en uppsatstävling om innovation Sammanfattning av de vinnande bidragen

Transkript

1 en uppsatstävling om innovation Sammanfattning av de vinnande bidragen

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3 INNEHÅLL Förord 2 Juryns beslut 3 Hedersomnämnanden 4 Juryns motiveringar 5 How Can Idea Campaigns Generate Ideas to Trigger Innovation? 7 Innovating out of the Fishmeal Trap 13 Firm-level entrepreneurship in the Second Great Depression 19

4 FÖRORD Uppsatstävlingen Nytt&Nyttigt arrangeras av ESBRI (Institutet för entreprenörskapsoch småföretagsforskning) och VINNOVA. Förmågan att tänka nytt, och att omvandla idéerna till något nyttigt för samhället, är central för en hållbar tillväxt. Många menar att innovationer kan bidra till att lösa globala samhällsutmaningar som klimatförändringar, åldrande befolkning, pandemier och terrorism. I takt med att förväntningarna på innovationer ökar, växer också samhällets och företagens behov av att förstå vad innovation är. Syftet med Nytt&Nyttigt är att uppmuntra studenter vid svenska universitet och högskolor att skriva uppsatser om innovation, kommersialisering och nyttiggörande. I denna skrift presenteras en sammanfattning av de vinnande bidragen för läsåret 2012/2013. Respektive uppsatsförfattare svarar själv för sammanfattningen. Juryn har bestått av följande personer: Kristina Ahlsér, landshövding Kronoberg län Martin Andersson, professor Lunds universitet Magnus Aronsson, vd ESBRI Charlotte Brogren, generaldirektör VINNOVA Sofia Börjesson, professor Chalmers Göran Marklund, direktör VINNOVA Maureen McKelvey, professor Göteborgs universitet Björn O Nilsson, vd IVA Dominic Power, professor Uppsala universitet Sverker Sörlin, professor KTH Elisabeth Thand Ringqvist, vd Företagarna Juryn har i sin bedömning utgått från följande kriterier: originalitet och nytänkande problematisering formulering av problemet och dess relevans metod förhållandet problem-teori-empiri-analys analysförmåga struktur och koppling mellan data/resultat/förslag praktisk relevans/angeläget ämne språkbruk och framställningsförmåga i övrigt Tävlingsåret 2012/2013 deltog 76 uppsatser i Nytt&Nyttigt. Huvuddelen av landets universitet och högskolor var representerade med deltagande studenter. Författarna till de tre bästa uppsatserna erhåller resestipendier à , respektive kronor. Resestipendierna kan användas för studieresor i syfte att utveckla kompetensen inom problemområdet, alternativt till deltagande i seminarier eller andra aktiviteter som bidrar till att höja kompetensen hos stipendiaterna. Stockholm, november 2013 Helene Thorgrimsson Projektledare ESBRI helene.thorgrimsson@esbri.se 2

5 JURYNS BESLUT 1:a pris How Can Idea Campaigns Generate Ideas to Trigger Innovation? Författare: Kajsa Brange & Elin Lindqvist Kontakt: elin, Handledare: Susanna Bill & Stein Kleppestø Lärosäte: Lunds universitet, Designvetenskaper LTH och Företagsekonomi EHL 2:a pris Innovating out of the Fishmeal Trap Författare: Jonathan Moy de Vitry Kontakt: Handledare: Johan Brink Lärosäte: Handelshögskolan vid Göteborgs universitet, Institutionen för innovation och entreprenörskap 3:e pris Firm-level entrepreneurship in the Second Great Depression Författare: Marc Hoogendoorn Kontakt: Handledare: Gert-Olof Boström Lärosäte: Umeå Universitet, Umeå School of Business and Economics 3

6 Hedersomnämnanden Juryn har valt att tilldela sex uppsatser ett hedersomnämnande: Lånefinansiering av start-ups ett konstruktivt förslag om kreditriskbegränsning genom registrerade negativklausuler Författare: Mikael Mellberg Lärosäte: Handelshögskolan vid Göteborgs universitet, Juridiska institutionen Ord, tid & pengar: En kvalitativ studie av hinder och motsättningar i arbetsprocessen med forskningskommersialisering i högskolenära inkubatorer Författare: Daniel Kvarnström & Amanda Mannervik Lärosäte: Mälardalens högskola, IDT akademin för innovation, design och teknik Improving Internal Idea Generation exploring the first phase of the innovation process in Engineering Contractor Inc. Författare: Ingvild Nyløkken & Karin Berg Lärosäte: Handelshögskolan vid Göteborgs universitet Innovating in 'the dream factory': Social change through mindset-change Författare: Linda Staflund & Nathalie Thalberg Pedersen Lärosäte: Internationella Handelshögskolan i Jönköping, Företagsekonomiska institutionen Med livet som utbildning: Team och enskilda entreprenörers uppfattningar av lärande Författare: Veronica Carlsson Lärosäte: Blekinge Tekniska Högskola, Sektionen för management Knowledge networks in organizations - network position and absorptive capacities Författare: Boris Becker & Florian Stern Lärosäte: Internationella handelshögskolan i Jönköping 4

