Guido Reger

Linking roadmapping and scenarios as an approach for strategic technology planning

Great efforts have to be devoted to create shared visions. Visions are desirable pictures of the future, which guide organisations in making decisions. This paper aims at developing a new methodology that links both roadmapping and scenario technique in order to plan the development and deployment of new and existing technologies and applications. It involves the identification, analysis, assessment and projection of both technologies and applications necessary to meet market needs under different future circumstances. It is supposed to help avoid isolated and linear thinking and vagueness, as well as improve creativity, communication, collaboration and integration science and technology planning, while giving people at organisations room to create the future and remain flexible with uncertainty. Our concept is based on a deep analysis of the literature and an example, which should illustrate how the method works.

Is open source software living up to its promises? : Insights for open innovation management from two open source software-inspired projects

At present, several virtual initiatives claim to be acting according to the open source software (OSS) arena, which is often deemed a role model for open innovation. Against this background, this research focuses on a comparative case study of two non-profit project networks that attempt to operate in line with the OSS phenomenon: Wikipedia, the online encyclopedia, and the development of an automobile, Open Source car. We show that many parallels to the OSS arena can be drawn in both cases. However, this analysis must be performed cautiously, as several factors limit the applicability of OSS principles to non-software-related arenas. We conclude with a discussion of implications for open innovation research and managerial practice.

'Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia' as a role model? Lessons for open innovation from an exploratory examination of the supposedly democratic-anarchic nature of Wikipedia

Accounts of open source software (OSS) development projects frequently stress their democratic, sometimes even anarchic nature, in contrast to for-profit organisations. Given this observation, our research evaluates qualitative data from Wikipedia, a free online encyclopaedia whose development mechanism allegedly resembles that of OSS projects. Our research offers contributions to the field of open innovation research with three major findings. First, we shed light on Wikipedia as a phenomenon that has received scant attention from management scholars to date. Second, we show that OSS-related motivational mechanisms partially apply to Wikipedia participants. Third, our exploration of Wikipedia also reveals that its organisational mechanisms are often perceived as bureaucratic by contributors. This finding was unexpected since this type of problem is often associated with for-profit organisations. Such a situation risks attenuating the motivation of contributors and sheds a critical light on the nature of Wikipedia as a role model for open innovation processes.

Managing technology in the top-R&D-spending companies worldwide - Results of a global survey

Introduction There is a common rule of thumb found in innovation literature, that innovative firms are twice as profitable as firms that stick to old products and processes (Tidd et al., 1997). With competition to a high degree driven by process and product innovation, the strategic dimension of technology and therefore the crucial meaning of industrial R&D for competitiveness are a commonplace in the scientific and industrial community. It is for this reason that the literature on the strategic importance of technology is constantly growing in economic-, policy-, and management-oriented literature (Tidd et al., 1997; Gerybadze et al., 1997). However, at the same time there is a constant dearth of empirical knowledge about how companies actually set up and implement their technology strategies. This article is based on a survey among the top-R&Dspending companies worldwide and analyzes the practices in the strategic management of technology in large multidivisional corporations. A questionnaire was sent to senior R&D/technology officers of all companies in the Triad regions-North America, western Europe and Japan-whose R&D expenditures totaled

Lead-using or lead-refusing? An examination of customer integration in mechanical engineering firms

100 million or more. Our results presented here focus on two issues. First, we analyze the nature of current corporate technology strategies and their importance for corporate management. Second, we look at the ways in which companies provide the basis for these technology strategies, i.e., the instruments used to keep up-to-date with technological dynamics and to acquire the technological knowledge rated crucial for competitiveness. The analysis differentiates-whenever significant results came to the fore-between companies from the three regions.

Future scenarios of the technological knowledge generation by multinational enterprises

The significance of lead users as an important source for innovating new products or services is commonly acknowledged. Conventional accounts frequently elaborate upon ways to improve lead user integration with regard to opening up new avenues for further collaboration. Against this background, this study concentrates on qualitative data from the field of mechanical engineering and suggests that companies often deliberately refuse to engage with lead users. This unanticipated finding thwarts the supremacy of an uncritical integration of lead users and indicates that the extent to which lead users are integrated depends upon the nature of the product and the particularities of the relationship between the company and the respective lead user. The article concludes with a discussion, critical reflection and suggestions for future research.

Das Biotechnologiecluster in Singapur

The objective of this paper is to analyse trends and possible future changes in the way of knowledge production by Multinational Enterprises (MNEs) and the relative role of MNE in the European Research Area. Various scenarios of the future of knowledge production by multinationals will be developed. The time horizon of the scenario will be to 2020. R&D is hereby considered as one core element. Four consistent scenarios are built. In The Long Boom scenario, the investment in technological knowledge is dramatic and highly globally distributed. In the Ups and Downs scenario, the overall investment in innovation stagnates and correlates with the economic up-and-down swings. The Handpicked Innovation scenario includes that MNE generate innovation only by chance and focuses on internal knowledge generation. In the Zero Growth scenario, MNEs restrain competition and technological knowledge becomes less and less important to differentiate in competition.

Lead using or lead refusing? an exploratory examination of open innovation activities by lead users in mechanical engineering

Der Biotechnologiecluster in Singapur gilt als einer der am schnellsten wachsenden Cluster dieser Art weltweit. Den Akteuren des Clusters ist es innerhalb kurzester Zeit (etwa seit dem Jahre 2000 bis heute) gelungen, verschiedene international renommierte biomedizinische Forschungsinstitute aufzubauen und diese mit internationalen Spitzenfachkraften zu besetzen. Mehrere der grosen multinationalen Pharmaunternehmen sind im Cluster vertreten und betreiben verschiedene Aktivitaten, wie Vertrieb, Produktion sowie Forschung und Entwicklung.

Managing technology in the top R&D spending companies worldwide-results of a global survey

Nowadays the importance of lead users as an important source for innovating new products or services is commonly acknowledged. Conventional accounts frequently elaborate upon ways of improving lead user integration with regards to opening up new avenues for further collaboration. Against this background, this study concentrates upon qualitative data from the field of mechanical engineering, which suggest that companies oftentimes also deliberately try to refuse to engage with lead users. This unanticipated finding thwarts the supremacy of an uncritical integration of lead users, indicating that the extent to which lead users are integrated depends upon the nature of the product and the particularities of the relationship between the company and the respective lead user. The article concludes with a discussion, critical reflection, and options for future research.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Scenario Approaches for Strategic Foresight

This paper is based on a survey among the top R&D spending companies worldwide. First, it analyses the importance of current corporate technology strategies. Second, it looks at the instruments used to acquire the technologies and knowledge rated crucial for competitiveness. Third, aspects of the internationalisation of technology are investigated.