Samuli Kortelainen

A scenario approach for assessing new business concepts

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine challenges in the front end of innovation (FEI) and to propose a scenario‐based approach to alleviate some of these problems, particularly as regards uncertainty in opportunity recognition.Design/methodology/approach – The paper answers the main research question through a literature review and a case study. The paper employs the design‐oriented approach to propose an artifact which solves the underlined problem, and validate the artifact through the case study.Findings – According to the literature review, scenarios should offer a viable method for opportunity recognition. The case study supports the theoretical proposition, and suggests that scenarios can be used to alleviate the effect of uncertainty in the FEI.Research limitations/implications – The empirical results are limited to the level of proof‐of‐concept. The scenario process as such was rated positively, which corresponds to the theory and previous similar experiments, but the benefits of the s...

Dependency between learning and profitability in different industry conditions: a system dynamic simulation

Technological change and especially radical changes are a major source of uncertainty for strategic management of technology. We look at this situation through the lens of the resource-based view of the firm (RBV). RBV proposes that the competitiveness of industrial companies depends on their ability to manage portfolios of rare and valuable resources. Learning is an important mechanism in resource development and management. We have developed a system dynamic model to understand the linkage between learning and profitability under different conditions set by the appropriability and transferability of resources. The research problem is to examine how profitable the innovator and imitator are in different industry conditions after a radical innovation has been launched to the market. The setting informs the industrial manager whether it is economically feasible to open up the R&D to external influences in a situation of discontinuous change, given the industry parameters. The results show that the expected...

A GSS process to generate new product ideas and business concepts

The paper introduces a process for brainstorming new product ideas and business concepts. The developed process utilises a group support system. It aims to enhance the innovation process and the transfer of knowledge inside a company by offering effective means for cooperation. The paper reports the experiences and findings of using the developed process in business cases.

Utilizing front‐end‐of‐innovation concepts in software development

Purpose – The traditional front‐end‐of‐innovation (FEI) research and requirements engineering (RE) in software development have realized the opportunities for overall innovation process improvements by focusing on improving the front‐end activities. The purpose of this paper is to investigate and compare the managerial perceptions on the similarities and differences in the FEI concepts between software industry and the traditional industrial sector.Design/methodology/approach – The research approach of this paper can be categorized as a case study. Causal cognitive maps are used as graphic tools for collecting and analyzing the perceptions of selected experts about the concepts of FEI, and for recognizing the perceived interrelationships between these concepts.Findings – The paper presents the similarities and differences in the FEI concepts between the two industries. The most similarly assessed concept is that the quality of a product or software development project can be most often influenced by succe...

Managing the front end of innovation with a group support system

Front end of innovation is defined as those activities that take place prior to the formal, well structured product development process. Front end activities are widely perceived as unstructured, fuzzy and hard to manage. There is a clear need for practical procedures and tools to support the front end process. This paper aims to enhance and systematise the early phases of the innovation process by presenting group support system tools and procedures for the management of the front end activities, such as new idea generation and concept evaluation. The empirical evidence is based on the experience gained in several cases carried out with industrial companies in the GDSS laboratory of Lappeenranta University of Technology.

Simulating the effects of radical innovation with the help of system dynamics

Radical innovations pose a great challenge for strategic management. Innovation management has traditionally approached change with static methods relying on information on capabilities, strategy and markets. We introduce a system dynamics model to describe how learning changes the dynamics of innovation management. We use a post radical innovation environment to illustrate how the system reacts to different situations through the process of learning. As a result we propose two major propositions for future study that have not been addressed by past innovation management literature.

HYBRID MODELING APPROACH TO COMPETITIVENESS THROUGH FAST STRATEGY

Understanding the sources of sustained competitive advantage is the fundamental task of strategic management research. An interesting concept of fast strategy has emerged, which builds a firms competitiveness from its ability to react to change more rapidly than its competitors. We approach this concept with a simulation model based on a hybrid modeling technique. The simulation model is used to test the profitability of the fast strategy concept in different business environment conditions. The theoretical finding of our study supports the fast strategy concept and shows that there are some internal and external factors that control the value of agility. The methodological finding of this work is that the hybrid modeling technique offers an interesting platform for understanding the effects of environmental dynamics in strategic and technology management research.

The dynamism of the two-sided application store market

Application stores as the most recent manifestation of two-sided markets have attracted multiple players, such as device and operating system manufacturers in the field of telecommunications. Although the option to enter the application store market offers a lucrative opportunity for the operators, there are significant internal and external challenges for operators entering the application business. In this paper we study what possibilities and challenges the two-sided application store market brings to the intermediary’s (e.g., operator’s) business and how these affect the market dynamism. Theoretically, we draw from the literature of two-sided markets, software platforms and intermediaries, observe the emergence of application stores and competition between them with real-world examples and conclude with the representation of the central issues in lowering the barriers to entry from the operators’ point of view in order to grasp the arising opportunity.

Characteristics of the Finnish transportation corridor for the Russian automotive industry

The Russian automotive industry has enjoyed fast growth in recent years. The increase of consumer demand in Russia has created huge business potential for the Finnish logistics industry and Finland as an important transportation corridor. The objective of this paper is to identify the factors that hinder or enhance the utilisation of the Finnish transportation corridor by the Russian automotive industry. The research approach of this study can be categorised as a case study, and the data has been collected by conducting theme interviews in five companies, two of which represent logistics service providers in Finland, and three companies operate in the automotive industry in north-western Russia. The objective of the interviews was to find out the main strengths and weaknesses of the Finnish transportation corridor. The results indicate that the competitiveness of Finnish transportation corridor looks promising, e.g., the security and border-crossing practices of the Finnish corridor are considered to be a...

The feasibility of system dynamic modeling in value assessment of industrial services

This paper aims at revealing the possibilities of system dynamic approach in value assessment of industrial services. The novelty of the paper lies in the fact that current theoretical approaches and current practices of comprehensive value assessment in companies do not fully meet the needs of industrial firms. These needs relate to bringing forth the customer value elements and foundations for service pricing which firms need to communicate to their customers. The presented approach is based on integrating the theoretical frameworks found in the literature and practical needs derived from interviews of industrial maintenance service firms. An illustrative example of simulating different investment options and maintenance strategies is finally presented to clarify the multiple benefits and aspects of system dynamic modeling of industrial service system value.