1. Innovation systems and technological transitions – towards a common framework Jochen Markard Innovation Research in Utility Sectors (CIRUS) Workshop Zurich, April 16, 2007

2. www.cirus.ch Jochen Markard April 16, 2007 Zurich Workshop 2 Background  Literature on innovation systems and technological transitions  Largely separate strands of literature  Common theoretical roots  Directed at closely related research questions  Aim of the talk  Focus on TIS and MLP  Concentrate on complementary key issues  Output towards TIS concept

3. www.cirus.ch Jochen Markard April 16, 2007 Zurich Workshop 3 Two perspectives on transformation  Focus on specific innovation processes  How do radical innovations emerge and develop?  What drives, what hinders a new technology?  How to create supportive institutions or to stabilize emerging paths?  Focus on broader transition processes  How do socio-technical transitions come about?  What are the drivers, the barriers?  How to destabilize established paths and enhance variety?

4. www.cirus.ch Jochen Markard April 16, 2007 Zurich Workshop 4 Perspectives and frameworks  Focus on specific innovation processes  Strategic niche management  Technological innovation systems (TIS)  Focus on broader transition processes  Technological regimes and paradigms  Multi-level perspective (MLP)  Ideally: Complementary empirical insights  Open question: towards a common framework or keep concepts separately?

5. www.cirus.ch Jochen Markard April 16, 2007 Zurich Workshop 5 TIS: open issues  How to define and delineate a system?  Focus: national, sectoral, technological  Level of aggregation / delineation  System concept (overall function)  Are there minimum conditions for a system?  How to conceptualize the environment?  TIS life cycle - beginning and ending?  How to deal with actors, actor strategies and agency?

6. www.cirus.ch Jochen Markard April 16, 2007 Zurich Workshop 6 Focus: national, sectoral, technological NSI 1 NSI 2 NSI 3 SSI 1 SSI 2 SSI 3 SSI 4

7. www.cirus.ch Jochen Markard April 16, 2007 Zurich Workshop 7 Focus: national, sectoral, technological TIS often have an internation or global character (Hekkert et al., in press) but national / regional analyses may still be justified (Bergek et al. 2005) NSI 1 NSI 2 NSI 3 SSI 1 SSI 2 SSI 3 TS 1 SSI 4 TS 1

8. www.cirus.ch Jochen Markard April 16, 2007 Zurich Workshop 8 Technological innovation systems  How to define and delineate a system?  Focus: national, sectoral, technological  Level of aggregation / delineation  System concept (overall function)  Are there minimum conditions for a system?  How to conceptualize the environment?  TIS life cycle - beginning and ending?  How to deal with actors, actor strategies and agency?

9. www.cirus.ch Jochen Markard April 16, 2007 Zurich Workshop 9 UPS Base load power supply … SOFC PAFC Level of aggregation Cell stack Fuel reformer DC/AC converter Control & monitoring Heat exchanger Peak load heating …auxiliary components Metering devices

10. www.cirus.ch Jochen Markard April 16, 2007 Zurich Workshop 10 System delineation  Level of aggregation (  fuel cells example)  one knowledge field – related fields  broad range of applications – specific one  Level of analysis  here: technology / knowledge field vs. product (Carlsson et al. 2002, Bergek et al. 2005)  Two general approaches  Delineation depends on the research question Bergek et al. 2005: boundary setting as a process  ‘System boundaries are somehow out there‘ Carlsson et al. 2002: e.g. technology distance indicators; Edquist 2005: define system boundaries in terms of activities

11. www.cirus.ch Jochen Markard April 16, 2007 Zurich Workshop 11 Technological innovation systems  How to define and delineate a system?  Focus: national, sectoral, technological  Level of aggregation / delineation  System concept (overall function)  Are there minimum conditions for a system?  How to conceptualize the environment?  TIS life cycle - beginning and ending?  How to deal with actors, actor strategies and agency?

