Collective Innovation: A New Approach for Dealing with Society Induced Challenges. A Case Study in the Dutch Bakery Sector

Since many of today's problems are becoming ever more complex, the way we look for and manage innovations to solve these problems should also be innovated. We introduce the ‘Collective Innovation’ approach to deal with these kind of ‘wicked problems’ that require the input of many different parties. Furthermore, in Collective Innovation it is crucial not to define the solution space upfront, but to take the time to look for creative, innovative solutions that come from a wide range of angles. A case study in the Dutch bakery sector illustrates this approach and shows that it yields better results than other innovation approaches, such as Open Innovation and Collaborative Engineering. In this approach, the role of the facilitator of the Collective Innovation process is crucial. Also, we adopt a contingency approach to innovation, which means that the Collective Innovation approach is not suitable for every innovation problem or challenge, but only for those that have many dimensions (technical, economical, environmental, and social).