The Front End of Innovation in Converging Industries: The Case of Nutraceuticals and Functional Foods

ISBN-13: 9783835000742 / Angielski / Miękka / 2005 / 362 str.

Leker, Jens

Opis

Industry Convergence - as the coalescence of previously separated industry sectors - can be observed in various areas of economic activity and therefore is a phenomenon of growing relevance. Convergence can be induced by the application of technologies across industry sectors or by converging trends regarding the demand side of different industry sectors. However, it results in the development of products, which combine features of different industries. The area of functional foods and nutraceuticals for instance, is an expression of the increasingly blurring boundary between the nutrition and pharmaceutical sectors. In particular, the area of functional foods is a striking example of industry convergence, as it shows converging trends between a technology-driven and a market-driven industry sector. As the term nutraceutical indicates, innovation projects in the context of industry convergence do not seem to follow the conventional path of innovation, but require resources and competences of different industries. The reasoning is that firms in different industries have developed along certain learning paths which have lead to the creation of an idiosyncratic set of competencies. Such a path dependently developed competence base seems not sufficient in times of convergence, where hybrid innovations require competencies and resources rooted in different industries. Generally speaking, firms are confronted with new areas of knowledge which becomes increasingly relevant to their innovation system. Industry convergence, thus, presents a context for innovation management, which not only seems to be a very interesting area of research but alsO is of increasing importance from a business perspective.

Spis treści

Innovation, innovation process and the front end of innovation Industry convergence as a context for the front end of innovation Assessment of the front end in converging industries Empirical analysis of the front end in converging industries Discussion of findings and implications for theory and practice

O autorze

Dr. Stefanie Bröring promovierte bei Prof. Dr. Jens Leker am Institut für betriebswirtschaftliches Management im Fachbereich Chemie und Pharmazie der Universität Münser. Sie ist Projektmanagerin im Bereich Business Ventures der Creavis Technologies & Innovation bei der Degussa AG in Marl.

Blurb

Industry convergence - the blurring of boundaries between formerly separated industry sectors - is a current phenomenon with vast implications for the front end of innovation. Firms intending to develop so called hybrid products face resource and competence gaps. Existing processes of idea generation and evaluation become obsolete since new areas of technological and market knowledge evolve outside traditional industry boundaries.

Stefanie Bröring analyses different project types, innovation strategies and front end decision making approaches in the converging sector of nutraceuticals and functional foods which is developing at the border of the pharmaceutical and the food industry. Results are derived from an empirical sample of 54 R&D projects collected in a North American industry cluster. The author shows that front end decision making in times of industry convergence is challenged by internal rigidities resulting from path dependency and describes how to successfully approach the front of innovation in times of convergence.