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In heterogeneously segmented markets, collaborating with product users in product innovation is important for business success. End user innovators and embedded user innovators differ in terms of their prior embeddedness in the target industry. The purpose of this study is twofold. First, the authors empirically compare these two types of user innovators in terms of their diffusion channel selection. Second, the authors analyze how the technological advances of their innovations affect this difference.

Using an online questionnaire survey, this study collected a sample of 237 user-generated innovations in Japan and analyzed several hypotheses using quantitative statistical approaches.

The analysis shows that embedded user innovators are more likely than end user innovators to transfer their innovations to producers rather than peers. As the technological advances of their innovations increase, end user innovators' likelihood of transferring their innovation to producers increases more significantly than that of embedded user innovators.

This is the first paper to investigate the difference between end user innovators and embedded user innovators with respect to their diffusion channel selection as well as the moderating role of technological advances. The findings bring new perspectives to the domains of user–producer collaboration and technology transfer.

Despite the keen interest in radical and incremental innovation, few studies have tested the varying impact of firm-level factors in service sectors. This paper analyses how collaboration with existing and prospective users and investments in knowledge management (KM) practices can be adapted to maximise the outputs of radical and incremental process innovation in a knowledge-intensive business service industry.

Original survey data from 166 information technology service firms and interviews with 13 executives provide the empirical evidence. Partial least squares-structural equation modelling is used to analyse the data.

Collaboration with different types of users, and investments in KM practices affect radical versus incremental process innovation differently. Collaboration with existing users influences incremental process innovation directly, but not radical innovation; and prospective user collaboration matters for radical, but not incremental innovation. Furthermore, for radical innovation, investments in KM practices mediate the impact of prospective user collaboration on innovation.

While collaboration with existing users for incremental process innovations does not appear to generate significant managerial challenges, to pursue radical innovations firms must engage in intensive collaboration with prospective users. Higher involvement with prospective users requires higher investment in KM practices to promote efficient intra- and inter-firm knowledge flows.

This study is based on a large-scale survey, together with management interviews. Radical and incremental innovations in the service industry require engagements with different kinds of users, and the use of KM tools.

The purpose of this paper is to provide insights about the approaches and techniques of professionals that nowadays are designing Digital Products and Services (DPS) in the European agriculture. The emphasis is paid on the integration of end-users and participatory approaches such as agile, considering its current influence.

A survey was conducted to professionals of businesses and entities from 14 European countries. A balanced sample of replies was achieved between private–public background, size of the business or experience of experts. Afterwards, the collection of answers and the opinions of professionals were compared with the state of the art referred in the literature. It allowed checking its soundness and critically discusses the results.

From the raw analysis of responses, professionals show awareness about the importance of end-user involvement and they are eager to incorporate innovative farmers and early adopters to collect the best requirements for products and services. They also declare knowledge and uptake in their companies of new approaches, such as agile. Confronting results with literature, the discussion highlights some inconsistencies and possibilities for leveraging. Types of end-users considered should be enlarged. Their superficial participation must also be avoided.

There is a lack of research on procedures for projects in agro-food sector. Due to the momentum in the digital transformation of agriculture, there are many project teams working in developing DPS and are relevant to discuss about proper methodologies for improving success.

This paper aims to explore in depth how internal and external knowledge-based drivers actually affect the firms’ green innovation performance. Subsequently, this study analyzes the relationships between absorptive capacity (internal knowledge-based driver), relationship learning (external knowledge-based driver) and green innovation performance.

This study relies on a sample of 112 firms belonging to the Spanish automotive components manufacturing sector (ACMS) and uses partial least squares path modeling to test the hypotheses proposed.

The empirical results show that both absorptive capacity and relationship learning exert a significant positive effect on the dependent variable and that relationship learning moderates the link between absorptive capacity and green innovation performance.

This paper presents some limitations with respect to the particular sector (i.e. the ACMS) and geographical context (Spain). For this reason, researchers must be thoughtful while generalizing these results to distinct scenarios.

Managers should devote more time and resources to reinforce their absorptive capacity as an important strategic tool to generate new knowledge and hence foster green innovation performance in manufacturing industries.

The paper shows the importance of encouraging decision-makers to cultivate and rely on relationship learning mechanisms with their main stakeholders and to acquire the necessary information and knowledge that might be valuable in the maturity of green innovations.

This study proposes that relationship learning plays a moderating role in the relationship between absorptive capacity and green innovation performance.

This work aims to analyse the effect of a holistic business view, competency‐based management, continuous learning and information technology infrastructure on knowledge transfer and the subsequent effect on firm performance.

Structural equation models and a survey of 222 firms from the Spanish biotechnology and telecommunications industries verify the mediator role of knowledge transfer.

The implications of confirming these hypotheses for managers are that by emphasising the creation of a holistic business view, competency‐based management, promoting continuous learning and improving information technology infrastructure, managers will improve knowledge transfer and positively influence the creation of superior firm performance.

It is shown that in knowledge‐intensive industries, knowledge transfer acts as a mediating variable between a holistic view of the firm, competency‐based management, continuous learning and information and communication technologies infrastructure and firm performance.

