Open Circular Innovation: How Companies Can Develop Circular Innovations in Collaboration with Stakeholders

A transition toward the circular economy (CE) will be key to addressing future environmental and economic challenges, such as environmental pollution and resource scarcity. However, when introducing circular solutions, companies often face complex and disruptive changes that affect many stakeholders...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Sustainability 2021-12, Vol.13 (23), p.13456
Main Authors: Eisenreich, Anja, Füller, Johann, Stuchtey, Martin
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Business models
Collaboration
Consumption
Crowdsourcing
Economics
Environmental impact
Innovations
Qualitative research
Research design
Stakeholders
Sustainability
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Summary:A transition toward the circular economy (CE) will be key to addressing future environmental and economic challenges, such as environmental pollution and resource scarcity. However, when introducing circular solutions, companies often face complex and disruptive changes that affect many stakeholders and require new innovation practices. This study investigates open circular innovation by analyzing the status quo of circular innovation, discussing the relevance and role of different stakeholders, and examining approaches for open circular innovation processes. The study employs a qualitative research design, including 14 in-depth interviews with CE and innovation experts. The findings indicate that companies currently focus on closed innovation approaches or collaborate with only one stakeholder at a time when developing circular innovations. Stakeholder groups, such as customers, suppliers, and academia, play a crucial role in the innovation process, whereas direct collaborations with governments and competitors are seen controversially. An open innovation network approach combined with crowdsourcing is regarded as the most promising for developing circular solutions. This study contributes to connecting open innovation with CE research and provides new knowledge at this interface. Additionally, this research gives managers guidance on how to approach open circular innovation and thus supports companies on their way toward a CE.
ISSN:2071-1050
2071-1050
DOI:10.3390/su132313456