7 JURYNS MOTIVERINGAR Juryn har motiverat sitt val av vinnande bidrag enligt följande: 1:a pris How Can Idea Campaigns Generate Ideas to Trigger Innovation? Kajsa Brange & Elin Lindqvist Lunds universitet Grunden till all innovation är idéer, eftersom de kan ses som bränsle till den innovativa processen. Därför är det viktigt för företag och organisationer att ta tillvara alla medarbetares kreativitet. Avsikten med denna uppsats är att öka förståelsen för hur stora företag i allmänhet, och företaget Eon i synnerhet, kan genomföra kampanjer med avsikt att stimulera idégenerering hos medarbetarna. Med ett sådant förfarande hoppas man kunna upprätthålla en konkurrensfördel gentemot andra företag. Författarna har inriktat sig på ett angeläget ämne, det vill säga intraprenörskap, och resultatet kan direkt användas som underlag för beslutsfattare i stora företag och organisationer. Ämnesvalet är aktuellt och trots en komplicerad ansats har författarna lyckats lyfta fram både en bra teoretisk genomgång och en tydlig och intressant diskussion. De har identifierat ett antal nyckelfaktorer som är viktiga för att genomföra en kampanj med ett lyckat resultat. Uppsatsen beskriver på ett logiskt och pedagogiskt sätt hur ramarna för en idékampanj har utvecklats utifrån dessa faktorer. 2:a pris Innovating out of the Fishmeal Trap Jonathan Moy de Vitry Göteborgs universitet Den globala livsmedelsförsörjningen är en angelägen fråga. Global uppvärmning, en kraftig befolkningsökning och brist på resurser är utmaningar som vi står inför. Därför är det nödvändigt att dagens livsmedelssystem utvecklar effektivare och mer hållbara produktionsmetoder. Denna uppsats beskriver hur man i Norges fiskodlingar brutit etablerade strukturer och prövat en ny teknologi som både är miljövänlig och ekonomiskt fördelaktig. Uppsatsen hanterar ett aktuellt ämne i en ny näringssektor, och därmed frågor som sannolikt kommer att bli ännu viktigare i framtiden. Författaren har på ett förtjänstfullt sätt balanserat empiri och teori, samt beskriver denna innovations påverkan i ett större perspektiv. Avvägningen mellan selektiva och generella insatser diskuteras på ett mycket intresseväckande och relevant sätt. Uppsatsen sätter även fokus på när, var och hur policyåtgärder behövs i beslutsprocessen. 5

8 3:e pris Firm-level Entrepreneurship in the Second Great Depression Marc Hoogendoorn Umeå universitet Vi lever i dag i en globaliserad värld där vi återkommande ser ekonomiska kriser. Temat för denna uppsats är hur företags entreprenöriella orientering kan ha en positiv inverkan på deras överlevnad och tillväxt under en ekonomisk kris i omvärlden. Författaren definierar Entreprenöriell Orientering (EO) som ett företags strategiska orientering mot entreprenöriell aktivitet. Uppsatsen fokuserar på en relevant och aktuell frågeställning, och via empirisk data belyser författaren betydelsen av entreprenöriell orientering i perioder av ekonomisk instabilitet. Uppsatsen är genomgående välskriven. Den är också viktig ur ett näringspolitiskt perspektiv och lyfter många intressanta frågor för fortsatt forskning. Med en ytterligare underbyggd teoridel skulle denna uppsats mycket väl ha kunnat nå en ännu högre placering. 6

9 How Can Idea Campaigns Generate Ideas to Trigger Innovation? - A Case Study at E.ON Kajsa Brange Elin Lindqvist 7

10 1. Introduction With globalisation and increased competition, innovation is crucial for firms in order to maintain a competitive advantage. Most of the successful innovations are a result of opportunities found in certain situations, some of which take place outside the company, while some occur within the company (Drucker, 1985). The starting point for innovation is ideas, which can be seen as fuel to the innovation process as it supplies the innovation funnel with new or improved concepts that finally may spark innovation (Boeddrich, 2004). Given the high attrition rate of new product ideas and concepts coupled with the difficulty in getting blockbuster ideas, a strategically- driven idea generation system is essential in order to feed the funnel with high value opportunities (Cooper & Edgett, 2007, p. 25) The citation emphasises the importance of managing ideation, i.e. generation of ideas, in a strategic way. However, it is mainly in recent decades that companies have focused on ideation. There is a vast literature on the success of a few radical ideation methods, such as IBM s innovation jams (Bjelland & Wood, 2008; Gibson, 2008) and the use of creativity tools (Linsey et al., 2011), whereas few have dealt with the use and effects of ideation approaches in practice (Björk et al., 2010). Studying creation processes of ideas, and getting a deeper insight into the triggers behind ideation, is needed to fully understand the effects and potential challenges a company may face regarding innovation. The idea for this master's thesis initially came from E.ON, a large utility company, which expressed a need to address the problem of internal ideation and how to take advantage of employees ideas to trigger innovation. Several reasons for the need to improve ideation were mentioned, including the desire of coming up with ideas for creating sustainable solutions to support the environment and also respond to customers needs. A willingness to lead the coming energy transition was another reason mentioned, as the transition is expected to require new innovations. This ambition is also linked to the company s target of finding ideas to new business concepts, which may come to differentiate the company s offers. (Berggren, 2013) Tapping into the creativity of employees and collecting their ideas is, in fact, a general desire of companies (Smith et al., 2008). However, managing ideation is a common challenge for large organisations. This is because ideation is often done autonomously in smaller organisations, whereas in large organisations a more structured approach towards idea management is needed in order to attain employees ideas (Baumgartner, 2008). 2. Issue of Study and Research Questions E.ON argued for the importance of carrying out a practical study on ideation, in order to enable testing and evaluating an actual ideation method. In addition, E.ON expressed a special interest in a study on idea campaigns, which is one method for managing ideation. This desire from E.ON came to be the basis for the choice to focus this study on the practical matters of managing an idea campaign. Existing literature especially discusses the role of an IT- based tool for idea management (Bullinger & Moeslein, 2010; Hutter et al., 2011; Adamczyk et al., 2012) and how an idea management system can be designed successfully (Cooper & Edgett, 2007; Karlsson, 2010). However, only a few studies try to conceptualise idea campaigns by studying the 8

