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Management Matters

I write a column for each issue of Research-Technology Management. I have collected below some of my favorites.
Digital technology is allowing us to do things we could never do be- fore (or do as easily), but we are spinning off information as a consequence, with profound implications for our experience of life. 
During the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, many people proposed crowdsourcing the solution. In this column, I discuss the naive expectations of some crowdsourcing initiatives and the erosion of trust in experts. I identify five criteria that may be prerequisites for success with crowdsourcing and discuss them in the context of that disaster.

Two Flavors of Open Innovation

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This column discusses the distinction between what I call open boundary innovation, which operates within the current management paradigm, and open-source innovation, which redefines the boundaries of the corporation itself.  
In the aftermath of the 2009 crash, companies were forced to reassess R&D spending and priorities. This column introduced a special issue on managing in turbulent times and explored the peculiar dilemmas companies face in managing R&D in a downturn.
User innovation and innovation communities are both growing in importance for firms and coming to be better understood. This column introduces a special issue of RTM on user innovation, with an interview with the originator of the concept, Eric von Hippel.
As Will Rogers said, “It’s not what we don’t know that gets us into trouble. It’s what we do know that just ain’t so.”  This column discusses how "best practices" can get in the way of better practices.
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