Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Users as Sources of Radical Service Innovation

A Closer Look into Opportunities for Integrating Service Lead Users in Service Development

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Practice-Based Innovation: Insights, Applications and Policy Implications

  • 1867 Accesses

Abstract

Though theory and praxis both underline the importance of radical service innovations, until now lead users in the service industry have been excluded from the scope of research. Based on explorative findings on user innovations in services and recent research on service innovations, this chapter answers the following questions: (a) can users lead trends and independently innovate in the service sector; (b) if so, do lead users in the service industry show similar characteristics to lead users from other industries, and (c) can approaches to identification and integration from the consumer and investment goods sectors be applied in the service sector as well? By illustrating the potential impact of lead users as a source of radical service innovations, we hope to raise interest in this powerful concept, not yet systematically applied in service industry.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
eBook
USD 16.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 109.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 109.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Notes

  1. 1.

    The website www.programmableweb.com, for example, lists over 2,500 user-derived sites with innovative new functionalities.

References

  • AberdeenGroup. (2005). The emergence of ‘Chief Service Officer’. Boston, MA: Aberdeen Group Inc.

    Google Scholar 

  • Abernathy, W. J., & Utterback, J. M. (1978). Patterns of industrial innovation. Technology Review, 80(7), 41–47.

    Google Scholar 

  • Adamson, R. E. (1952). Functional fixedness as related to problem solving: A repetition of three experiments. Journal of Experimental Psychology, 44, 288–291.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Baker, N. R., et al. (1986). Why R&D projects succeed or fail. Research Management, 29(6), 29–34.

    Google Scholar 

  • Baker, N. R., et al. (1967). The effects of perceived needs and means on the generation of ideas for industrial research and development projects. IEEE Transaction on Engineering Management, EM, 14(4), 156–163.

    Google Scholar 

  • Biemans, W. G. (1991). User and third-party involvement in developing medical equipment innovations. Technovation, 11(3), 163–182.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Blind, K., et al. (2003). Patents in the service industries. Final report prepared for the European Commission, EUR 20815. Karlsruhe: Fraunhofer ISI.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bonow, T. (2007). Pressebereich erento.com – Zahlen & Fakten. http://www.erento.com/mieten/info/ger_presse_zahlen_fakten. Accessed 4 June 2007.

  • Braun, V., & Herstatt, C. (2007). Barriers to user innovation: Moving towards a paradigm of ‘licence to innovate’? International Journal of Technology Policy and Management, 7(3), 292–303.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Corsten, H. (1989). Überlegungen zu einem Innovationsmanagement. Organisationale und personale Aspekte. In H. Corsten (Ed.), Die Gestaltung von Innovationsprozessen. Hindernisse und Erfolgsfaktoren im Organisations-, Finanz- und Informationsbereich (pp. 1–56). Berlin: Schmidt.

    Google Scholar 

  • de Brentani, U. (1995). New industrial service development: Scenarios for success and failure. Journal of Business Research, 32(2), 93–103.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • den Hertog, P. (2000). Knowledge-intensive business services as co-producers of innovation. International Journal of Innovation Management, 4(4), 491–498.

    Google Scholar 

  • Destatis. (2007). Volkswirtschaftliche Gesamtrechnungen – Wichtige Zusammenhänge im Überblick. Wiesbaden: Statistisches Bundesamt.

    Google Scholar 

  • Djellal, F., & Gallouj, F. (2001). Innovation in services, patterns of innovation organisation in service firms: Postal survey results and theoretical models. Science and Public Policy, 28(1), 57–67.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Donabedian, A. (1980). The definition of quality and approaches to its assessment. Ann Arbor, MI: Health Administration Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Drejer, I. (2004). Identifying innovation in surveys of services: A Schumpeterian perspective. Research Policy, 33(4), 551–562.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Duncker, K. (1945). On problem solving. Psychological Monographs, 58(5).

