The Forces of Ecosystem Evolution
Journal article, 2022

Ecosystems are the result of a delicate balance between centripetal forces that push economic activities toward integration, and centrifugal forces that pull economic activities out onto the market. Ecosystems evolve when these forces change. For example, technological complementarities-the main source of centripetal force-are dynamic and may be commoditized, generalized, or standardized over time. Management and coordination also change: for example, open innovation practices enable firms to move innovation activities from the in-house R&D lab out into the ecosystem. This article discusses how such dynamics in technologies and management lead to ecosystem evolution.

business model

innovation ecosystem

standard

design

complementarity

modularity

platform

business ecosystem

open innovation

Author

Marcus Holgersson

Chalmers, Technology Management and Economics, Entrepreneurship and Strategy

Carliss Y. Baldwin

Harvard Business School

Henry Chesbrough

University of California at Berkeley

Luiss Guido Carli University

Marcel L. A. M. Bogers

University of California at Berkeley

University of Copenhagen

Eindhoven University of Technology

California Management Review

0008-1256 (ISSN) 21628564 (eISSN)

Vol. 64 3 5-23

Subject Categories

Economic History

Business Administration

Human Geography

DOI

10.1177/00081256221086038

More information

Latest update

4/28/2022