Open innovation is the practice of businesses and organizations sourcing ideas from external sources as well as internal ones.

This means sharing knowledge and information about problems and looking to people outside the business for solutions and suggestions.

In the open innovation model, companies collaborate and engage with external partners, such as customers, suppliers, research institutions, startups, business incubators, and even competitors, to co-create and commercialize innovations.

Co-innovate with Suppliers and Customers

Mutual Creativity

Examples of open innovation include gathering customer insights through surveys or focus groups, monitoring and adopting emerging technologies from proactive-futuring leaders, startups, or research institutions, and participating in innovation challenges or competitions, like hackathons, Innompic Games, CArete Games, and HUMANITY Games.

Corporate Open Innovation

Open innovation can boost internal corporate innovation. External innovators bring a fresh perspective to corporate projects and suggest ideas for new ones from their varied range of experiences and expertise. Such external innovation not only enables corporations to solve some of the pressing challenges of theirs organization but also opens doors for novel business opportunities.

4 Levels of Problem Solving

Turning Problems to Opportunities

Customer-driven Innovation

Intellectual Cross-pollination