On open innovation, platforms, and entrepreneurship

• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1002/sej.1300
• Published date: 01 September 2018
• Author: Martin Kenney,Donald Siegel,Satish Nambisan
• Date: 01 September 2018

SPECIAL ISSUE ARTICLE

On open innovation, platforms,

and entrepreneurship

Satish Nambisan

1

| Donald Siegel

2

| Martin Kenney

3

1

Case Western Reserve University,

Cleveland, Ohio

2

Arizona State University, Phoenix, Arizona

3

University of California, Davis, Davis,

California

Correspondence

Satish Nambisan, Nancy and Joseph Keithley

Professor of Technology Management, The

Weatherhead School of Management, Case

Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH

44106-7235.

Email: satish.nambisan@case.edu

Research Summary:In recent decades, two emergent phenomena

have jointly transformed the nature and pursuit of entrepreneur-

ship across industries and sectors: open innovation and platfor-

mization. Open innovation involves a shift toward more open

and distributed models of innovation, while platformization

refers to the increasing importance of digital platforms as a

venue for value creation and capture. Together, open innovation

and platforms have created numerous opportunities for entre-

preneurs and their firms—from serving as inputs for innovation

for established firms to participating as complementors on exist-

ing platforms. While these entrepreneurial opportunities (and

conditions) have manifested themselves in rich and varied ways,

our understanding of these new forms of entrepreneurship has

lagged behind. In this essay, and in this special issue, our objec-

tive is to bring a sharper focus on the important research issues

and questions that frame open innovation, platforms, and

entrepreneurship.

Managerial Summary:Digital platforms and open innovation envi-

ronments have unleashed numerous promising opportunities for

entrepreneurs, in industries ranging from consumer software,

entertainment, and home appliances to auto, health, and energy.

To pursue those opportunities, however, entrepreneurs will need

to gain a deeper understanding of the factors that facilitate and

constrain them. In this essay, we identify and discuss several of

these factors and the associated challenges and highlight the

need for additional research. We also consider some of the

broader contextual factors, including regulatory policies, digitiza-

tion, and globalization that shape the emerging opportunities.

KEYWORDS

ecosystems, entrepreneurship, open innovation, platforms

Received: 3 July 2018 Accepted: 3 July 2018

DOI: 10.1002/sej.1300

354 © 2018 Strategic Management Society wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/sej Strategic Entrepreneurship Journal. 2018;12:354–368.