Theory and practice of value co-creation in B2B systems

• The paper reviews studies of value co-creation and the coproduction of service offerings.
• Value co-creation is centered on enhancing the customer experience in the context of use.
• Authors highlight the practices of value co-creation and coproduction of value propositions.
• The review shows the need for further research on the micro-mechanisms of value creation.

The co-creation of value and the coproduction of value proposition have attracted enormous interest in the B2B service and solutions research. To analyze this body of knowledge, we searched for published studies on co-creation and coproduction in top-tier journals in the areas of management, marketing, strategy, and operations. We selected 54 papers for further analysis. Our review demonstrates that research of value co-creation and the coproduction of value proposition covers a myriad of viewpoints to the economic and social exchange among actors in multi-actor service ecosystems. We identify a variety of definitions and meanings associated with value co-creation. Our analysis provides insight into the theories and methods used in the area. We also discuss the need to study the co-creation of value in the B2B context from the institutional and practice theory perspectives, and suggest some avenues for future research.