Determining suitable innovation structure with open innovation approach: An application of a decision making model

Open Innovation (OI) model is an important way of setup of the innovation structure for organizations and provides several benefits. It has gained quite a lot of attention both in terms of research and practical areas. There are many studies for the drivers of OI and its types and the structure for OI projects. These studies give useful insights and help in building an understanding of theoretical concepts and terminology of OI. The aim of this study is to make an end-to-end analysis of OI stages for the suitable setup of innovation structure and develop a decision making model by linking the processes of determining innovation type (open vs. closed), OI type (inbound vs. outbound vs. coupled) and collaboration type (science-based vs. market-based) in three consecutive stages. For that, an integrated Delphi technique and Fuzzy Analytical Network Process (FANP) method was used. Criteria for each process was determined from the extensive literature review and evaluated and finalized with the application of a three round Delphi technique. Criteria relationships for each stage were determined by expert evaluation, followed by the pairwise comparison process and finally the application of FANP method for determining the weights and rankings. According to results of this study, the most important criterion for decision of setting up an innovation structure with OI approach is open innovation awareness. Then, the most important criterion for decision of selecting the OI type for setup of an OI structure is knowledge acquisition. Finally, the most important criterion for the selection of collaboration type for setup of an OI structure is network building. The study, as a result, proposes a decision making model for determining the suitable innovation structure for innovation projects and aims to support in reducing the uncertainities in the setup of the OI structure by having impacts on various areas ranging from resource allocation to the development of inter-institutional cooperation. The study is unique in providing a detailed analysis on OI and its related concepts, linking OI processes to each other in an end-to-end perspective and providing a decision making model for setting up the suitable innovation structure.