11 underpinning factors and activities, for instance Van Dijk & Van Den Ende (2002) and Iversen et al. (2009). Therefore this study aims to frame idea campaigns by focusing on the desired effects of ideation and how these can be triggered by certain activities. This approach requires studying ideation in general, which is a subject that covers an extensive range of literature on areas such as innovation and creativity, as well as studying ideation in a particular case in order to get a deeper understanding of the studied subject through the collection of empirical evidence. The objective of this study is thus to cover a gap in existing idea management literature of the design and analysis of ideation approaches in practice. By developing a framework for idea campaigns and testing it empirically at a case company, the aim is to make a contribution to existing theory. As managing ideation in large organisations is challenging, this thesis may also benefit other firms than E.ON in improving their ideation work by helping them to conduct an idea campaign successfully. To clarify for the reader, large organisations in this thesis refer to larger enterprises with at least one thousand employees or more. Furthermore, a successful idea campaign refers to a campaign that results in many good ideas. The purpose of this thesis is to increase the understanding of how large organisations in general and E.ON in particular, can conduct an idea campaign successfully in the front end of innovation. In order to fulfil the purpose of this thesis, two research questions are stated: What are success factors for managing ideation in large organisations? How can large organisations conduct an idea campaign in order to attain employees ideas? The first question aims to result in an academic contribution, and will mainly be answered by studying existing literature. The second question, on the other hand, aims to give an academic, as well as a practical, contribution and will mainly be answered by conducting a pre- study and a case study. 3. The Work Process for this Study The choice of methods for this thesis will be discussed in a chronological explanation of the work process, which is divided into six steps. These steps, with corresponding element in the process of deduction, are shown in Figure 1 and further explained next. Six- Step Work Process Process of Dedcution Step 1 Building Theoretical Framework Theory Step 2 Developing Idea Campaign Framework Hypothesis Step 3 Testing Idea Campaign Framework Data collection Step 4 Evaluating Idea Campaign Framework Step 5 Analysis Findings Step 6 Conclusions and Recommendations Hypotheses confirmed or rejected Revision of theory Figure 1. Six- step work process and its corresponding elements in the process of deduction 9

12 Step 1. Building Theoretical Framework In the first step of the work process, a literature review was conducted in two steps divided by a thorough empirical pre- study, which included interviews with six large organisations. In parallel with the first literature review, a few interviews with experts in the research field were also conducted. The process of building a theoretical framework is illustrated in Figure 2. First Literature Review Pre- Study Second Literature Review Theoretical Framework Expert Interviews Figure 2. Building theoretical framework Step 2. Developing Idea Campaign Framework In the second step of the work process, a framework for idea campaigns was developed based on the theoretical framework created in the first step. In the framework, the identified key factors were addressed to trigger certain features in order to achieve the desired effects of a successful idea campaign. With more extensive research this framework could possibly be developed as a hypothesis on how to conduct an idea campaign successfully, but in this case the framework cannot be fully tested as a hypothesis due to the limited time frame. For that reason, the empirical test at one case in this thesis can simply be seen as an indication on how the framework may function. The principle behind the framework for conducting an idea campaign successfully is addressing the identified key factors for achieving desired effects. This requires triggering the right features that in turn may create a certain effect, which is illustrated with arrows in Figure 3 (see page 5). Figure 3 is an illustration of the Idea Campaign Framework for idea campaigns, including key factors to be addressed, features to be triggered and desired effects to be achieved. The framework is developed in order to help large companies in their work with conducting an idea campaign successfully. The framework should be interpreted in a way that, if you design an idea campaign, based on the key factors (communication, collaboration, incentives, management support, idea management and, indirectly, innovation climate), you will achieve the three desired effects (awareness, participation and ideas), which corresponds to a successful idea campaign. Step 3. Testing Idea Campaign Framework In the third step of the work process, the developed Idea Campaign Framework was tested at the case company, by running an actual idea campaign. Prior to the test, interviews with employees at the case company were conducted in order to get a better understanding of the conditions at the case company for testing an idea campaign. Furthermore, attending an ideation activity at one of the subsidiaries resulted in observations on how ideation currently is done at the case company. These interviews and observations made it possible to design an idea campaign suitable for the case company. Step 4. Evaluating Idea Campaign Framework The fourth step of the work process for this thesis considers the evaluation of the idea campaign. By prioritising a practical test of the Idea Campaign Framework, within the time period for this thesis, it was possible to evaluate the idea campaign in its real context. Data 10

