* Article: The uneasy transition from supply chains to ecosystems. The value-creation/value-capture dilemma. Soumaya Ben Letaifa. Management Decision, Vol. 52 No. 2, 2014pp. 278-295

From the Abstract:

“This paper uses the multidimensional definition of value – ecosystemic value – and employs lifecycle theory to identify the different stages of evolution of value-creation and -capture processes in an ecosystem. Specifcally, the aim of this paper is to show the uneasy transition from supply chains to ecosystems.

Based on a field study of a Canadian ICT ecosystem, this paper adopts a multilevel perspective on value-creation and value-capture processes and illustrates howthese processes need to move from a dyadic economic focus to a network socioeconomic one.

The findings pinpoint the uneasy transition from supply-chains management to ecosystems management and provide a framework for understanding how value creation and value capture should be coupled throughout the ecosystem lifecycle. Finally, fove theoretical and managerial propositions are suggested to better leverage ecosystemic capabilities and better manage value creation and value capture in ecosystems.

Five theoretical and managerial propositions are suggested to better leverage ecosystemic capabilities and better manage value creation and value capture in ecosystems.”

Excerpted from the introduction:

“A decade ago, Ulaga (2001) described the difficulty with handling and interpreting value creation and capture in a context in which businesses are increasingly organized in networks. The trend is continuing toward “value-creating networks”(Kothandaraman and Wilson, 2001), in which individuals, customers, partners, competitors, and suppliers collaborate, value-creation processes are shifting to co-creation with multiple actors, transforming value chains into open knowledge- or competency-based networks. New multilevel methodologies and new value-creation and -capture metrics need to be developed in order to understand how value is co-created through interactions among different socioeconomic actors and replacing traditional asymmetric perspectives (firm or customer centricity).Cutting-edge social technologies have enabled ecosystems of innovation to thrive and to transform value creation into a more open and collaborative process (Adner and Kapoor, 2010). Organizations are shifting their strategy, focus, and capabilities from firm centricity to ecosystems in order to exploit open innovation opportunities (Van der Borgh et al., 2012). Traditional hierarchical models known for their efficiency (Teece, 1986; Williamson, 1979) are unsuitable in high and unpredictable technological and market shifts (Velu et al., 2013).

Ecosystems are defined as the third pillar of organizational theory, and they need to be addressed differently from markets and hierarchies (Moore, 2006). Many authors are suggesting new eco-systemic methodologies and metrics to evaluate eco-systemic health (performance) (Kanter,2012; Wieland et al., 2012). The new metrics make it possible to go beyond traditional economic firm-centricity and short-term vision to grasp social and community-based value.

This article, based on a theoretical sampling of a critical ICT ecosystem case,explains how the value-creation and -capture processes interplay and shape the ecosystem’s lifecycle. The author observed the discourses and practices of multiple socioeconomic actors who were the instigators of value creation and capture.”