Abstract

Introduction

Theoretical background

Conceptual framework

The customer context in the C-O-T-E framework

The organisational context in the C-O-T-E framework

The technological context in the C-O-T-E framework

The environmental context in the C-O-T-E framework

Methodology and research context

Findings

Introduction to forms of co-creation in practice

Customer-context of co-creation

Organisation-context of co-creation

Technology-context of co-creation

Environment-context of co-creation

Challenges to value co-creation

Discussion and implications of findings

A new form of co-creation: co-conception for competition

Customer context of co-creation

Organisation context of co-creation

Technology context of co-creation

Environment context of co-creation

Conclusions, limitations and future research

Theoretical contributions

Practical contributions

Limitations and future research direction

Disclosure statement

References

Abstract

     This study aims to bring a renewed focus on Value Co-Creation (VCC) between an organisation (service provider) and its customers in the business-to-business (B2B) context. From the literature review, a conceptual framework of factors affecting VCC was developed by adding Customer to the Technology-Organisation-Environment framework (T-O-E). The enhanced Customer-Organisation-Technology-Environment (C-O-T-E) framework was empirically investigated from the focal firms’ perspectives using semi-structured interviews with seventeen executives from knowledge-intensive service organisations. The research captured a total of sixteen factors affecting VCC and highlighted co-conception for competition as a new form of co-creation, where the customer-service provider’s long-term relationship positively enables a competitive strategy. These findings have significant implications for how service providers achieve competitive advantage in a challenging B2B marketplace.

Introduction

     Co-creation is defined as, ‘the practice of developing systems, products, or services through collaboration with customers, managers, employees, and other company stakeholders’ (Ramaswamy & Gouillart, 2010, p. 2). To make co-creation successful, it is necessary to understand what motivates organisations and their partners involved in the co-creation process (Frow et al., 2015; Fuller, 2010). The benefits of customer co-creation are well reported (Ind et al., 2013; Moreira et al., 2020; Ramaswamy & Ozcan, 2018). Purchase and Volery’s (2020) systematic review of 289 papers highlights the growing focus on the role of external actors, in specific sectors, in enabling marketing innovation through co-creation and enhancing organisational performance.

     Nonetheless, this process can be challenging. Mckinsey’s 2014 study of 300 companies found that 90 per cent of executives were eager to integrate customers’ opinions and resources into their core processes, although only 12% actually did this (Bughin, 2014). From the customer perspective, Bughin’s (2014) study revealed that only a quarter of customers were aware of the co-creation concept; a further 5% knew about co-creation but not how it worked. Recent scholarly work has called for an extension of the boundary of co-creation research to include customers’ and organisations’ networks (Brodie et al., 2019; Vargo & Lusch, 2016), and for the study of factors that are essential for co-creation in the business-to-business (B2B) context (Ostrom et al., 2015; Ranta et al., 2020). In response to these gaps, this study explores the relationships between B2B vendors (service providers) and their customers (service buyers).

Conclusions, limitations and future research

     The study’s findings highlight various forms of co-creation in practice and C-O-T-E framework-related factors (Figure 1), empirically identifying challenges to VCC in the B2B context. In response to RQ1, this research identifies several factors affecting customer participation in VCC: culture of customer firm, motivation, perceived value, competence, trust and relationship, and peer influence. This is one of the few studies to highlight the importance of the customer firm’s culture in VCC; similarly, this paper has emphasised that customers can influence their peers. In response to RQ2, this study finds that the organisational factors that affect participation in VCC are motivation, perceived value, competence, policy and governance, and organisational culture. Several technological and environmental factors and forms of co-creation in the B2B context are identified. A key contribution of this paper is the identification of a new form of co-creation: co-creation for competition. The empirical findings also confirmed the customer (C) context of co-creation, which extends the work of Tornatzky et al.’s (1990) TOE framework by applying it in the new context of value co-creation.