Barriers in Searching for Alternative Business Models

A successful business model creates a heuristic logic that connects technical potential with the realization of economic value. But this logic constrains the subsequent search for new, alternative models for other technologies later on. This logic gives rise to two behaviors that affect the implementation of Open Innovation inside organizations. The well-known Not-Invented-Here syndrome constrains the use of Outside-in Open Innovation, while a new syndrome we identify, the Fear of Looking Foolish, constrains the use of Inside-out Open Innovation. We focus particularly on the latter behavioral constraint in this chapter and present three mini-cases that demonstrate the constraints in action. We then sketch possible managerial solutions to overcome these behaviors.