Collaborative Value : an engaged analysis of ecosystem capabilities

Abstract: In a world where sustainable development is important and strategies can no longer be developed based on predictable futures, there is increased reliance on organizational capabilities to manage and collaborate with others.  To survive continuous disruption and thrive sustainably in the future, organizations must reconsider both their strategic imperatives and operating models. The emerging new perception of success, one which includes sustainability, demands a broader consideration of value but also a comprehensive change in how we strategize and collaborate.  The collaborative models of the future must not only deliver value to their own operations but must also be orchestrated in a way that considers underlying interdependencies and delivers value to the stakeholders and beyond the borders of the collaborations. This change requires new theoretical perspectives to be understood and equally new capabilities that deliver the change are required.   To this end, this thesis offer insights from in-depth engagement in live multi-stakeholder cases. Through rich narratives and examples, an attempt has been made to consolidate the various stakeholder perspectives and abductively connect them to the current academic discourse on collaboration. As a result, I contribute to and reason by way of the ecosystem perspective as a way to understand broader values alongside the capabilities needed to materialize these values.  By shedding light on the engaged scholarship method and exemplifying co-created knowledge and materials, I also hope to contribute to the discourse on bridging the theory-practice gap.