Open Innovation

Definition

Open innovation is a type of innovation initiative in which people outside an organizational unit are invited to participate. This can happen within a company by reaching out to the entire organization to gather ideas or by looking beyond the company. Today, "open innovation" is most often used for the latter.

The term open innovation was originally coined by Henry Chesbrough in 2003 and has since become a popular modus operandi for driving innovation. It is based on the realization that more sources of ideas are needed to innovate successfully and that a lot of relevant knowledge resides outside the organization. It has become increasingly popular to go beyond the limits of an organization and involve customers, start-ups, suppliers and researchers to collaborate. Collaborating with external entities can open new perspectives, help speed up development, and enable innovation across value chains.