13 collection for the evaluation was primarily conducted through an online survey distributed to both participants and non- participants of the idea campaign. A few complementary observations and interviews were also conducted with the purpose of validating the survey questions. Step 5. Analysis The results from the survey were then analysed with regard to the different key factors in order to assess to what degree the test of the Idea Campaign Framework managed to address the factors through chosen activities. Since the majority of the survey questions were linked to the various key factors in the framework, the questions and corresponding answers could therefore be clustered around the key factors and analysed accordingly. Finally the result of the framework, applied to the case, was compared to the desired effects of an idea campaign. This led to a discussion about whether the authors of this thesis succeeded in conducting an idea campaign successfully. Step 6. Conclusions & Recommendations In the sixth step of the work process, the findings from the analysis were used to answer the research question stated in the introductory chapter. Furthermore, recommendations to the case company, as a result of lessons learned from the practical test of the Idea Campaign Framework were formed. 4. Summary of Case- Study Results The result of the evaluation shows that the majority of the respondents were aware of the idea competition, since they had read about the initiative on the intranet. An interesting result is that the main reason for participating in a workshop was the chance to collaborate with others, during which most participants considered themselves to be more creative. The most efficient incentive proved to be non- monetary rewards, more precisely idea realisation. Few of the respondents were encouraged by their managers to participate in the idea competition, while most of the respondents had a clear picture of what would happen to the submitted ideas. The suggestions of improvements mostly referred to the areas of idea management and management support. 5. Answering Research Questions The purpose of this thesis has been to increase the understanding of how organisations in general, and E.ON in particular, can conduct an idea campaign successfully in the front end of innovation. In order to achieve the purpose, two research questions were stated prior to the study. In this section, the answers to these research questions are discussed. What are success factors for managing ideation in large organisations? Six key factors for managing ideation, namely communication, collaboration, incentives, innovation climate, management support, and idea management, have been identified during the course of this master s thesis. These factors have been studied in literature and then been validated as important in a pre- study including six large Swedish companies, as well as in a case study conducted at E.ON. All of the key factors are considered to be important for managing ideation successfully in large organisations, and can be applied to various ideation initiatives, such as idea campaigns, idea competitions and other ideation activities. 11

14 How can large organisations conduct an idea campaign in order to attain employees ideas? Based on the identified key factors, an Idea Campaign Framework for how to conduct an idea campaign successfully was developed in this thesis. The framework as a whole includes three phases of ideation: ideation planning, ideation execution and ideation follow up. However, the main focus in this thesis has been on the execution phase, which is shown in Figure 3. This framework was developed to help large organisations to conduct an idea campaign in a successful way, by illustrating how key factors should be addressed in order to trigger certain features that in turn would lead to desired effects. Ideation Execution Phase Innovation climate Key Factors Communication Collaboration Incentives Managment support Idea managment Communication Collaboration Features Attention Attention Motivation Creativity Desired Effects Awareness Participation Ideas Figure 3. Idea Campaign Framework for ideation execution phase The Idea Campaign Framework has been empirically tested in a case study conducted at E.ON in Malmö, through the launch of an idea competition called Bright Ideas. The idea competition was carried out during two weeks in the spring of 2013 and resulted in 160 ideas. The empirical evidence from the test at the case company conclude that the elements in the Idea Campaign Framework are important to consider in attaining employees ideas in large organisations. Having said that, the framework may be used as a guide for how to conduct an idea campaign successfully in order to attain employees ideas and feed the innovation funnel. 12

15 Innovating Out of the Fishmeal Trap A case study on how niche conditions in the Norwegian aquafeed sector led to the development of a sustainable technology with global potential Jonathan Moy de Vitry Graduate School Master of Science in Innovation and Industrial Management Master Degree Project Supervisor: Johan Brink 13

