Key success factors of the crowdsourcing platforms for innovation

Abstract

Purpose: Due to information technology rapid development, the possibility arises to include different ideas and inputs from a large number of people in value creation throughout the innovation process. In this regard, the key success factors (in the form of attributes) of crowdsourcing platforms for innovation can be observed as the main goal of the paper. Design/methodology/approach: The research is conducted in two phases. The first one was oriented towards literature review on crowdsourcing platforms and their attributes, and the second, towards selection and investigation of the platforms. The review was realized through Google Scholar's advanced search based on predefined keywords. Within the resulted search, we chose those papers concerning platforms' attributes. Analyzing these papers, we extracted the attributes for further research. The second phase represents the selection of platforms, which is based on the frequency of their appearance in relevant research and persistence over time. The investigation of various platforms is presently performed through direct analysis of each individual platform in terms of search and recognition of previously defined attribute values. Findings: The results of the review based on the identified design elements (attributes) may well serve as an initial knowledge base of crowdsourcing platforms since it contains featured values for every predefined platform element. Research/practical implications: It is quite possible to assume that our knowledge base can support different companies in their innovation processes management, giving the foundation for creating new concepts of communication and collaboration. Most certainly, future research should be oriented towards recognizing additional attributes and, obviously, towards examining a larger number of platforms. Originality/value: The presented paper makes a positive contribution to the widely present topic in the innovation management field concerning the role of online platforms, especially those related to crowdsourcing for innovation.