Innovation Exchange
Encyclopedia
Innovation Exchange Inc. (IX) is an open innovation
vendor. IX operates a website which acts as a platform for companies and non-profit organizations to present innovation challenges to a community of innovators. This community is constituted of individuals as well as small and midsize businesses. In contrast to vendors focused primarily on innovation in the physical sciences, Innovation Exchange fosters product, service, process and business model innovation
. The company has attracted attention for its blending of open innovation and social networking functionality.
IX’s business model takes its inspiration from the work on open innovation and crowdsourcing performed by John Seely Brown
(who sits on IX’s advisory board
), John Hagel III
, Henry Chesbrough
, Wim Vanhaverbeke, Joel West
and Scott E. Page. Open innovation
is increasingly seen as a key mechanism for developing new innovations.
IX acts as an “innovation intermediary”, meaning that it functions to match organizations seeking innovative products, services, processes or business models (“sponsors”) with individuals and organizations offering such innovations (“innovators”).
The mechanism for this intermediation is a challenge brief. The challenge brief is a short document, typically three to five pages in length, which provides background information about the innovation being sought and enumerates the elements that a response must include. IX provides consulting services which aid client companies to understand the nature of the innovation being sought, and to articulate that innovation challenge to the community in the form of the challenge brief.
, MillionBrains, Fellowforce, Innocentive
, IdeaConnection, Yet2.com
, Inpama.com and YourEncore
Open Innovation
Although the idea and discussion about some consequences date back at least to the 60s, open innovation is a term promoted by Henry Chesbrough, a professor and executive director at the Center for Open Innovation at the University of California, Berkeley, in his book Open Innovation: The new...
vendor. IX operates a website which acts as a platform for companies and non-profit organizations to present innovation challenges to a community of innovators. This community is constituted of individuals as well as small and midsize businesses. In contrast to vendors focused primarily on innovation in the physical sciences, Innovation Exchange fosters product, service, process and business model innovation
Business model innovation
Business Model Innovation refers to the creation, or reinvention, of a business itself. Whereas innovation is more typically seen in the form of a new product or service offering, a business model innovation results in an entirely different type of company that competes not only on the value...
. The company has attracted attention for its blending of open innovation and social networking functionality.
IX’s business model takes its inspiration from the work on open innovation and crowdsourcing performed by John Seely Brown
John Seely Brown
John Seely Brown is a researcher who specializes in organizational studies with a particular bent towards the organizational implications of computer-supported activities....
(who sits on IX’s advisory board
Advisory board
An advisory board is a body that advises the board of directors and management of a corporation but does not have authority to vote on corporate matters, nor a legal fiduciary responsibility...
), John Hagel III
John Hagel III
John Hagel or John Hagel III is an author and former consultant who specializes in the intersection of business strategy and information technology. In 2007, Hagel, along with John Seely Brown and Lang Davison, founded the Deloitte Center for Edge Innovation...
, Henry Chesbrough
Henry Chesbrough
Henry Chesbrough coined the term open innovation and is the author of Open Innovation: The New Imperative for Creating and Profiting from Technology...
, Wim Vanhaverbeke, Joel West
Joel West
-Filmography:* Starting Out in the Evening * CSI: Miami .... Officer Aaron Jessop* All Features Great and Small .... Slickster Filmmaker * Star Trek: Enterprise .... Raakin * The Division .... Chris...
and Scott E. Page. Open innovation
Open Innovation
Although the idea and discussion about some consequences date back at least to the 60s, open innovation is a term promoted by Henry Chesbrough, a professor and executive director at the Center for Open Innovation at the University of California, Berkeley, in his book Open Innovation: The new...
is increasingly seen as a key mechanism for developing new innovations.
IX acts as an “innovation intermediary”, meaning that it functions to match organizations seeking innovative products, services, processes or business models (“sponsors”) with individuals and organizations offering such innovations (“innovators”).
The mechanism for this intermediation is a challenge brief. The challenge brief is a short document, typically three to five pages in length, which provides background information about the innovation being sought and enumerates the elements that a response must include. IX provides consulting services which aid client companies to understand the nature of the innovation being sought, and to articulate that innovation challenge to the community in the form of the challenge brief.
Competitors
Competitors offering similar services include NineSigmaNineSigma
NineSigma is an open innovation services provider that helps client companies develop and maximize value from their innovation programs. In 2008, NineSigma ranked among the top 20 percent of companies on the Inc. 5000 list of fastest growing private companies in the United States...
, MillionBrains, Fellowforce, Innocentive
InnoCentive
InnoCentive is an "open innovation" company that takes research and development problems in a broad range of domains such as engineering, computer science, math, chemistry, life sciences, physical sciences and business and frames them as "challenge problems" for anyone to solve them...
, IdeaConnection, Yet2.com
Yet2.com
yet2.com is a global technology marketplace founded in 1999. The company is based around the idea of open innovation, and allows all types of technologies to be bought and sold...
, Inpama.com and YourEncore