基于意义建构的技术创新失败项目价值识别研究

A Study on Value Identification of the Failed Technological Innovation Project based on the Sense-making TheoryA Study on Value Identification of the Failed Technological Innovation Project based on the Sense-making Theory

失败的技术创新项目可能蕴藏着巨大的价值潜力,但识别其潜在价值确是挽救失败项目的首要难题。采用探索性案例研究方法,以生物制药产业的典型案例为样本,以“意义建构”理论为支撑,揭示了技术创新失败项目的价值识别机制。结果发现,技术创新失败项目价值识别机制可归纳为“个人意义建构—组织意义给赋”两阶段过程模型,个人意义建构阶段由“酝酿性因素—预建构”和“导火索因素—正式建构”两个环节组成。

The failed technological innovation project embraces inestimable values,but identifying these potential values is of great difficulties.If the potential values of the failed projects cannot be found and judged keenly,the subsequent value mining work will not be possibly organized.From the observation,the identification of the potential value in the innovation failed projects,mainly first comes from the subjective judgment of the individual innovators and the consensus reached by the innovators and stakeholders,rather than from the mechanical quantitative analysis.This process is characterized by the cognitively intensive tasks,which can be regarded as a process of sense-making.Therefore,the purpose of this study is to explore the value identification mechanism of the failed technological innovation projects from the perspective of sense-making.Taking the case in the bio-pharmaceutical industry as the sample,an exploratory case study has been carried out to reveal the value identifying mechanism in saving the failed technological innovation project based on the sense-making theory.According to the principles of theoretical sampling and purposive sampling,the Fedratinib project has been selected as the sample.How the value has been identified in the failed innovation project is regarded as the data collection guide,for the secondary data collection and the primary data collection.The data about scientists,R&D staff,R&D institutions,activity process,value exploring experiences,influencers and other factors in Fedratinib project have been obtained and collected.The grounded theory has been applied in the data processing and data analysis,and the Atlas.ti 7.5 has been used as the tools for qualitative analysis.Open coding,axial coding and selective coding have been carried out step by step in the data analysis.The theoretical saturation has been tested and checked in the end.The research results show that,the saving process of the failed innovation projects can be divided into two stages,including the individual sense-making and the organizational sense-giving.The initiators first build up the understanding of the potential value of the failed innovation projects,and then transmit the understanding to the internal and external stakeholders,thus forming collective cognition and collective behavior.In the stage of individual sense-making,the driving factors of sense-making of the potential value of the failed innovation projects can be divided into two categories,the brewing factors and the fuse factors.The process of sense-making triggered by these two factors can also be divided into the pre-construction of sense-making and the formal construction of sense-making.In the stage of the organizational sense-giving,the process of organizational sense-giving consists of three parts,including the two-way sense-giving of"initiator-internal stakeholders",the one-way sense-giving of"initiator-external stakeholders",and the two-way sense-giving of"innovation team-external stakeholders".The conclusions are as follows.The value identifying process of the failed innovation projects includes the individual sense-making,and the organizational sense-giving.The individual sense-making process can be divided into the pre-construction stage induced by the brewing factors,and the formal-construction stage induced by fuse factors.This study further discusses the following issues.First,the fuse factors are the key factor to identify the potential value of the failed innovation projects.Therefore,how to separate the fuse factors from the complex environment is of pilot significance for identifying the potential value of the failed innovation projects.Second,individuals,especially those independent ones out of the innovation projects,are the main force to identify the potential value in the failed innovation projects.Third,the initiator's value identification process includes the pre-construction and formal construction of sense-making,which can be viewed as a cognition evolution process from the perception to the rationality,and from the possibility to the feasibility.This evolution process can be viewed as a central link of the value identification of the failed innovation projects.Fourth,the general sense-making takes place in an organizational environment,while in the process of value identification of the failed innovation projects,sense-making process gradually evolves from the individual context to the innovation ecosystem context.Starting from the individual innovation initiator,the understanding gradually transits into the innovation team,then to the innovation network,and finally a new innovation ecosystem has been formed.The potential value identification of the failed innovation projects has been accomplished in this dynamic evolution process.Fifth,the organizational sense-giving has been achieved through the communication among stakeholders,and usually emphasizes the influences from the top leaders to the bottom organizational members.However,in the value identification of the failed innovation projects,the communication network is much more extensive and complex,with more democratic two-way horizontal communication channels,and the top-down communication pattern is not obvious.From the perspective of individual psychology and organizational behavior,this study provides theoretical support and practical implication to the value identification in the failed technological innovation project management at the micro level.