16 Introduction In 1990, the Norwegian aquaculture industry consumed 5 kilograms of wild fish in the form of fishmeal and fish oil for every kilogram of salmon it produced. Today, in 2013, that consumption figure is falling below a 1:1 ratio thanks to extensive technological innovation among its suppliers in the Norwegian aquafeed sectoral system (NASS). This has allowed the industry to escape a systemic threat known as the fishmeal trap and sustain long-term growth while reducing its environmental impact. The study of cases such as this one is important because global food security constitutes an enormous challenge and a big part of addressing this challenge will come from the ability of our agricultural production systems to leverage innovation to transition towards more efficient and environmentally sustainable production regimes. Therefore, a better understanding of historical cases of successful regime changes can help pave the way for more effective policymaking on such issues. This paper seeks to expand this understanding through a qualitative case study on the factors encouraging the rapid development of Dynamic Formulation (DF) technology, the dominant innovation allowing the replacement of fishmeal with more sustainable ingredients. Based on extensive empirical data gathered in interviews with a variety of actors from the industry, the case identifies the factors, especially those related to governance, which allowed Norway to become the world s leader in this useful technology, despite being only its 7 th largest aquaculture producer. Theoretical Background Modern innovation theory recognizes innovation as a non-linear phenomenon deeply embedded in societal contexts, transcending firm boundaries. With that in mind, the author chose to build on two approaches, both grounded in evolutionary economic theory, to capture the systemic conditions inherent to this regime shift. The first approach used is the innovation system, composed of a set of agents whose direct and indirect interactions generate innovation outcomes. Innovation systems can take several different forms, depending on the purpose and scope of the analysis and can be delimited by a common institutional environment, spatial proximity, similar outputs (Malerba, 2002), or unifying technology (Truffer, 2008). One tool used to analyze an innovation system is a functionality analysis, or an assessment of its ability to provide the services required to encourage the development and adoption of new technologies. Bergek et al (2008) put forth seven functions: Knowledge Creation and Diffusion, Influence on the Direction of the Search, Resource Mobilization, Entrepreneurial Experimentation, Market Formation, Legitimation, and the Development of Positive Externalities. Another approach to understanding innovation and, more particularly, technological regime changes is the multi-level perspective (Geels, 2005), which describes the socioeconomic continuum as being comprised of three interacting layers. In this model, the bottom layer is constituted of a multitude of niches, which foster disruptive technologies. After shifts at the topmost landscape level, destabilized incumbent techno-social production regimes inhabiting the central layer are challenged by newly competitive technologies emerging from the niches. It is important to note that niches can occur naturally or can be artificially created by targeted government policies. Inspired by this perspective, the author framed the Norwegian aquafeed sectoral system as a niche inhabited by a fully functional innovation system. The factors differentiating it from dominant 14

17 aquafeed production regimes in the rest of the world could then be linked to its exceptional functionality with regards to Dynamic Formulation technology, establishing a measure of causality. Methodology Given the challenges of capturing the complexities of the Norwegian sectoral system and the technologies underlying it, the author adopted a qualitative case study approach. Empirical data was gathered over the period of a month through 20 semi-structured telephone interviews with individuals active in or knowledgeable about the Norwegian aquaculture sector. The data collected during these interviews was then codified using a mindmapping, a graphical technique inspired by grounded theory. In the intervals between interviews, this data was used to iteratively refine interview guides. Secondary data sources, such as documents from the Ministry of Fisheries and the FAO were used to not only inform discussions but also to verify the accuracy of statements made by the interviewees. While relationships of the sample of interviewees to the sector in question could be potentially seen as a source of bias, the author found no significant evidence of this upon examination of sources of data from outside the industry. Norwegian Aquaculture and the Fishmeal Trap Far behind China s 37 million tons of annual output, Norway is the world s 6 th largest producer at 1 million tons a year (FAO, 2012). Almost all of this is Atlantic salmon, a cold-blooded, carnivorous species of fish that is well-adapted to the conditions of the Norwegian coast. This industry has been expanding for many of the last 20 years and is dominated by consolidated producers, whose largescale operations produce hundreds of tons of fish in open cages in the ocean. These producers are also known for their technologically advanced processes, fueled by innovations developed among both specialized domestic suppliers and Norway s highly developed national network of universities and research institutes (Aslesen et al, 2009). Since many of these modern operations are automated, they require little manual labor and are quite resource efficient, generating only limited environmental externalities. A side effect of this efficiency is that up to 60% of salmon production costs are feed-related, a figure similar to modern poultry production (Asche, 1999). This feed intensive input structure was also largely to blame for the industry s economic exposure to what academics called the fishmeal trap. Salmon are carnivorous by nature and required a diet based on two commodities, fish meal and fish oil. Both of these were abundant all the way until the late 1990s but were derived from wild fish stocks, whose global extraction ceiling was reached in the mid 1990s. This dietary lock- became painfully apparent when El Nino conditions in the South Pacific caused a fishmeal price shock in 1998 and sent aquaculture income tumbling. Furthermore, the fact that salmon production such large amounts of wild fish exposed the industry to criticism that it was driving unsustainable harvesting practices and inefficiently using marine protein resources that could otherwise be used directly for human nutrition. Dynamic Formulation Technology and the Norwegian Aquafeed Sectoral System Following the shock of 1998, R&D activity on the topic of fishmeal replacement expanded exponentially in Norway. By closely studying the biological needs of salmon, the micronutrient 15

