What are innovation ecosystems, and how can they be enhanced through anticipation?Innovation ecosystems are diverse networks of actors who work together to develop new ideas, products or services which address shared goals. These “ecosystem partners”, who often come from across the private sector, the public sector, research institutions and civil society (known as the ‘quadruple helix), commit to work together and share resources to identify, understand and act upon opportunities and threats. Anticipatory approaches – which inform decision-making through the exploration of possible and plausible futures – can enable such ecosystems to consciously shape socially and environmentally beneficial futures through innovation, rather than limiting their scope to adapting to present concerns and pressures.
How to facilitate creative harmony among diverse actors in innovation ecosystemsDeveloping and maintaining productive relationships between ecosystem partners with different priorities and perspectives is a persistent challenge.
To understand how to facilitate creative harmony between diverse stakeholders, we invited three expert practitioners – Dr. Lauma Muižniece, Charles Leadbeater and Kari Herlevi – to discuss the skills and approaches needed for the development and management of innovation ecosystems. Their insights are summarised under the subsequent four principles.
Principle 1: Coordination in innovation ecosystems must be orchestrated, not imposedCoordination of ecosystem partners cannot be achieved through top-down direction. Instead, governments and agencies must focus on cultivating relationships between ecosystem partners, supporting them to identify shared goals and facilitating greater cooperation. This role is referred to as ‘orchestration’.
Principle 2: Potential ecosystem partners must be met on their terms“The role is to engage stakeholders and lead them at the right moment” – Lauma Muižniece
Persuading relevant stakeholders to engage with an ecosystem approach is a key challenge of orchestration. Prospective ecosystem partners often focus on their immediate priorities, meaning they fail to recognise that ecosystem participation can enable them to address more systemic barriers to innovation. In these situations, the enthusiasm and commitment of the orchestrating team is vital to convince stakeholders to engage with the project. It is also important to understand the motivational factors of potential ecosystem partners and to work with key decision-makers who can adjust and align the organisations’ objectives with those of the ecosystem as a whole.
Principle 3: Trust is the cornerstone of successful innovation ecosystems“We should start with relationships” – Charles Leadbeater
Trust is central to the success of innovation ecosystems. By establishing trusted relationships between stakeholders and a “safe space” in which the tensions between differing values and priorities can be explored (but not necessarily resolved), new futures and innovations are more likely to be imagined.
Trust is also a vital element of ecosystem orchestration. While stakeholders must be persuaded of the benefits of participating in ecosystems, the exploratory nature of ecosystem approaches means that the outcomes are uncertain. Orchestrators must therefore maintain trust by identifying realistic gains and carefully articulating likely paths to impact without overpromising.
Principle 4: Evidence-based adaptation is key to maintaining direction“Situations change a lot. The operational model has to be flexible” – Kari Herlevi
Successful innovation ecosystems must continuously adapt to internal and external changes to ensure they maintain direction and produce viable innovations. Ecosystem partners and orchestrators need to systematically observe and reflect on the evolution of the ecosystem and the conditions in which it is operating. By agreeing on outcomes, partners can track their progress and adjust their activities in order to keep moving towards a shared vision.
We look forward to building on these insights and learning more through our next peer exchange session on 21 January 2022 at 13:00 CET. This time, participants will lead the agenda and we are eager to hear about your suggested case studies and topics of interest!
Read more about our work on anticipatory innovation or get in touch with us at opsi@oecd.org.