Seminar Working Papers
Please note that in the section Working Papers: Help File... there is a document with additional information. The following key question are supposed to give you some guidance.The questions are not supposed to determine a structure for your paper but rather should give you some food for thought that is supposed to help you to process the literature and develop a deeper understanding of the subject.
S1 Innovation in Family–owned Companies (FCs)
· How do FCs address the issue of sustainability and innovation over a period of decades?
· How do FCs handle the organizational obstacles facing new innovation activities?
· What are the pros and cons of FOCs compared to large corporations?
S2 “Group Think” and organizational failure in Corporate Innovation
· In which way does “Group Think” impact on the innovation capacity of a company?
· How does “Group Think” impact on the different processes that are essential for innovation management?
· How can “Group Think” be avoided or managed?
S3 Strategic Human Capital Management and the Impact on Innovation
· How is talent acquisition and talent retention to be managed in a company that is dependent on its high innovative capacity?
· How do tech companies and fast growing enterprises manage their hiring processes?
· How can recruitment, compensation & benefits be set up to increase the innovative capacity of a company and how can diversity be increased and sustained?
S4 Corporate Venture Capital as an Innovation Tool
· Why would Corporates need to engage in building up a separate venture unit rather than running these activities as an integral part of their core business?
· What are the preconditions for a sound structural set-up for a Corporate Venture Unit?
· How does the corporation balance the trade-off between corporate learning and lean processes?
S5 Blue Ocean Strategies
· What is the underlying idea of the Blue Ocean Strategy and what is the role of innovation in setting up this strategy?
· Which corporations did follow an innovation-heavy Blue Ocean Strategy?
· What is needed to make sure that the Blue Ocean Strategy gives a long term competitive edge to the company compared to potential competitors that would be following a similar strategy?
S6 Innovation in Tech Companies and Applications to other Industries
· What are the specific differences between tech companies & exponential and normal organisations?
· What is the role of innovation in exponential organisations compared to conventional corporations?
· Which part of the innovation processes in tech and exponential could be successfully implemented in conventional corporations and which one are likely to fail?
S7 Innovation as a Tool for Sustainability
· How can companies increase their chances of survival and which of these factors are linked directly or indirectly to innovation management?
· How does such a process increase the organizational resilience of a company?
· What is the role of process innovation and product innovation in sustainable strategies? Which tools and management techniques can ensure a sustainable innovation management process?
S8 Collaboration and Its Impact on Innovation
· In what ways is internal and external collaboration a major driver of innovation?
· How can collaboration be enhanced in corporate structures? How can resistance be managed?
· How is team work to be embedded into the organization and which principles are needed to make team work successful? What obstacles are likely to be expected and how can they be solved?
Extended List of Literature for Seminar Working Papers
I. Textbook including basic information
Tidd, J., Bessant J. (2014), Strategic Innovation Management. Chichester (West Sussex), Wiley. (5 copies available in the University Library)
II. Books & Articles relating to the specific Seminar Papers
S1 Innovation in Familiy-owned companies
Nieto, M.J. Santamaria, L., Fernandez, Z. (2013), Understanding the Innovation Behavior of Family Firms. Journal of Small Business Management, pp. 1-18. (S1)
Zoltan J. Acs and David B. Audretsch (1988), Innovation in Large and Small Firms: An Empirical Analysis, The American Economic Review, Vol. 78 (4), 678-690.
Craig, J.B.L, Moores, K. (2006), A 10-Year Longitudinal Investigation of Strategy, Systems, and Environment on Innovation in Family Firms. Family Business Review, 19 (1), 1–10.
S2 Group Think and Organizational Failure in Corporate Innovation
Janis, I.L. (1982), Groupthink. Boston: Houghton Mifflin.
von der Gracht, H.A, Vennemann, C.R, Darkow, I.L. (2010),Corporate foresight and innovation Management: A portfolio-approach in evaluating organizational development. Futures, Vol. 42 (2010), 380–393
Kotter, John P. (1996). Leading Change. Harvard Business SchooI Press.
S3 Strategic Human Capital Management
Bogers, M., Foss, N.J., Lyngsie, J. (2017), The Human Side of Open Innovation: The Role of Employee Diversity in Firm-level Openness. Research Policy. 217-231, online.
Subramaniam, M. Youndt, M.A. (2005), The Influence of Intellectual Capital on the Types of Innovative Capabilities. Academy of Management Journal, 48 (3), 450-463.
Haneda, S., Ito, K.(2018), Organizational and Human Resource Management and Innovation: Which Management Practices are linked to product and/or Process Innovation? Research Policy, 47 (2018), 194-208, online.
Schmidt, E., Rosenberg J. (2014), How Google Works. London: John Murray.
Campbell, A. et al. (2014), Strategy for the Corporate Level. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
S4 Corporate Venture Capital as an Innovation Tool
Brigl, M., Roos, A. et al.(2014), The Incubators, Accelerators, Venturing and More. Boston Consulting Group. In: BCG Perspectives (S4)
Bielesch, F., Dinesh K. et al. (2012), Corporate Venture Capital. The Boston Consulting Group. In: BCG Perspectives. (S4)
MacMillan, I., Roberts E., Livada, V. Wang, W. (2008), Corporate Venture Capital (CVC) – Seeking Innovation and Strategic Growth. National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). Online.
S5 Blue Ocean Strategies
Campbell, A. et al. (2014), Strategy for the Corporate Level. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Kim, W.C.; Mauborgne, R. (2005). Blue Ocean Strategy. Harvard Business School Press.
S6 Innovation in Tech Companies and Applications to other Industries
Brigl, M., Roos, A. et al.(2014), The Incubators, Accelerators, Venturing and More. Boston Consulting Group. In: BCG Perspectives
Dunne, D., Martin, R. (2006), Design Thinking and How It Will Change Management Education: An Interview and Discussion. Academy of Management Learning & Education, 2006, Vol. 5, No. 4, 512–523.
Ismail, S. et al. (2014), Exponential Organizations. New York: Diversion
Rifkin, J. (2014), The Zero Marginal Cost Society. New York: St. Martin’s Press
Schmidt, E., Rosenberg J. (2014), How Google Works. London: John Murray.
S7 Innovation as a Tool for Sustainability
Collins, J. (2001), Good to Great. New York: Harper
Collins, J., Hansen M.T. (2011), Great by Choice. New York: Harper Collins.
Kotter, John P. (1996). Leading Change. Harvard Business SchooI Press.
S8 Collaboration and its Impact on Innovation
Hansen, M.T. (2009), Collaboration. Boston: Harvard Business School Publishing.
Fidel, P ,Schlesinger,W, Cervera, A. (2015) ,Collaborating to Innovate: Effects on Customer Knowledge Management and Performance. Journal of Business Research (online)
Formal Requirements regarding Seminar Working Papers:
- Length of the papers should be minimum 10 and maximum 15 pages (excluding cover page, references and appendices).
- Formal requirements include font size 10, line spacing 1,5 and margins of minimum 2 cm on the top, bottom, right and left (all minimum values).