18 contents of fishmeal, and production processes of alternative ingredients, researchers were able to develop plant-based feeds that had no negative impact on salmon health. The resulting pellets, whose ingredient compositions could be varied according to fluctuating commodity prices and nutritional content, were dubbed Dynamic Formulation technology by the author. Despite the concise description of this family of innovations here, they represent huge investments of time and resources in research and development. Yet these investments certainly bore fruit; by 2010, Dynamic Formulation technology had advanced to the point that fishmeal could be entirely replaced by plantbased ingredients in feeds, marking the end of the Norwegian industry s exposure to the Fishmeal Trap. But research efforts into fishmeal-free feeds were far from being a global phenomenon. The vast majority of aquaculture producers in other countries simply substituted fishmeal with crude alternative ingredients at the expense of fish health and production yields. So, the question must be asked, What caused the Norwegian aquafeed sectoral system to proactively innovate and confront this challenge while others simply reacted? Based on theory discussed earlier, the first step in answering this question is to identify which factors distinguish the Norwegian aquaculture sector, or more specifically, aquafeed sub-sector, from the dominant regimes in global aquaculture production. From primary data gathered through the interviews and secondary data on aquafeed sectors in the rest of the world, the author identified the following specificities: Single-Use Market: Unlike many other aquaculture industries where production is diversified among several species, the NASS was salmon-specific, allowing for an extremely focused singleapplication R&D effort. Advanced Lead Users: Compared with the undeveloped small-scale aquaculture producers endemic to the rest of the world, the highly process-conscious salmon producers of the Norwegian sector served as demanding customers to the NASS Consolidated Producers: The NASS itself is also highly consolidated, with production divided among just three main producers, who also happen to be the largest of their kind globally. In other countries, crude feeds are often produced using traditional methods by small enterprises, or even the farmers themselves. Knowledge-Based Competition: On a weight basis, DF feeds are much more expensive than the crude feeds dominant in the rest of the world. Cost-benefit ratios, and not simply cost, dictated competitive dynamics in the Norwegian aquafeed market, allowing premiums to be charged for technology-driven product performance. These competitive dynamics are rare in other aquaculture sectors, which are highly price elastic. Strong Knowledge Infrastructure: Thanks to the government s long-term emphasis on modernizing the industry through innovation, Norway posses a well-developed network of research institutes and universities, which provides specialized services, human capital, and encourages information exchange among all of its actors. Production and Downstream Regulation: Stringent regulations both within Norway and among Norway s primary export markets are much more comprehensive than those in the Thai shrimp industry, for example, where environmental and social externalities run rampant. 16

19 While several of the above attributes may be present to varying degrees in other aquaculture sectors, the combination present in the Norwegian aquafeed sectoral system is quite unique in the world and is best described as an example of one of the niches envisioned in the multi-level perspective. As a niche, the NASS offered ideal conditions for Dynamic formulation technology to develop through its high degree of functionality. Using Bergek s framework, the most influential functions can be analyzed as follows: Resource Mobilization: Possibly the most important factor in Norwegian DF development was the ability of the NASS to allocate large amounts of financial resources to R&D efforts. Part of this is attributable to the economies of scale in research efforts linked to Consolidated Producers. Knowledge Based Competition bolstered these investments by making innovation economically viable. In fact, two thirds of the investments in DF technology came from the aquafeed industry itself, with government contributions rounding off the rest. Another form of Resource Mobilization, in the form of the human resources can be linked to the ability of Norway educational system to produce skilled specialists. Influence on the Direction of the Search: In line with Porter s classic findings, the salmon producers, as Advanced Lead Consumers, were highly involved in the research agendas of aquafeed firms and were major drivers behind DF investment decisions. As climbing fishmeal prices caused feed prices to rise accordingly, aquaculture producers exerted considerable pressure on aquafeed producers to prioritize fishmeal substitution. The efficiency of these efforts was probably improved by information exchanges between feed producers and specialists within Norway s Strong Knowledge Infrastructure. Market Formation: The highly process-oriented salmon producers were quick to adopt DF feeds based on their demonstrable advantages, despite higher costs. This has partly to do with the Dynamic Formulation technology itself, which did not require dramatic socio-technical reconfiguration for it to be integrated into existing production regimes. As a result, DF feeds became dominant in the Norwegian aquaculture industry with relatively minimal market formation investments by the feed companies, arguably freeing more resources to be allocated to R&D efforts. Conclusion and Further Observations From the functionality analysis above, it can be concluded that Norwegian governmental policies had relatively little direct responsibility for the development of DF technology. A better explanation of this progress would the industry dynamics, which effectively incentivized its rapid progress. However, one cannot neglect the on-going strategic investments in Norway s national knowledge infrastructure, which certainly served as a catalyst to these efforts. All of this said, the author still believes there is room for optimization by policymakers in this niche. Aquafeed producers rarely collaborated on R&D projects, often resulting in duplicated efforts. This issue could addressed by incentivizing information sharing activities. Furthermore, the aquafeed industry is still to a certain extent dependent on fish oil, which is proving to be more difficult to substitute and will require significant larger research investments. Without policies to encourage resource pooling, progress in this field could be delayed. On an aside, the author was pleased to observe evidence of a multi-level technological transition occurring with regards to Dynamic Formulation technology. As predicted, a shifting landscape in the form of globalization, stricter environmental legislation, and ever increasing fishmeal prices is disrupting production regimes in the world s main aquaculture producers, especially China. These changes are shifting competitive dynamics in such a way that Dynamic Formulation based feeds are 17