    Google Scholar 

  • Edgett, S. J., & Parkinson, S. (1994). The development of new financial services: Identifying determinants of success and failure. International Journal of Service Industry Management, 5(4), 24–38.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Eurostat. (2006). European business – facts and figures. Luxembourg: European Communities.

    Google Scholar 

  • Evangelista, R., & Sirilli, G. (1998). Innovation in the service sector: Results from the Italian statistical survey. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 58(3), 251–269.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • FedEx (2007). FedEx Corporate History. http://www.fedex.com/us/about/today/history/. Accessed 4 June 2007.

  • Fitzsimmons, J. A., & Fitzsimmons, M. J. (2005). Service management: Operations, strategy, and information technology (5th ed.). Columbus: McGraw-Hill.

    Google Scholar 

  • Flyvbjerg, B. (2006). Five misunderstandings about case-study research. Qualitative Inquiry, 12(2), 219–245.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Franke, N., & von Hippel, E. (2002). Satisfying heterogeneous user needs via innovation toolkits: The case of apache security software. Working Paper No. 4341-02. Cambridge, MA: Sloan School of Management. Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

    Google Scholar 

  • Franke, N., et al. (2005). Finding commercially attractive user innovations: A test of lead user theory. Working Paper 4536-05. Cambridge, MA: Sloan School of Management. Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

    Google Scholar 

  • Friederichs, H. (2005). 3, 2, 1 … mein Patient. FTD, 09.06.2005, Hamburg.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gadrey, J., et al. (1995). New modes of innovation: how services benefit industry. International Journal of Service Industry Management, 6(3), 4–16.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ginzburg, I., et al. (2007). Looking for the locus of innovation in new service development. In Hawaii International Conference on System Science (HICSS-40 2007). Waikoloa, Big Island, Hawaii.

    Google Scholar 

  • Green, S. G., et al. (1995). Assessing a multidimensional measure of radical technological innovation. IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management, 42(3), 203–214.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gurgul, G. (2007). The customer – an untapped source of innovation. Developing a customer integration network in HP. In Knowledge networks for business growth (pp. 59–76). Berlin: Springer.

    Google Scholar 

  • Herstatt, C. (2002). Search fields for radical innovations involving market research. International Journal of Entrepreneurship and Innovation Management, 2(6), 473–484.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Herstatt, C., & von Hippel, E. (1991). An implementation of the lead user market research method in a “low tech” product area: Pipe hangers. Working Paper No. 3249-91. Cambridge, MA: Sloan School of Management. Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

    Google Scholar 

  • Hienerth, C. (2006). The commercialization of user innovations: The development of the rodeo kayak industry. R&D Management, 36(3), 273–294.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Howells, J., & Tether, B. (2004). Innovation in services: Issues at stake and trends. INNO-Studies. Brussels/Luxembourg: Commission of the European Communities.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kelley, S. W., et al. (1990). Customer participation in service production and delivery. Journal of Retailing, 66(3), 315–325.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kessler, E. H., & Chakrabarti, A. K. (1999). Speeding up the pace of new product development. Journal of Product Innovation Management, 16, 231–247.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kristensson, P., et al. (2004). Harnessing the creative potential among users. Journal of Product Innovation Management, 21(1), 4–14.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lehmann, H. (2007). 2te-Zahnarztmeinung – Ihr Marktplatz für Zahnarztleistungen. https://www.2te-zahnarztmeinung.de/?partner. Accessed 4 June 2007.