The ICI Pharmaceuticals Division is responsible for the discovery, development, production and marketing of drugs for human and veterinary medicine. The Division is highly research‐orientated with nearly 40 per cent of the employees engaged in research and development. The Division's total payroll is just over 4,000. Of these, 800 are graduates, nearly a third of whom have a doctorate.

The purpose of this paper is to clarify how end‐users' tacit knowledge can be captured and integrated in an overall business process management (BPM) approach. Current approaches to support stakeholders' collaboration in the modelling of business processes envision an egalitarian environment where stakeholders interact in the same context, using the same languages and sharing the same perspectives on the business process. Therefore, such stakeholders have to collaborate in the context of process modelling using a language that some of them do not master, and have to integrate their various perspectives.

The paper applies the SECI knowledge management process to analyse the problems of traditional top‐down BPM approaches and BPM collaborative modelling tools. Besides, the SECI model is also applied to Wikipedia, a successful Web 2.0‐based knowledge management environment, to identify how tacit knowledge is captured in a bottom‐up approach.

The paper identifies a set of requirements for a hybrid BPM approach, both top‐down and bottom‐up, and describes a new BPM method based on a stepwise discovery of knowledge.

This new approach, Processpedia, enhances collaborative modelling among stakeholders without enforcing egalitarianism. In Processpedia tacit knowledge is captured and standardised into the organisation's business processes by fostering an ecological participation of all the stakeholders and capitalising on stakeholders' distinctive characteristics.

The purpose of this article is to investigate how facilities management (FM) units navigate Energy Service Company (ESCO) collaborations, here defined as examples of public collaborative innovation within the context of FM. The driving motivation is to inform and inspire internal FM units of local institutions on how to navigate and manage collaboration of different, intra- and inter-organisational actors throughout ESCO projects.

A deductive research methodology was applied based on the first ten ESCO projects in Danish municipalities between 2008 and 2012.

A model of FM roles in FM public innovation is proposed. The internal FM unit coordinates between clients and end users by acting as translator and demonstrator and collaborates with the ESCO company to implement the energy renovation (FM processor).

The data were collected from a limited sample of ESCO collaborations in Denmark. Future research should thus investigate collaborative innovation in ESCO (and other forms of private–public) collaborations outside of Denmark.

Not only should FM units clarify what different stakeholders expect from an ESCO collaboration, but also they should translate stakeholders’ expectations into actual goals and objectives; process them together with the ESCO company; demonstrate their execution to all stakeholders throughout the process, not just when closing the collaboration.

This paper contributes to FM innovation research by exploring FM innovation in the public sector and by depicting the coordinating role of local governments’ internal FM units engaging in public–private collaborative innovation.

Co-creation of knowledge offers significant opportunities for innovation. This chapter seeks to gain understanding of the process of co-creation of knowledge for innovation and public relations in multi-stakeholder projects by exploring current insights in academic literature. The research questions look at how co-creation of knowledge for innovation has been investigated in the scholarly literature; the roles of end-users; and the modes and challenges of end-user participation and in collaboration relating to communication.

The method of this chapter is a structured literature review, following a series of rigorous steps: a search of databases, analysis of 33 articles found, summarising relevant content using a data extraction table and a data extraction continuum as analysis tools to show the range of projects discussed in the literature to create a comprehensive overview.

The findings indicate that multi-stakeholder networks can be structured for different aims. In the articles found different types of projects were investigated. Four categories of projects were found: (1) co-creation projects benefiting one company; (2) co-creation projects benefiting business-to-business value chain networks; (3) co-creation projects benefiting public entities; and (4) co-creation projects benefiting innovation network stakeholders.

Complexity is highest for multiple stakeholder co-creation projects benefiting innovation network stakeholders, where the roles between stakeholders are fluid and changing constantly. Solving common issues motivates the stakeholders to collaborate and build trust. Open innovation environments may facilitate communication and interaction.

Co-creation of knowledge requires intensive collaboration. Knowing the main challenges to address will help the functioning of co-creation collaboration networks and their public relations.

The study was set to determine the environmental objectives of building end‐user organizations in an office environment and to anticipate the environmental management demands this could set on facility management.

This qualitative study uses four independent data sets and triangulation approach by combining data archives with time series analysis method, semi‐structured interviews, case study and a survey.

The results of the paper state the gap between the environmental objectives and practical management of environmental issues. Same environmental management themes, namely energy efficiency, waste management and reduction of climate change emissions, seem to be important for end‐users of buildings. A new trend, in which the end‐users require facility organizations to provide environmental management services, was observed as well. End‐user companies wish to receive comprehensive reporting and recommendations on improving a company's or facilities' environmental performance.

Since the study included only globally and/or environmentally active end‐users, the results of the survey are most representative for large European or North American companies which are progressive in environmental management. Future research is suggested to focus on information management, collaboration and communication between facility and end‐user companies.

At the practical level, the potential of FM has not yet been well utilized due to the lack of communication and understanding by both parties. Facility management companies can make use of the findings, e.g. when developing more comprehensive services or evaluating their own operations.

The results anticipate present and upcoming trend of end‐users' setting environmental requirement for FM organizations.