20 becoming competitive with crude ones in new markets, expanding this technology s diffusion level from niche to dominant regime. The author hopes that this will have a positive net impact on the externalities of global aquaculture production, although this observation would have to be confirmed by further research. Selected Bibliography Aslesen, Heidi Wiig. "ʺThe Innovation System of Norwegian Aquacultured Salmonids."ʺ In Innovation, Path Dependency, and Policy: The Norwegian Case, by David Mowery, and Bart Verspagen Jan Fagerberg. Oxford University Press,2009 Sorensen, Mette, et al. Today's and tomorrow's feed ingredients in Norwegian aquaculture. Tromso: Nofima, Bergek, Anna, Staffan Jacobsson, Bo Carsson, Sven Lindmark, and Annicke Rickne. "ʺAnalyzing the functional dynamics of technological innovation systems: A scheme of analysis."ʺ Research Policy, 2008: Tacon, Albert, and Marc Metian. ʺGlobal overview on the use of fish meal and fish oil in industrially compounded aquafeeds: Trends and future prospects."aquaculture 285, no. 1 4 (2008): Malerba, Franco. "ʺSectoral systems of innovation and production."ʺ Research Policy 31, no. 2 (2002): Marine Harvest. Salmon Farming Industry Handbook Marine Harvest, Geels, F.W. "ʺProcesses and patterns in transitions and system innovations: Refining the co evolutionary multi level perspective Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Volume 72, Issue 6, July 2005, Pages "ʺ Ytrestoyl, and et al. Resource utilisation and eco efficiency of Norwegian salmon farming in Tromso: Nofima, FAO. "ʺTHE STATE OF WORLD FISHERIES AND AQUACULTURE."ʺFisheries and Aquaculture Department, Truffer, Berhard, and Jochen Markard. "ʺTechnological innovation systems and the multi level perspective: Towards an integarated framework."ʺ Research Policy 37 (2008):

21 Firm-level entrepreneurship in the Second Great Depression: A quantitative study on the influence of EO on performance in the economic crisis Author: Supervisor: Marc Hoogendoorn Gert-Olof Boström Student Umeå School of Business and Economics Spring Semester 2013 Master thesis, 15 ECTS 19

22 Introduction Since 2008 Europe resides in the worst economic crisis of our modern times, comparable and according to some scholars even more severe than the Great Depression of the 1930s. Companies are struggling to maintain performance and more companies than ever before are undergoing bankruptcy. The importance and potential solutions of entrepreneurship and innovation are increasingly being raised by researchers and business professionals. The influence of entrepreneurship and the potential solution for companies to increase strategic performance during these troubled times might be one of the most significant business research subjects of this era. This study touches upon this subject by performing a statistical analysis to provide knowledge on factual correlations. The research is built forth on multidisciplinary theories on capitalism and entrepreneurship. Established theoretical frameworks of firm-level entrepreneurship and financial performance are applied on companies in the Netherlands, on the periods before and during the crisis in order to analyze the influence of entrepreneurship on the financial performance of the companies between these two periods. Methodology The research uses a mixed-method approach, but is predominantly performed with an objectivist ontological view on reality, under a positivist epistemological approach using quantitative data. The choice to primarily follow objectivist and positivist assumptions complied with the overarching goals of this study, since and important aim of the study was to examine the function of an Entrepreneurial Orientation under new circumstances. Therefore the accumulation of this knowledge can be acquired by quantitative testing of existing theories on Entrepreneurial Orientation by comparison of different economic settings. This was founded upon the wish to measure the effect of Entrepreneurial Orientation on financial performance objectively as a matter of proof of theory. Much theory on the subject is already developed, but extensive quantitative testing on this specific part of the subject is less existent. The objectivist approach involves that phenomena such as Entrepreneurial Orientation and the economy will be viewed as objects that exist beyond us as social actors. The primary assumptions of objectivism and positivism form the core of the research, but slight deviations are allowed. More qualitative explanation is used to comprehend the conclusions, since the analysis of raw data by itself might not directly show the implications for managers and businesses. This sort of abductive reasoning allowed further explanation about the observations, when the meanings of the results are not satisfactory as explanation by itself (Estrada-González, 2012, pp ). The research design of this study is cross-sectional on a longitudinal basis. Financial data is analyzed over a period of 8 years, between 2004 and This comprises the pre-crisis and crisis period. The data on the Entrepreneurial Orientation of the companies was gathered through an online questionnaire. The research population consists of all companies in the Netherlands. The Entrepreneurial Orientation performance relation varies between industries (Covin & Slevin, 1991, pp ; Lumpkin & Dess, 1996, p. 152), but the population had initially not been discriminated towards a specific industry or sector. This fits the purpose of the research to measure overall trends in companies within the economic circumstances. In order to take industry variances into account and to offer a deeper insight on variations in the Entrepreneurial Orientation financial performance relationship, a distinction between some company types was made in the analysis. 20

23 Theoretical Framework The concept of entrepreneurship was brought to prominence by Schumpeter (1934). In his early works he described the innovative new acts performed by individuals that create new wealth in the economy. In his subsequent works, such as Capitalism, Socialism and Democracy, Schumpeter (1942) extended on the subject by a larger focus on entrepreneurship on the firm-level. Figure 1 The capitalist system in Schumpeter's theory Figure 1 depicts Schumpeter s theory on capitalism. The economy is depicted as a continuous process; firms and households interact by exchanging labor and products. The entrepreneur and capitalist influence this process. By renewing, thus innovating, new combinations are introduced and the state of the economy is changed. New combinations of exchange are created. This breaches the continuum; new wealth is created by innovation, but the old exchange is changed and existing capital is destructed through this new venture. So in this early economic theory it is conceived that through innovation new wealth is created, but simultaneously old capital is replaced or made redundant, thus destroyed. This Creative Destruction is the accumulation of wealth and the destruction of capital through innovative activities by entrepreneurs. This basic ideas still apply today; new products/services, methods, and in more modern terms also business models reshape the economic landscape and increase wealth. In order to comprehend this study the concept of the entrepreneur is explained from a theoretical point of view. What is an entrepreneur? When asking this question to any random person, the answers you will receive may range from Steve Jobs, to a major transport magnate, to the baker on the corner. If the conception around the actor in the entrepreneurial concept is so ambiguous, what does that implicate for the concept itself? A large variety of interpretations of entrepreneurship exist. Seven perspectives on the nature of entrepreneurship are prominent in theory. These seven perspectives are the creation of: wealth, enterprise, innovation, change, jobs, value and growth (Kurakto et al., 2012, p. 9). Furthermore the concept of entrepreneurship on the firm level is explained in this study. Firmlevel entrepreneurship comprehends entrepreneurial activities and behavior by companies rather than individuals. Activities which are deemed entrepreneurial on the firm level are administrative, opportunistic, acquisitive, imitative and incubative. Factors that influence the 21

