Innovation systems and technological transitions

1
Innovation systems and technological transitions
towards a common framework
Workshop Zurich, April 16, 2007
Jochen Markard Innovation Research in Utility
Sectors (CIRUS)
2
Background

• Literature on innovation systems and
  technological transitions
• Largely separate strands of literature
• Common theoretical roots
• Directed at closely related research questions
• Aim of the talk
• Focus on TIS and MLP
• Concentrate on complementary key issues
• Output towards TIS concept

3
Two perspectives on transformation

• Focus on specific innovation processes
• How do radical innovations emerge and develop?
• What drives, what hinders a new technology?
• How to create supportive institutions or to
  stabilize emerging paths?
• Focus on broader transition processes
• How do socio-technical transitions come about?
• What are the drivers, the barriers?
• How to destabilize established paths and enhance
  variety?

4
Perspectives and frameworks

• Focus on specific innovation processes
• Strategic niche management
• Technological innovation systems (TIS)
• Focus on broader transition processes
• Technological regimes and paradigms
• Multi-level perspective (MLP)
• Ideally Complementary empirical insights
• Open question towards a common framework or
  keep concepts separately?

5
TIS open issues

• How to define and delineate a system?
• Focus national, sectoral, technological
• Level of aggregation / delineation
• System concept (overall function)
• Are there minimum conditions for a system?
• How to conceptualize the environment?
• TIS life cycle - beginning and ending?
• How to deal with actors, actor strategies and
  agency?

6
Focus national, sectoral, technological
SSI1
SSI2
NSI1
NSI2
NSI3
SSI3
SSI4
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Focus national, sectoral, technological
SSI1
SSI2
NSI1
NSI2
NSI3
SSI3
TS1
SSI4
TS1

• TIS often have an internation or global
  character (Hekkert et al., in press) but
  national / regional analyses may still be
  justified (Bergek et al. 2005)

8
Technological innovation systems

• How to define and delineate a system?
• Focus national, sectoral, technological
• Level of aggregation / delineation
• System concept (overall function)
• Are there minimum conditions for a system?
• How to conceptualize the environment?
• TIS life cycle - beginning and ending?
• How to deal with actors, actor strategies and
  agency?

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Level of aggregation
UPS
Base load power supply
PAFC
Control monitoring
Peak loadheating
SOFC

Cellstack
Fuelreformer
DC/ACconverter
Metering devices
Heatexchanger
auxiliarycomponents
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System delineation

• Level of aggregation (? fuel cells example)
• one knowledge field related fields
• broad range of applications specific one
• Level of analysis
• here technology / knowledge field vs. product
  (Carlsson et al. 2002, Bergek et al. 2005)
• Two general approaches
• Delineation depends on the research
  questionBergek et al. 2005 boundary setting as
  a process
• System boundaries are somehow out
  thereCarlsson et al. 2002 e.g. technology
  distance indicatorsEdquist 2005 define system
  boundaries in terms of activities

11
Technological innovation systems

• How to define and delineate a system?
• Focus national, sectoral, technological
• Level of aggregation / delineation
• System concept (overall function)
• Are there minimum conditions for a system?
• How to conceptualize the environment?
• TIS life cycle - beginning and ending?
• How to deal with actors, actor strategies and
  agency?

12
System concept

• Technological system network of agents
  interacting in a specific economic / industrial
  area under a particular institutional
  infrastructure and involved in the generation,
  diffusion and utilization of technology
  (Carlsson Stankiewicz 1991)
• generation of (new) technology ? includes
  radical novelties
• diffusion and use of technology ? focus on
  existing technology, incremental improvements
• innovation process perspective
• vs. production process perspective

13
Technological innovation systems

• How to define and delineate a system?
• Focus national, sectoral, technological
• Level of aggregation / delineation
• System concept (overall function)
• Are there minimum conditions for a system?
• How to conceptualize the environment?
• TIS Life cycle - beginning and ending?
• How to deal with actors, actor strategies and
  agency?

14
TIS minimum conditions (draft)

• Variety of different actors (different
  strategies, different capabilities)
• Division of innovation tasks among actors
  (supply chain, networks)
• Variety of institutions that have emerged from
  within the system
• Early market(s) and competition
• Several application contexts or niches

15
Technological innovation systems

• How to define and delineate a system?
• Focus national, sectoral, technological
• Level of aggregation / delineation
• System concept (overall function)
• Are there minimum conditions for a system?
• How to conceptualize the environment?
• TIS Life cycle - beginning and ending?
• How to deal with actors, actor strategies and
  agency?

16
The environment of the TIS
ComplementaryTIS
Focal technological innovation system
CompetingTIS
Regime2
Regime1
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Technological innovation systems

• How to define and delineate a system?
• Focus national, sectoral, technological
• Level of aggregation / delineation
• System concept (overall function)
• Are there minimum conditions for a system?
• How to conceptualize the environment?
• TIS Life cycle - beginning and ending?
• How to deal with actors, actor strategies and
  agency?

18
TIS beginning and ending
Degree of technology diffusion
regime
SSI
TIS stabilized
TIS
niche, network
Time
Minimum conditions fulfilled
19
Technological innovation systems

• How to define and delineate a system?
• Focus national, sectoral, technological
• Level of aggregation / delineation
• System concept (overall function)
• Are there minimum conditions for a system?
• How to conceptualize the environment?
• TIS Life cycle - beginning and ending?
• How to deal with actors, actor strategies and
  agency?

20
Facilitate actor oriented analyses

• TIS actors are key element, different from
  institutions
• Definition of development goal can be used to
  identify system actors
• a set of networks of actors and institutions
  that jointly interact in a specific technological
  field and contribute to the generation, diffusion
  and utilization of variants of a new technology
  and/or a new product
• Analysis of innovation activities ? e.g. on the
  basis of innov. strategies
• Analysis of innovation potential ? e.g. on the
  basis of resources (and strategic intentions)

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Wrap up

• TIS MLP common interests, similar challenges
  (e.g. delineation) and different weaknesses
• Elements of both concepts can be defined in a
  way as to complement each other
• MLP ? TIS
• Elaborate conceptualization of system
  environment
• TIS ? MLP
• Explicit actor concept
• Mutual benefits
• Delineation issues
• Qualitative differences between niche, TIS and
  regime

22
Relation of concepts
SSI1
SSI2
TS1
TS2
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Comparison of concepts
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How to define a regime?

• Proxy for sectors? (Geels 2006)
• electricity regime, water supply regime, housing
  regime
• Highlight societal function
• Conceptual use
• Distinguish characteristics of competing
  regimes,e.g. private automobile regime vs.
  public mass transport
• Compare regime and niche characteristics
• Challenge different levels of aggregation
• Regime of centralized electricity supply
• Nuclear power vs. fossil fuel vs. renewables
  regime
• Wind power regime, onshore vs. offshore regime ...