Skip to content
Generic filters
Exact matches only
Search in title
Search in content
Search in excerpt
Filter by Article Type
Papers
Events
Tools
Funding Articles
Case Studies
Resources
Opportunities
Theme Editor Blogs
Filter by Categories
Business model innovation
Ideation and creativity in R&D
Latest news
Managing international R&D
Managing technology platforms
Managing the R&D pipeline
Open innovation
Outsourcing R&D
Project valuation and selection
R&D strategy
Roadmapping
Stage gate processes
Technology intelligence
  • Home
  • About
    • About R&D Today
    • Contributors
    • R&D Publications
    • R&D Today newsletter archive
  • Themes
    • Roadmapping
    • Open Innovation
    • Managing the R&D pipeline
    • Technology Strategy
    • Managing international R&D
    • Ideation and creativity in R&D
    • Impact of digital technologies
    • The resurgence of frugal innovation
    • Design Thinking
    • Penetrating the fog of Agile
    • China’s new model for Open Innovation
  • RADMA
    • About RADMA
    • Celebrating 40 Years of RADMA
    • RADMA Scholars
    • R&D Management Journal
  • The Pentathlon Framework
    • Strategy
    • Ideas
    • Selection & Prioritisation
    • Implementation
    • People & Organisations
  • Knowledge Hub
  • R&D Management Conference
  • Events
    • Upcoming events
    • Events Archive
  • Contact
Menu
  • Home
  • About
    • About R&D Today
    • Contributors
    • R&D Publications
    • R&D Today newsletter archive
  • Themes
    • Roadmapping
    • Open Innovation
    • Managing the R&D pipeline
    • Technology Strategy
    • Managing international R&D
    • Ideation and creativity in R&D
    • Impact of digital technologies
    • The resurgence of frugal innovation
    • Design Thinking
    • Penetrating the fog of Agile
    • China’s new model for Open Innovation
  • RADMA
    • About RADMA
    • Celebrating 40 Years of RADMA
    • RADMA Scholars
    • R&D Management Journal
  • The Pentathlon Framework
    • Strategy
    • Ideas
    • Selection & Prioritisation
    • Implementation
    • People & Organisations
  • Knowledge Hub
  • R&D Management Conference
  • Events
    • Upcoming events
    • Events Archive
  • Contact

Menu

Complexity theories in R&D Management after a time of crisis

Raffaella Manzini, Full Professor, School of Industrial Engineering, LIUC Università Cattaneo
Raffaella Manzini, Full Professor, School of Industrial Engineering, LIUC Università Cattaneo

The pandemic has increased capability to manage complex systems, says Raffaella Manzini, LIUC Università Cattaneo. When researching a special issue for R&D Management Raffaella was positively surprised to find that many organisations were already adopting new models for technology innovation.

‘Big challenges’ such as a pandemic require innovative solutions that must also consider the wider social ecosystem in which they operate. These complex systems are characterised by fuzzy boundaries, non-linear relationships between their constituent parts and dynamic continuous evolution. 

Raffaella is co-chair on the track ‘Complexity theories in R&D and innovation management’ – we asked her about the theme of her track and why it is particularly timely.

Complexity seems to disrupt most of the models that we currently teach in universities and also those that companies use to manage their R&D and innovation processes.

To give an example complexity requires the ability to deal with what “emerges” from the system and to cross boundaries.

Current models tend to focus on the planning and increasing efficiencies and to focus on a particular level, ie the micro (company), meso (industry) or macro (policy) levels.

I hope that in our track we can make a little step further in discussing together these topics, reflecting on the need as a community to build new theoretical models and/or to modify and enrich those we are currently adopting.

What I have observed in the research we conducted for the special issue “R&D management at a time of crisis: what are we learning from the initial response to the COVID-19 pandemic?” is that the real actors involved in R&D and innovation management (companies, institutions, individuals) are already moving to be able to manage innovation in systems that are recognised as complex. This was kind of a surprise.

This spontaneous movement was strongly stimulated by the emergency situation.

What we need now, in my opinion, is to help these actors to maintain this intuitive attitude and to continue this way of doing things. We could support them with the necessary theory and the related managerial models, and also by promoting discussion among companies and practitioners.

If someone was new to this topic what would you suggest they read to get an overview of the issues?

  • Cilliers, P. (2016) Knowledge, complexity and understanding. In Critical Complexity. De Gruyter, pp. 77–84.
    Dougherty, D. (2017) Taking advantage of emergence for complex innovation eco-systems. Journal of Open Innovation: Technology, Market, and Complexity, 3, 3, 14.
  • Poutanen, P., Soliman, W., and Ståhle, P. (2016) The complexity of innovation: an assessment and review of the complexity perspective. European Journal of Innovation Management, 19, 2, 189–2013.
  • Battistella, C., De Toni, A.F., and Pessot, E. (2018) Framing open innovation in start-ups’ incubators: a complexity theory perspective. Journal of Open Innovation: Technology, Market, and Complexity, 4, 3, 33

 

R&D Management Conference 2022R&D Management Conference 2022 – University of Trento 11-13 July 2022

Track 2.16 Complexity theories in R&D and innovation management

Track Chairs: Raffaella Manzini, Linda Ponta, Gloria Puliga, Valentina Lazzarotti (LIUC Università Cattaneo, Castellanza); Ilaria Giannoccaro (Politecnico di Bari); Cristina Ponsiglione (Università degil studi di Napoli Federico II).

www.rnd2022.org

View our newsletter archive
  • Related posts

    • Green innovation ecosystems study awarded best paper at R&D Management Conference 2023
    • Important deadlines – abstract submission extended
    • Entrepreneurial ecosystems: Perspectives from Interregional and Global connectedness
    • How to get published in R&D management journals
    • Best papers announced at R&D Management Conference Trento
    • Frugal digital innovation and transformation
    • Sustainability, innovation and the role for SMEs
    • Meet the editors at R&D Management Conference 2022
    • Submissions open for R&D Management Conference 2022
    • Looking ahead to R&D Management Conference 2022 in Italy
    • Keynotes at R&D Management Conference
    • Innovation in an era of disruption – R&D Management Conference 2021 announces tracks
  • Have your say

    Have your say / Follow us

    Linkedin Soundcloud Twitter Youtube

    R&D Today is the outreach site for the Research and Development Management Association, a charitable organisation that supports research, best practice and innovation.  www.radma.net

    Click here to sign up to our newsletter, and
     click here to view our newsletter archive.

    © Copyright R&D Today

    2023.

    All rights reserved.