologies

Weak Ties: Inter-sectoral linkages

Partners outside the core technological field in a different sub-

sector of the industry

New ideas come from partners in different lines of business

Companies from different networks are the source of different

knowledge bases


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Novelty of Innovation


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Hypothesis Development

Assumption:

Core competences are getting more differentiated in case firms

sectors are differentiated

Statements:1. Intra-sectoral cooperation attempts to harness similar strengths

in improvement of existent products and processes

2. Inter-sectoral cooperation consists of actors from different

sectors with radically different knowledge bases


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Example for intra-sectoral linkage

WiMAX Forum: Innovation Network in Telecom sector

Promoting and accelerating the introduction of cost-effective

broadband wireless access services into the marketplace

Incremental Innovation

Example for inter-sectoral linkage

Quadruple Play: Innovation Network from different sectors such

as telecom, software and entertainment

Disrupting the market by changing the existent technology

Radical Innovation


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To investigate the relationship between the different

type of linkages in innovation networks and the degree

of novelty of innovations:

H.1: For radical innovation, inter-sectoral linkages (weak ties)are more efficient in innovation networks than intra-sectoral

linkages (strong ties).

H.2: For incremental innovation, intra-sectoral linkages (strong

ties) are more efficient in innovation networks than inter-sectoral linkages (weak ties).


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Q&A

Documents

Weak Ties Are Stronger in Innovation Networks