Center for Knowledge and Innovation Research -- Seija Kulkki -- June 3, 2003, 11:30 a.m.

Symposium: "A New Base for Corporate Relations: From Strategic Deceit to Trustworthy Action", Nokia House, Espoo Finland, Tuesday, June 3, 2003.

This digest was created in real-time during the meeting, based on the speaker's presentation(s) and comments from the audience. These should not be viewed as official transcripts of the meeting, but only as an interpretation by a single individual. Lapses, grammatical errors, and typing mistakes may not have been corrected. Questions about content should be directed to the originator. These notes have been contributed by David Ing (daviding@systemicbusiness.org) at the IBM Advanced Business Institute ( http://www.ibm.com/abi ).

[Seija Kulkki]

Come from the science part

• How do Finnish companies work together

Public and private cooperation

• Since early 1990s
• Based on relationship culture, trust in public and private corporations

Institute is in third year

• Others have been similarly founded
• Multi-disciplinary
• Seriously, ICT and life sciences need to be challenged with social sciences, …
• Need to bring in the rest of disciplines

Problem and phenonenom-based

• Cooperation with other companies and universities

Companies are building platforms

• Focus is going away from technology or single product, and more towards platform innovation
• We are one of those, doing science-based R&D
• Have science parks, innovators

Have started with ICT

• Spin to start from knowledge and innovation
• Organization, management, technology, society and individual minds

Programs:

• Knowledge-based innovative organizations, operating globally.
• Individual mind point-of view, with technology:  what individual context is needed
• Global innovation technologies:  human mind, and global relations
• E.g. Helsinki metropolitan area

Corporate projects

• Intimate relationships
• Not only business-to-business, but also public/private
• How to combine research center versus corporate R&D
• Companies have current problems, can be solved with transactional
• Also more strategic, longer horizon:  then what is the role of science?
• In the metropolitan area, many corporations and university units that are testbeds
• Wider platform, more competences
• Applications in public transportation, communications
• Trying to develop new ways of partnering

Starting a research project:  How do Global Firms Innovate?

• Innovation ecosystems:
• Network of suppliers
• Value constellation
• Network of customers
• Globally-extended organizations.
• New type of value creation, based on a value constellation
• Multi-value constellations
• Normally see companies adapt to their environments, but this view is more about creating with an environment
• Work with Nonaka, Yves Doz
• Have a network organization, which can transfer
• Need to organize the regulation - may need a change in governance

Comment:  United Nations in interested in a high school competition, already approached IBM and Nokia for funding.