個案資料

Presans was founded in Paris, France in 2008 as an an open innovation intermediary, often referred to as an “innomediary.” Using a specific business model that combined open innovation services with state-of-the-art data-mining technology, Presans leveraged a network of over six million experts worldwide to solve problems for its corporate clients. In February 2017, the chief executive officer of Presans had to make some strategic decisions. Based on interviews with clients, he was considering diversifying the portfolio of products. In addition to the company’s classic approach of Call for Excellence, he was considering launching a new approach called Synergy Factory, where different companies could jointly tackle technical topics with experts, and another approach called La Conciergerie, which was a simplification of the Call for Expertise and required a platform-based, rather than a service-based, go-to-market strategy.

This case study is relevant for undergraduate- and graduate-level students and can be used in courses about (open) innovation, strategy, and business model innovation, or digital platform and services. It is also suitable to illustrate management challenges (of a start-up) in platform markets. This case study provides a rich context to compare different business models of innovation intermediaries and to evaluate the benefits and risks of new product launches. After working through the case and assignment questions, students will be able to<br><br\><br><br\><ul><li>understand the markets for technology and role of innomediaries in organizing these markets;</li><li>identify the two-sided platform markets and the role of a platform owner;</li><li>explain how an adapted platform business model allows a start-up to develop a profitable business, despite established competition;</li><li>identify the benefits and risks adding new offerings to an intermediary’s product portfolio; and</li><li>explain how an intermediary can function when it is acquired by a large consultancy company.</li></ul><br><br\><br><br\>This case can be used in combination with the InnoCentive Harvard published case studies written by Karim Lakhani (products 608170-PDF-ENG; 612026-PDF-ENG; 612027-PDF-ENG) and the Harvard Business School Threadless cases (products 608707-HTM-ENG; 621056-PDF-ENG), for instructors wishing to contrast platform and community-based business models.

• innovation intermediary
• open innovation
• digital platform