Innovativeness through embedded knowledge: Firm connections with consultants in Innovation Ecosystems

Purpose - Consultants and technological and management consultancy are a part of systemic relationships between invention, innovation and in particular the institutions which are present in a geographical or sectoral space which support and moderate the behavior of innovation actors. The purpose of this paper is to examine how companies use the help of consultancy as part of the knowledge transfer process in an innovation ecosystem. We investigate empirically how companies use consultancy companies in their innovation ecosystems, and what is their role in the systemic innovation, and how they help to co-create new value. Design/methodology/approach - This paper is a qualitative study, conducted as semi-structured interviews in Finland (n=69) and Estonia (n=80). The qualitative approach provides a design that enables us to examine in rich detail the reciprocity in the consultant-client relationship in knowledge transfer and value co-creation. Originality/value - This study shows how outside experts and knowledge brokers (Hargadon 1998) connect to a company's innovation ecosystem. The study adds to previous understanding about the role of intermediaries in innovation ecosystems (Iansiti and Levien, 2004; Adner and Kapoor, 2010; Tether and Tajar 2008; Hargadon (1998, 2002). Practical implications - The proposed results of the analysis provides a framework, which allows the clients of consultants better understand the capabilities and potential of the consultancy they acquire, and to improve the design, briefing and guiding their innovation processes. From the consultant's perspective, the results of this study contribute to a view which encourages to design facilitation methods, which strengthen the involvement of the client's intellectual capacity in co-creation of knowledge, and hence, in successful delivery of consulting services.