Beyond the wall! The role of Open Innovation in shaping collaboration and competition between companies within innovation ecosystems: an Italian Case Study

The purpose of this research is to understand how Open Innovation strategies influence the dynamics of collaboration and competition between companies within innovative ecosystems. Based on Chesbrough and Enkel’s Open Innovation theories we examine how the specific contingencies of the Italian context shape the collaborative and non-collaborative innovation processes. A single-case study is carried out at Kilometro Rosso innovation district, using a sample of companies that are presumed to have significant interests in developing innovative products. Our findings highlight the importance of the role played by the orchestrator of the innovation ecosystem who acts as an innovation catalyst to bridge different companies belonging to different sectors. In addition, the presence of competitors within the ecosystem seems to be an enabling factor for technology transfer, especially when these entities jointly participate in research activities within consortia or research laboratories. From a theoretical point of view, this paper advances our understanding of Open Innovation theories, by building a new context-related framework and extending the Enkel’s model. The practical contribution of the research will equip managers with the tools they need to establish appropriate measures that will foster the development of the individual companies and the ecosystem as a whole.