The Thesis Talks

The central topic of this master’s thesis is the simultaneous pursuit of competition and co- operation, coined into one term; “co-opetition”. This phenomenon has received increased attention by scholars and practitioners in the past two decades since it adapts to today’s fast- changing business environment and enables mutual benefits for rival companies. This paper addresses the lack of literature regarding the interplay between co-opetition and specific innovation types. A co-opetitive relationship can drive businesses towards new opportunities to achieve innovation outcomes that they cannot accomplish alone. Special attention is paid to the exploration of critical soft factors behind the successful outcome of co-opetition between rival firms innovating together, and a comparison of those factors between product- and service-oriented companies. This study confirmed predicted critical success factors, Trust and Commitment, of well-working co-opetitive relationships. Furthermore, this thesis identified additional critical success factors including both common, namely Alignment and Openness, and differing determinants between product innovation, particularly Understanding, and service innovation, including Time and Size Balance. Lastly, findings revealed the tendency of companies to participate in ecosystems that enhance the emergence and pursuit of co-opetition.

How can businesses keep up with the constant flow of new innovations and embrace creativity? A design thinking mindset that is acquired by a learning process might be the key to success. But DT is not just applicable in business, Dayana will share with us other fields that could use some more interaing and failing.

The Universe of innovation exploded from the first industrial revolution of water-steam systems and continues with the fourth industrial revolution of Cyber-physical systems.

Among the currently emerging technologies, blockchain technology also known as Distributed ledger technology (DLT) has set its own mark as a second layer to the internet, disruption of multiple industries, decentralization and new harbinger of human digital identity, democracy and peer to peer transactions. Anam explored the universe of Blockchain and its integration in the Northern European public & private sector.

Innovation is increasingly gaining traction as a way for the corporate company to stay competitive in a dynamic and unpredictable market. The changing landscape of knowledge forces corporate organizations to search outside the boundary of the firm, thus taking a participatory approach and engaging with external stakeholders through open innovation. This thesis focuses on the way corporations innovate and engage in

inter-collaborative activities with stakeholders. The findings reflect that a corporate organization needs to leverage upon both internal and external stakeholders to enhance the innovative performance. Moreover, a corporation can’t obtain knowledge

from outside the boundary of the firm until there is an organizational openness to change. The research also reflects that the cognitive distance between the corporate company and its respective stakeholders can either hinder or enhance their ability to collaborate. Open innovation endeavours can be the solution to improve corporate innovation if the prerequisites of it are taken into account.

Over many decades, the pharmaceutical industry has been characterized by heavy product-focused business operations. Rising health care costs, pressure from health care payers as well as impending patent expirations are now pushing for a shift towards addressing patients’ needs ‘beyond the pill’. In addition, advancing digital technologies enable the patients to become active and self-directive on their health care management. How does the integration of digital technologies affects the implementation of a patient-centric business strategy for Novo Nordisk?

The thesis in this episode sought to understand the causes of and potential remedies to the challenges facing young adults who are trying to become homeowners in the US and Denmark. On the housing demand side, it considers long-term national-level data in four categories: state influence, economic and financial indicators, labor market factors, and socio-demographic trends.

These findings, which are similar for both countries, support existing studies that argue that young adults are increasingly unable to become homeowners. These trends persist through the years following the financial crash, indicating that young adults’ needs in the housing market are not being met. The growing population rates in metropolitan areas and regional house price variation suggest that the housing problems are magnified on regional and city levels. On the supply side current innovations are discussed as potential solutions to address the growing shortage of affordable housing units. However, the benefits and wide-scale application of these technologies are disputed, primarily due to governments, financing restrictions, opposition from local communities, and the structure of the housing sector. Final recommendations to support young adults in becoming homeowners are given, which incorporate innovation and address the complexities of the current market landscape.

In today’s society, it is undeniable that the process of global warming is threatening the existence of human and ecological systems. Yet though it is acknowledged that finite resources need to be managed as to counter this development, fashion supply chains continue to rely on linear throughput systems. How can the fashion industry become more sustainable and what part plays the consumer in this systemic change that we so urgently need?

The sharing economy (SE) is a growing alternative to traditional value chains and reduces the fundamental need for ownership. It increases the exploitation of under- utilized resources, most effectively on costly durable goods such as cars, buildings and machinery yielding prospects of higher profitability. The global success stories of Uber and AirBnb have familiarized the world with the potential of sharing privately owned resources. Strategic literature, however, is ill equipped to determine specific strategic implications for SE platforms. Furthermore, few studies have been conducted on B2B SE business models. This paper uses a case study to explore the potential of such models with the following research question:

“How can Nethire strategically grow their platform business in the Danish equipment rental industry with a model of the SE?”

A universal model that is able to generate innovations in large organisations?! That implies a paradox between the need for control and bureaucracity versus creativity and the need for pace. But if a universal model is not the answer to keep pace with our rapidly changing world than how can large and established organisations such as Carlsberg implement a process that boosts their level of innovation?

The purpose of this study was to understand the value in which Copenhagen’s early-stage social enterprises are experiencing when joining Enterprise Assistance Organisations. The first objective was to find out why these social enterprises are joining Enterprise Assistance Organisations and to comprehend the extent to which they are contributing to the growth and success of the social enterprises. The second objective sought to assess the characteristics of the value in which Copenhagen’s social enterprises extracted from Enterprise Assistance Organisations in terms of networking.