Why Firms Need to Manage Their Innovation Partners Based on Their Motivation

OVERVIEW: Firms are increasingly conducting innovation jointly with external partners so they can achieve innovations they could not achieve alone. This approach reduces investments and opens up novel opportunities, but it also highlights the importance of managing and selecting the proper partners. We identified three partner types: Free Riders, Passengers, and Copilots. According to our research, these partners have distinct behaviors and need to be managed differently based on their motivation. We introduce each partner type, distinguish them according to their motivation, and present strategies on how to manage them effectively.