Abstract
Innovation ecosystems and design thinking are both recognized for fostering collaboration, adaptability, and user-cantered innovation. However, their combined potential to enhance value co-creation in business environments remains underexplored. This state-of-the-art literature review examines the interconnections between innovation ecosystem value co-creation and design thinking practices, highlighting the complementary contributions each offers. Through extensive analysis across these domains, this paper argues that integrating design thinking principles into innovation ecosystem frameworks can enhance value co-creation practices. Design thinking’s e.g., problem framing, iterative prototyping, and empathy-driven approaches can deepen engagement and co-innovation capabilities among ecosystem actors, strengthening knowledge sharing, strategic alignment, and value co-creation. Conversely, the structured, dynamic networks inherent to innovation ecosystems could offer design thinking a broader context for sustainable, large-scale impact. Integrating design thinking and innovation ecosystem approaches provides organizations with a strategic advantage in developing sustainable, user-cantered, and resilient business models. By identifying design thinking practices that could enrich value co-creation processes within innovation ecosystems, and conversely, by highlighting innovation ecosystem practices that could expand design thinking’s applicability, this paper presents a framework that harnesses the strengths of both domains.
Presenters
Tomi PaalosmaaSenior Specialist, Project Manager and Doctoral Researcher, Design Cetre MUOVA | Vaasa University of Applied Sciences (VAMK), Länsi-Suomen lääni, Finland
Details
Presentation Type
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session
Theme
Design Management and Professional Practice
KEYWORDS
DESIGN THINKING, INNOVATION ECOSYSTEM, VALUE CO-CREATION, LITERATURE REVIEW