24 degree of entrepreneurship in companies are: strategic, environmental, organizational, contextual and financial (Zahra, 1986). The entrepreneurial processes in companies are divided in five dimensions: autonomy, innovativeness, risk taking, proactiveness, and competitive aggressiveness (Lumpkin & Dess, 1996 p. 136). A substantial number of studies during the past decades have confirmed that an Entrepreneurial Orientation has a positive correlation with the performance of companies (Rauch et al., 2009). To what degree this relationship is positive is highly determined by environmental factors and organizational factors. In consideration of this research, an important environmental factor that influences the Entrepreneurial Orientation financial performance relationship is the environmental hostility of companies. Especially in hostile environments, firm-level entrepreneurship is an effective strategy. Ranga & Etzkowtiz (2012) argue that in the current economic crisis, Creative Destruction works in a quicker pace and companies require a stronger focus on innovation. Empirical Data To obtain sufficient responses, an approximate amount of addresses were collected of 900 companies. In total 89 people responded. Almost 26 percent of the respondents are executives. Approximately 38 percent of the respondents are managers. One could argue that both the executives and managers would generally have good insight in the entrepreneurial activities in the company. Validity tests showed that the measures of innovativeness and proactiveness provided reliable data, while risk taking might pose problems towards validity. The analyses of the financial data showed some extreme values. In order to normalize this data to prevent distortion of the results, these outliers were removed. The financial indicators were further skewed. New indicators for the pre-crisis and the crisis periods were calculated. Another indicator was calculated to represent the change in financial performance over the periods. Graphical and statistical tests showed normality on these indicators. Analysis Pearson correlation tests were applied on the pre-crisis and crisis periods and no significant relationship between an Entrepreneurial Orientation and financial performance was found. Both an early canonical review of Zahra (1986) as well as the recent meta-analysis of Entrepreneurial Orientation performance measures by Rauch et al. (2009) shows moderately strong significant correlations in earlier studies. The test results on this hypothesis are unexpected. Various studies have established the influence of additional factors that influence the Entrepreneurial Orientation performance relationship. (Covin & Slevin, pp , 1991; Lumpkin & Dess, 1996 pp ; Zahra & Covin, 1995, pp ). Explicitly mentioned factors are the company and industry characteristics. A meta-analysis by Rauch et al. (2009) shows that almost all studies focus on a specific set of similar companies or industries. Therefor it is likely that the lack of significance is caused by the diverse set of companies in this study in combination with a limited amount of respondents. In order to see if the influence of Entrepreneurial Orientation on financial performance is more positive in the crisis period than in the pre-crisis period a numerical comparison of the 22

25 test results was made. The difference between the pre-crisis and crisis period showed that the correlation of innovativeness, proactiveness, risk taking had increased towards a more positive trend on all three indicators. This was an initial step to confirm the increased importance of firm-level entrepreneurship during the crisis. The data suggested an underlying trend within certain groups in the sample, but a distorted whole. To further test the hypothesis that the influence of Entrepreneurial Orientation on financial performance was more positive in the crisis period than in the pre-crisis period the change in financial performance was correlated with the Entrepreneurial Orientation of the sample. The test showed a positive correlation for innovativeness, a positive correlation for proactiveness and a positive correlation for risk taking. Overall a minor correlation between the Entrepreneurial Orientation indicators and the change in financial performance was shown. However the correlations were found to be insignificant. For the results of this test, the same applies as for the previous hypotheses; there is a positive trend, and most likely underlying significant positive correlations. However the results were likely to be distorted by the wide range of company types and the choice not to take other influencing variables into the equation. To come to better conclusions a final test was performed in which the company types were split up in different samples for comparison according to company type. As the dataset in this study includes information on company type and industry, a clustered comparison could be made. The company types that were regularly found in previous studies were combined in one set. The company types that were not found in other studies were combined in the next set. Figure 2 Correlation tests subsets The test shows that the results for the companies that are usually studied show strong positive correlations between innovativeness and proactiveness with the change in financial performance between the pre-crisis and crisis periods. The results show that change in the financial performance of companies between the pre-crisis and crisis periods is positively related to innovativeness and proactiveness in companies which are the focus of earlier studies on Entrepreneurial Orientation. In other types of companies the relation between change in financial performance and Entrepreneurial Orientation appeared random. 23