Where and how to search? Search paths in open innovation

- This paper presents a framework of search that connects the search dimension of “where to search: local and distant” with “how to search: experiential and cognitive.”
- Combining the search space and search heuristic dimensions, we suggest a framework comprising four search paths: situated, analogical, sophisticated, and scientific.
- Each search path is detailed by illustrations from 18 open innovation projects carried out by an innovation intermediary and different knowledge-seeking clients.
- We discuss how the mechanisms of problem framing and boundary spanning assist each search path.