12. www.cirus.ch Jochen Markard April 16, 2007 Zurich Workshop 12 System concept  Technological system “network of agents interacting in a specific economic / industrial area under a particular institutional infrastructure and involved in the generation, diffusion and utilization of technology” (Carlsson & Stankiewicz 1991)  generation of (new) technology  includes radical novelties  diffusion and use of technology  focus on existing technology, incremental improvements  „innovation process“ perspective vs. „production process“ perspective

13. www.cirus.ch Jochen Markard April 16, 2007 Zurich Workshop 13 Technological innovation systems  How to define and delineate a system?  Focus: national, sectoral, technological  Level of aggregation / delineation  System concept (overall function)  Are there minimum conditions for a system?  How to conceptualize the environment?  TIS Life cycle - beginning and ending?  How to deal with actors, actor strategies and agency?

14. www.cirus.ch Jochen Markard April 16, 2007 Zurich Workshop 14 TIS minimum conditions (draft)  Variety of different actors (different strategies, different capabilities)  Division of innovation tasks among actors (supply chain, networks)  Variety of institutions that have emerged from within the system  Early market(s) and competition  Several application contexts or niches

15. www.cirus.ch Jochen Markard April 16, 2007 Zurich Workshop 15 Technological innovation systems  How to define and delineate a system?  Focus: national, sectoral, technological  Level of aggregation / delineation  System concept (overall function)  Are there minimum conditions for a system?  How to conceptualize the environment?  TIS Life cycle - beginning and ending?  How to deal with actors, actor strategies and agency?

16. www.cirus.ch Jochen Markard April 16, 2007 Zurich Workshop 16 The environment of the TIS Focal technological innovation system Complementary TIS Regime 1 Regime 2 Landscape Competing TIS

17. www.cirus.ch Jochen Markard April 16, 2007 Zurich Workshop 17 Technological innovation systems  How to define and delineate a system?  Focus: national, sectoral, technological  Level of aggregation / delineation  System concept (overall function)  Are there minimum conditions for a system?  How to conceptualize the environment?  TIS Life cycle - beginning and ending?  How to deal with actors, actor strategies and agency?

18. www.cirus.ch Jochen Markard April 16, 2007 Zurich Workshop 18 TIS: beginning and ending Degree of technology diffusion Time Minimum conditions fulfilled TIS stabilized niche, network TIS regime SSI

19. www.cirus.ch Jochen Markard April 16, 2007 Zurich Workshop 19 Technological innovation systems  How to define and delineate a system?  Focus: national, sectoral, technological  Level of aggregation / delineation  System concept (overall function)  Are there minimum conditions for a system?  How to conceptualize the environment?  TIS Life cycle - beginning and ending?  How to deal with actors, actor strategies and agency?

20. www.cirus.ch Jochen Markard April 16, 2007 Zurich Workshop 20 Facilitate actor oriented analyses  TIS: actors are key element, different from institutions  Definition of development goal can be used to identify „system actors“ a set of networks of actors and institutions that jointly interact in a specific technological field and contribute to the generation, diffusion and utilization of variants of a new technology and/or a new product  Analysis of innovation activities  e.g. on the basis of innov. strategies  Analysis of innovation potential  e.g. on the basis of resources (and strategic intentions)

21. www.cirus.ch Jochen Markard April 16, 2007 Zurich Workshop 21 Wrap up  TIS – MLP: common interests, similar challenges (e.g. delineation) and different weaknesses  Elements of both concepts can be defined in a way as to complement each other  MLP  TIS  Elaborate conceptualization of system environment  TIS  MLP  Explicit actor concept  Mutual benefits  Delineation issues  Qualitative differences between niche, TIS and regime

22. www.cirus.ch Jochen Markard April 16, 2007 Zurich Workshop 22 Relation of concepts SSI 1 TS 1 SSI 2 TS 2

23. www.cirus.ch Jochen Markard April 16, 2007 Zurich Workshop 23 Comparison of concepts

24. www.cirus.ch Jochen Markard April 16, 2007 Zurich Workshop 24 How to define a regime?  Proxy for sectors? (Geels 2006)  electricity regime, water supply regime, housing regime  Highlight societal function  ‘Conceptual use’  Distinguish characteristics of ‘competing’ regimes, e.g. private automobile regime vs. public mass transport  Compare regime and niche characteristics  Challenge: different levels of aggregation  Regime of centralized electricity supply  Nuclear power vs. fossil fuel vs. renewables regime  Wind power regime, onshore vs. offshore regime...