  • Lettl, C., et al. (2006). Users’ contribution to radical innovation: Evidence from four cases in the field of medical equipment technology. R&D Management, 36(3), 251–271.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lilien, G. L., et al. (2002). Performance assessment of the lead user idea generation process for new product development. Management Science, 48(8), 1042–1059.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lunchins, A. S. (1941). Mechanization in problem solving: The effect of Einstellung. Psychological Monographs, 54(6), 1–95.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lüthje, C. (2000). Kundenorientierung im Innovationsprozess – Eine Untersuchung der Kunden-Hersteller-Interaktion in Konsumgütermärkten. Wiesbaden: Deutscher Universitäts-Verlag.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Lüthje, C. (2003). Customers as co-inventors: An empirical analysis of the antecedents of customer-driven innovations in the field of medical equipment. In 32nd EMAC Conference, Glasgow.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lüthje, C. (2004). Characteristics of innovating users in a consumer goods field. An empirical study of sport-related product consumers. Technovation, 24(9), 683–695.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lüthje, C., et al. (2005). User-innovators and ‘local’ information: The case of mountain biking. Research Policy, 34(6), 951–965.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lynn, G. S., et al. (1996). Marketing and discontinuous innovation: The probe and learn process. California Management Review, 38(3), 8–37.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Magnusson, P. R. (2003). Benefits of involving users in service innovation. European Journal of Innovation Management, 6(4), 228–238.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Magnusson, P. R., et al. (2003). Managing user involvement in service innovation: Experiments with innovative end-users. Journal of Service Research, 6(2), 111–124.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Maier, N. R. (1930). Reasoning about humans: I. On direction. Journal of Comparative Psychology, 11(8), 115–143.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mansfield, E. (1968). The economics of technological change. New York: W.W. Norton & Company.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mansfield, E. (1988). Industrial R&D in Japan and the United States: A comparative study. The American Economic Review, 78(2), 223–228.

    Google Scholar 

  • Martin, C. R. J., & Horne, D. A. (1993). Services innovation: Successful versus unsuccessful firms. International Journal of Service Industry Management, 4(1), 49–65.

    Google Scholar 

  • Martin, C. R. J., & Horne, D. A. (1995). Level of success inputs for service innovations in the same firm. International Journal of Service Industry Management, 6(4), 40–56.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McDermott, C. M., & O’Connor, G. C. (2002). Managing radical innovation: An overview of emergent strategy issues. Journal of Product Innovation Management, 19, 424–438.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mills, P. K., & Moberg, D. J. (1982). Perspectives on the technology of service operations. Academy of Management Review, 7(3), 467–478.

    Google Scholar 

  • Reckenfelderbäumer, M., & Busse, D. (2006). Kundenmitwirkung bei der Entwicklung von industriellen Dienstleistungen – eine phasenbezogene Analyse. In H.-J. Bullinger & A.-W. Scheer (Eds.), Service Engineering – Entwicklung und Gestaltung innovativer Dienstleistungen (pp. 141–166). Berlin: Springer.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rice, M. P., et al. (1998). Managing discontinuous innovation. Research-Technology Management, 41(3), 52–58.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rothwell, R. (1992). Successful industrial innovation: Critical factors for the 1990s. R&D Management, 22(3), 221–239.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Scholich, M., et al. (Eds.). (2006). Innovation performance – Das Erfolgsgeheimnis innovativer Dienstleister. Frankfurt: PricewaterhouseCoopers AG WPG.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schumpeter, J. A. (1934). The theory of economic development. Harvard: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Shah, S. (2000). Sources and patterns of innovation in a consumer product field: Innovations in sporting equipment. Working Paper No. 4105. Cambridge, MA: Sloan School of Management. Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

    Google Scholar 

  • Shah, S. (2004). From innovation to firm formation in the windsurfing, skateboarding, and snowboarding industry. Working paper 05-0107. Urbana-Champaign, IL: University of Illinois.

    Google Scholar 

  • Shah, S., & Tripsas, M. (2004). When do user-innovators start firms? Towards a theory of user entrepreneurship. Working Paper No. 1511. Harvard, MA: Harvard Business School.

    Google Scholar 

  • Shaw, B. (1985). The role of the interaction between the user and the manufacturer in medical equipment innovation. R&D Management, 15(4), 283–292.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tether, B. S. (2003). The sources and aims of innovation in services: Variety between and within sectors. Economics of Innovation and New Technology, 12(6), 481–505.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • The biography channel (2007). Real lives – Weight Watchers. http://www.thebiographychannel.co.uk/biography_story/1265:967/1/Weight_Watchers.htm. Accessed 4 June 2007.

