Managing Co-creation Design: A Strategic Approach to Innovation

Co-creation offers firms and their network of actors significant opportunities for innovation, as each actor offers access to new resources through a process of resource integration. However, despite the significant advantages that co-creation can offer, there is surprisingly little research providing a strategic approach for identifying the most advantageous co-creation opportunities, especially when many possible options are available. Recently, scholars have called for research that develops tools and processes related to co-creation. This study addresses these priorities, making two contributions. First, in contrast to previous work considering co-creation more generally, or focusing on one specific form only, e.g. co-production, this paper offers a detailed and granular approach to co-creation design. A co-creation design framework is developed, which incorporates multiple design dimensions and categories that can reveal new co-creation opportunities. Second, the research extends the application of a design approach, specifically within the context of co-creative activities. The authors use field-based research with senior executives to develop a framework that includes key co-creation design elements. A morphological approach is used to explore how a lead firm can identify attractive co-creation opportunities. An innovation solution in one organization provides an illustration of how the co-creation design framework can be applied.