Roger Courtney

The Organization of Innovation Brokers: An International Review

Abstract Research on networks of innovation has typically focused on relationships of competition and collaboration between firms in the network, sometimes extending the analysis to sources of new ideas such as universities. More recently, attention has been paid to the activities of intermediaries in such networks, which facilitate the innovation process, which are positioned between the sources and users of innovations. This paper focuses on the organization of a distinctive type of intermediary, which we have defined as an innovation broker, by providing an analysis of 10 case studies of organizations dedicated to innovation broking from around the world. Innovation brokers in our definition are organizations that are founded especially to undertake an intermediary role, rather than performing that role as a by-product of their principal activities. The results of this analysis suggest that the key role played by innovation brokers in the innovation process is the independent validation of new ideas, thereby facilitating diffusion. In order to carry out this task, innovation brokers are organized on a not-for-profit basis, typically as a public–private partnership. The paper concludes by discussing the implications of the findings for innovation theory and research in networks of innovation.

Re-engineering construction: the role of research and implementation

This note reports the background research sponsored by the International Council for Research and Innovation in Building and Construction (CIB) for the development of a strategy for re-engineering construction. Three different data collection methods were used: a survey of CIB coordinators, a web-survey and three regional workshops. The principal conclusion is that the concept of Re-engineering Construction restrictive, and the concept of re-valuing construction was posed as a broader alternative that better captures the challenges facing the international construction industry. Other important findings are the widespread perception that the challenges facing the construction industry are shared by many countries and that considerable scope exists for international exchange and collaboration in this area. Relatively low emphasis has been given to technology issues such as prefabrication and information technology in meeting these challenges.

Re-valuing Construction

In late 2001, the International Council for Research and Innovation in Building and Construction (CIB) commissioned a team to develop a strategy for the theme of Business and Process Reengineering (BPR) in construction (referred to as re-engineering construction for short). The development of this new strategy was to complement existing strategies for performance-based building and sustainable construction. The final report on this strategy was delivered to CIB in April 2002. This special issue of Building Research & Information further explores the issues of BPR in construction and widens the perspective by presenting a diverse group of authors’ research.

Limits to the Implementation of Benchmarking Through KPIs in UK Construction Policy: Insights from game theory

Abstract Benchmarking through the use of key performance indicators (KPIs) has been an important part of the UK governments market-oriented reforms to improve efficiency across the public sector and in other areas such as construction where government is a major client. However, government attempts to implement construction KPIs have not followed the expected course. We argue that insights from game theory show that the initial plan for construction benchmarking failed to take account of the strategic value of the information collected and was not implementable because the sharing of information by construction suppliers with their clients was a dominated strategy.

The process of examining the future

In late 2009, CIB made available on the Web, under the heading of ‘Collected Outlooks’, a compilation of reports from various sources concerning future developments in construction and the built environment. The reports differ in their scope and objectives; some are ‘futures’ studies undertaken with the aim of informing research priorities; others review aspects of construction technology or management practices, with recommendations for change; a number explore the potential for reducing energy consumption in the national building stock in order to meet greenhouse gas emission targets. Currently (as of February 2010), some 80 documents are included, most dating from 2005 or later, but a few from earlier years.

The Limits of Information? A Game Theoretic Contribution to Understanding the Development of an Indicators Policy for the UK Construction Industry

In the UK over the last decade, benchmarking has been consistently promoted as a solution to the problems of industry and the construction industry in particular. Government support of benchmarking in construction through the development of a key performance indicators programme found justification in the public goods aspects of the innovation process and because of the presence of market failures of information facing construction clients. However, attempts to merge benchmarking approaches into a single framework did not lead to a combined programme as intended. A game theoretic analysis of the implementation of government policy is presented to account for difficulties encountered by policy actors and to explain why a suitable mechanism to facilitate mutual benchmarking could not be devised. A key performance indicator (KPI) system that supports clients and suppliers in any sector – here we consider construction - is highly problematic, not only because the types of information and types of processes that generate the information used by clients and suppliers are generally different, but because the exchange of information between suppliers and clients and vice versa potentially leads to loss of commercially valuable information.

Revaluing construction – the international agenda

International Conference, Manchester, UK, 3–4 February 2003