  • Urban, G. L., & von Hippel, E. (1988). Lead user analyses for the development of new industrial products. Management Science, 34(5), 569–582.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Utterback, J. M., et al. (1976). The process of innovation in five industries in Europe and Japan. IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management, 23(1), 3–9.

    Google Scholar 

  • von Hippel, E. (1978). The dominant role of the user in semiconductor and electronic subassembly process innovation. IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management, 24(2), 60–71.

    Google Scholar 

  • von Hippel, E. (1982). Get new products from customers. Harvard Business Review, 60(2), 117–122.

    Google Scholar 

  • von Hippel, E. (1986). Lead users: A source of novel product concepts. Management Science, 32(7), 791–805.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • von Hippel, E. (1988). The sources of innovation. New York: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • von Hippel, E. (1989). New product ideas from ‘Lead Users’. Research-Technology Management, 32(3), 24–28.

    Google Scholar 

  • von Hippel, E., & Riggs, W. (1996). A lead user study of electronic home banking services: Lessons from the learning-curve. Working Paper No. 3911-96. Cambridge, MA: Sloan School of Management. Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

    Google Scholar 

  • von Hippel, E., et al. (1999). Creating breakthroughs at 3M. Harvard Business Review, 77(5), 47–57.

    Google Scholar 

  • Voss, C. A. (1985). The role of users in the development of applications software. Journal of Product Innovation Management, 2(2), 113–121.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Vreyzer, R. W. J. (1998). Discontinuous innovation and the new product development process. Journal of Product Innovation Management, 15(4), 304–321.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Walsh, T. (2007). Are we becoming a nation of renters? The world’s first online rental marketplace launches in the US as rental businesses flourish. PR Newswire (U.S.), 14 November 2007, Palo Alto.

    Google Scholar 

  • Weight Watchers International (2007). Our History. http://www.weightwatchers.com/about/his/history.aspx. Accessed 4 June 2007.

  • Who made America (2007a). Fredrick W. Smith – Overnight delivery. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/theymadeamerica/whomade/fsmith_hi.html. Accessed 4 June 2007.

  • Who made America (2007b). Jean Nidetch – Weight loss therapy. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/theymadeamerica/whomade/nidetch_lo.html. Accessed 4 June 2007.

  • Yin, R. K. (2002). Case study research. Design and methods (3rd ed.). Thousands Oaks, CA: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Zeithaml, V. (1991). How consumer evaluation processes differ between goods and services. In J. H. Donnelly & W. R. George (Eds.), Marketing of services (pp. 186–190). Chicago, IL: American Marketing Association.

    Google Scholar 

  • Zollner, G. (1995). Kundennähe in Dienstleistungsunternehmen: Empirische Analyse von Banken. Wiesbaden: Deutscher Universitäts-Verlag.

    Book  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute for Technology and Innovation Management, Hamburg University of Technology, Hamburg, Germany

    Florian Skiba (Managing partner, ARKTIK GmbH) & Cornelius Herstatt (Full Professor and Director)

Authors
  1. Florian Skiba
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Cornelius Herstatt
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Florian Skiba .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Lahti School of Innovation, Lappeenranta University of Technology, Saimaankatu 11, Lahti, 15140, Finland

    Helinä Melkas

  2. Lahti School of Innovation, Lappeenranta University of Technology, Saimaankatu 11, Lahti, 15140, Finland

    Vesa Harmaakorpi

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2012 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Skiba, F., Herstatt, C. (2012). Users as Sources of Radical Service Innovation. In: Melkas, H., Harmaakorpi, V. (eds) Practice-Based Innovation: Insights, Applications and Policy Implications. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-21723-4_13

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation