Opening up open innovation: Drawing the boundaries

Two main arguments are developed in this chapter. First, the chapter tackles the asymmetry in roles of outside-in and inside-out open innovation (OI) in the literature. Outside-in OI is assumed to play predominantly a strategic role. In contrast, inside-out OI has been predominantly perceived to have a financial return: It is a mechanism to allow underutilized ideas to go outside the organization for others to deploy them in their businesses. This chapter focuses on the monetary role of outside-in OI and the strategic role of inside-out OI, leading to a more balanced appreciation of both modes of open innovation. Second, it explores the possibilities of using open innovation strategically once beyond the context of new product or service development. As a result of this exercise, the concept of "outside-out" open innovation is introduced, which allows companies to apply open innovation in a wider set of contexts, with more diverse partners and where the governance of the collaboration resonates with the current innovation ecosystem literature.