Towards a theory of ecosystems

By Michael G. Jacobides, Carmelo Cennamo, Annabelle Gawer. Strategic Management Journal, 2018

2,711 citations recorded by the source corpus.

Research Summary: The recent surge of interest in “ecosystems” in strategy research and practice has mainly focused on what ecosystems are and how they operate. We complement this literature by considering when and why ecosystems emerge, and what makes them distinct from other governance forms. We argue that modularity enables ecosystem emergence as it allows a set of distinct yet interdependent organizations to coordinate without full hierarchical fiat. We show how ecosystems address multilateral dependences based on various types of complementarities—supermodular or unique, unidirectional or bidirectional—which determine the ecosystem's value‐add. We argue that at the core of ecosystems lie nongeneric complementarities, and the creation of sets of roles that face similar rules. We conclude with implications for mainstream strategy and suggestions for future research. Managerial Summary: We consider what makes ecosystems different from other business constellations, including markets, alliances, or hierarchically managed supply chains. Ecosystems, we posit, are interacting organizations, enabled by modularity, not hierarchically managed, bound together by the nonredeployability of their collective investment elsewhere. Ecosystems add value as they allow managers to coordinate their multilateral dependence through sets of roles that face similar rules, thus obviating the need to enter into customized contractual agreements with each partner. We explain how different types of complementarities (unique or supermodular, generic or specific, uni‐ or bi‐directional) shape ecosystems and offer a “theory of ecosystems” that can explain what they are, when they emerge, and why alignment occurs. Finally, we outline the critical factors affecting ecosystem emergence, evolution, and success—or failure.

Subfields: Strategy and Management

View Paper: https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/ea08f63bf14c9a1634da65aa3d57b412c772a0a2

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Citations in the corpus

How entrepreneurial SMEs compete through digital platforms: The roles of digital platform capability, network capability and ambidexterity (2019, methodology): “The platform approach represents an emerging research stream that presents opportunities for efficiency improvements and innovation thrusts (Jacobides et al., 2018; McIntyre & Srinivasan, 2017; Parker et al., 2016; Wareham et al., 2014).”
Micro- and Macro-Dynamics of Open Innovation with a Quadruple-Helix Model (2019, background): “Open innovation activities that are initiated by firms, such as open‐source technology development and standardization, belong to this research domain [6].”
A Systematic Review of the Literature on Digital Transformation: Insights and Implications for Strategy and Organizational Change (2020, background): “…this turbulence becomes visible especially through the vast number and heterogeneity of interdependent partners that shape competition (e.g., Jacobides et al., 2018), the widespread diffusion and adoption of interconnected generative technologies (e.g., Kopalle et al., 2020), and the…”
Introduction - Platforms and Infrastructures in the Digital Age (2018, background): “Rather, it ﬁts a platform ecosystem model that emphasizes core interactions between platform participants, including consumers, producers, and third-party actors (Jacobides et al. 2018).”
Innovation ecosystems: A conceptual review and a new definition (2020, neutral): “…central interest in management and strategy, as well as in policy-making, for example regarding disruptive innovations (Christensen, 1997) or complementary assets (Teece, 2018), platforms, and modularizations for appropriation of complementarities (Baldwin and Henkel, 2015; Jacobides et al., 2018).”
Platform Competition: A Systematic and Interdisciplinary Review of the Literature (2020, neutral): “…(e.g., Shankar & Bayus, 2003; M. Sun & Tse, 2009), dynamic capabilities (e.g., Helfat & Raubitschek, 2018; Pierce, 2009), modularity theory (e.g., Jacobides, Cennamo, & Gawer, 2018; Yoo, Henfridsson & Lyytinen, 2010), social network theory (e.g., Abrahamson & Rosenkopf, 1997; Afuah, 2013; ,…”
Digital servitization business models in ecosystems: A theory of the firm (2019, background): “This is important when business models are conceptualized within ecosystems, acknowledging the interdependency and alignment between a ﬁ rm and ecosystem actors (Adner, 2016; Jacobides, Cennamo, Gawer, & Mgmt, 2018), particularly when developing smart solutions.”
Digital platforms for development: Foundations and research agenda (2021, background): “Traditionally, the digital platform literature refers to a ‘ platform ecosystem ’ (Jacobides et al., 2018) to the broad set of actors that contribute to the functioning of a given platform (Ceccagnoli et al., 2012; Gawer & Cusumano, 2008).”