2024 | David Sjödin, Alexander Liljeborg, Sermed Mutter
This study explores the capabilities and routines essential for effective ecosystem management in industrial manufacturers, particularly in the context of digitalization and sustainability transitions. The research employs a single case study of a leading global automotive and transport solutions provider, Truckcorp, based on 51 interviews with various organizational functions and ecosystem actors. The analysis, grounded in the dynamic capabilities perspective, identifies three key sets of ecosystem management capabilities: ecosystem foresight, ecosystem integration, and ecosystem governance. These capabilities are further detailed through nine foundational routines and corresponding micro-foundational activities, such as ecosystem scouting, partnership cultivation, and ecosystem catalyzation. The study highlights the need for organizations to develop new routines and capabilities to manage evolving ecosystem collaborations, emphasizing the importance of cross-functional integration, agile partnership formation, and coordinated value co-creation. The findings contribute to the literature on ecosystem management and provide insights for managing dynamic business ecosystems in rapidly changing environments.This study explores the capabilities and routines essential for effective ecosystem management in industrial manufacturers, particularly in the context of digitalization and sustainability transitions. The research employs a single case study of a leading global automotive and transport solutions provider, Truckcorp, based on 51 interviews with various organizational functions and ecosystem actors. The analysis, grounded in the dynamic capabilities perspective, identifies three key sets of ecosystem management capabilities: ecosystem foresight, ecosystem integration, and ecosystem governance. These capabilities are further detailed through nine foundational routines and corresponding micro-foundational activities, such as ecosystem scouting, partnership cultivation, and ecosystem catalyzation. The study highlights the need for organizations to develop new routines and capabilities to manage evolving ecosystem collaborations, emphasizing the importance of cross-functional integration, agile partnership formation, and coordinated value co-creation. The findings contribute to the literature on ecosystem management and provide insights for managing dynamic business ecosystems in rapidly changing environments.