Bridging the “Orchestration Gap”: Integrating Business Model and Product Innovation Units in Digitally Transforming Firms

Quadros et al. (2022) highlight a surprising but consistent organizational challenge: in digitally transforming incumbents, business model innovation and product/service innovation are assigned to separate units, rarely coordinating organically. This research would systematically identify the root causes of this “orchestration gap” and develop interventions (cross-functional teams, shared KPIs, digital collaboration platforms) to foster integration. By running action research or field experiments in large organizations undergoing digitalization, the study could empirically test which mechanisms best support holistic innovation. This idea is novel because it doesn’t just document the gap, but directly addresses the organizational silos that undermine transformation, offering a blueprint for both theory and practice in innovation management.

References:

1. Transforming Innovation Management: Implications of Digitalization for the Organization and Management of Innovation in Leading Brazilian Incumbents. R. Quadros, G. Vieira, Matheus Franco, Carla M Kitsuta, Vinicius Minatogawa (2022). Portland International Conference on Management of Engineering and Technology.