Knowing what customers want and how they use products contribute to company’s innovativeness. Absorptive capacity (ACAP) is one theoretical construct that explains how companies gain information about customers and how such information is applied into practice. Yet, empirical evidence on the relationship between ACAP and knowledge from customers is still lacking. This study proposes and tests if customer collaboration is supported by ACAP and mediates the effect of ACAP on innovation performance. An established and previously validated second-order construct of ACAP is suggested to test these hypothesised relationships. Structural equation modeling (SEM) is applied to a sample of 120 selected gazelle companies that have had stable growth rates during the past three years to analyse the proposed relationships. The main finding of the study is that customer collaboration mediates the effect of ACAP on innovation performance. © 2015 Imperial College Press.

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to explore the relationship between the actual usage of online methods for collaboration with customers and firms' innovation performance. Drawing on theories of knowledge flows and knowledge creation, this study analyses the results of customer collaboration in the online mode in comparison to the offline mode. Design/methodology/approach - The data for the econometric analysis comes from managers of 102 so-called "gazelles", knowledge-intensive service firms that were characterized by exceptionally stable growth rates in Sweden during 2010 and 2011. Findings - This study confirms the significance of information and communication technology (ICT)-supported collaboration with customers for a firm's innovation performance. Interacting with customers using online methods has a positive effect on companies' innovation output. Besides, knowledge-intensive service companies demonstrate more extensive though less intensive use of online channels for collaborating with customers compared to offline methods. Research limitations/implications - The data for this study has typical limitations resulting from the collection method of web-surveying. Future research should refine the findings of this study using various measures of firms' innovation performance. Practical implications - Firms should be more receptive towards online methods of collaboration with customers because using such strategy can increase their probability to introduce service innovations. The insights from this study are especially valuable for companies in knowledge-intensive service industries because the sample consist of companies that can be regarded as successful cases. Originality/value - This study is one of the first that addresses the issue of the impact of collaborative technologies on innovation performance. The sample of steady-growing gazelle companies adds value to the results.

Customer involvement in innovation activities is a common practice among companies in most industries. It has been widely researched by scholars to demonstrate its risks and advantages. Yet, the growing importance and recognition of the Internet are transforming the scope, boundaries, and dynamics of interactions among firms and customers. Progressing information and communication technologies (ICTs) (including the Internet) enable faster, cheaper, and more efficient collaboration. The demonstrated benefits of using various web-based methods for customer involvement in innovation activities have encouraged companies to adopt a new approach. Despite this, there is a lack of knowledge about associated challenges. In addition, prior research was unable to provide empirical evidence of the claimed benefits ensuing from web-enabled customer involvement. As a result, companies may experience unforeseen difficulties and may not be able to achieve what they expect from their implementation of web-based methods. This thesis aims to address this research gap by exploring web-enabled customer involvement from a firm’s perspective. The overall purpose of this dissertation is to increase the understanding of web-enabled customer involvement in innovation activities by exploring its use and its impact on firms’ innovation, as well as management competences needed for its efficient realization. The thesis draws on the concept of absorptive capacity and includes four empirical studies from various industries. The adoption levels of a wide range of web-based methods were identified and compared with the findings of the previous study, thereby uncovering interesting changes in their popularity, as well as differences in adoption among companies in various industries. The empirical findings of this thesis show that web-based methods increase a company’s probability to introduce service innovations. Three types of challenges related to different types of web-based methods were identified and verified. It was also possible to identify corresponding management practices to handle these challenges. The management practices form three firm competences, constituting a specific absorptive capacity. It was proved that all dimensions of this specific absorptive capacity are needed for successful and effective customer involvement. Insights of this thesis contribute to increasing the understanding of web-enabled customer involvement. Therefore, the thesis provides companies with empirically verified knowledge that is necessary to make decisions about the implementation and management of web-enabled customer involvement.

The purpose of the paper is to develop a framework of management competences related to the effective management of three types of online innovation tools. The framework highlights the development of three types of management competences and related practices: (a) disclosure competence in order to find, direct and motivate users to contribute, (b) appropriation competence in order to appropriate users' contributions, and (c) integration competence in order to direct, transfer and integrate user contributions to the relevant parts of the organization. The study provides a managerially relevant view of the complementarities between external sourcing of knowledge and necessary internal competences to reap the benefits of involving users through an online innovation tool.

Acquiring valuable customer knowledge has been recognized as one of the most important elements of companies' innovation activities. The significant developments in information and communication technologies (ICT) have enabled creation and diffusion of a number of methods and tools for customer involvement into the innovation process. The research has demonstrated the high potential of such ICT-enabled methods and tools on few successful cases. This study reports the investigation of diffusion of web-based tools by exploring the web-sites of 226 companies in five manufacturing and one service industry. The comparison with the 5-years-ago study reveals several new trends in companies' practices.

The practices of open innovation have been advocated as an efficient way to accelerate innovation processes and expanding the markets for innovations in turbulent times. One specific way of practicing open innovation is the use of web-based innovation tools whereby, among others, any user and customer in the world may be reached for the spawning ideas, sharing of experiences, testing of products and even designing products themselves. While research has been extensive on the opportunities these tools may provide, the managerial challenges and competences needed to implement and operate these tools have been scarce. The aim of the paper is to develop a framework of managerial challenges and competences related to the implementation of web innovation tools. The framework is based on previous research and a case study of a telecom company’s web innovation site and management of this web site. The research reported in the paper intends to contribute to the research on web innovation tools and the management of web innovation tools.

Denna studie fokuserar managementutmaningar och praktiker vid införande innovay´tionsverktyg på webben. Syftet med papret är att utveckla ett ramverk av managementutmaningar och managementkompetenser relaterade till implemnetering av webbinnovationsverktyg. Ramverket bygger på tidigare forksning och en fallstudie av ett telekomföretags webverktyg.