Update

I’m  pleased to say that I have had some good people applying for this opportunity – sorry to say the deadline is now passed, and I’m working on the selection.  Of course, I’m always interested in new colleagues who want to work with me in this space so feel free to get in touch if you want to discuss anything further.  Thanks to all those who applied and colleagues who circulated the link.

Work with me at the University of Southampton’s School of Management

Project Title: Digital disruption and value creation

The research focuses on how small businesses in the knowledge-intensive services sector can realise value from mobile communications.  It embraces innovation theory and business strategy and will enhance competitiveness in UK plc.

Supervisor: Dr Lorraine Warren

Start Date: October 2010

Details of the Project:

The rapid development of digital technologies now presents a nexus of possibilities: widespread access to broadband/mobile technologies; smartphones enabling new forms of communication, handheld internet access and bespoke applications development; software platforms that enable a high degree of networked connectivity and communication  with the potential to amplify to (potentially) a global audience; readily available real-time geographical data; increasing availability of government datasets to the public.  This nexus produces a new locus of innovation, a shift from the corporation to the individual, recognised in new so-called paradigms for innovation, ‘open innovation’ (Chesbrough) and ‘democratic innovation’ (von Hippel) across the distributed innovation networks foreseen by Rothwell.  The barriers to digital innovation by non-computer scientists have been significantly lowered as the plethora of new businesses in the fields of social media, or smartphone applications demonstrate.  It should now easier than it has ever been to not only access and use new technologies, but to extend them, customise them, develop new combinations, and to access and develop new sectors and markets.  Thus the potential for not only incremental innovation but transformative, disruptive innovation is also possible.

However the roadmap for inductive thinking that will create value in novel and unforeseen ways in new contexts and settings is not clear.  Classical technology transfer models are too linear to translate into this milieu and are also too focussed on economic value creation at the expense of the other forms of value – social, cultural, creative, artistic and technological – that are so significant in the 21st century.

At the heart of this project is a continuation, development and extension of ongoing research on the use of complexity theory to provide an understanding of value creation in disruptive contexts because of its potential to: conceptualise across multiple, interlinked levels of analysis (ie non linear); relate initial conditions to indeterminate outcomes.  To explore the above, the project will take as its starting point the use of the iphone/smartphone as a tool for small businesses in the knowledge-intensive services sector, now that people are using mobile applications  for a wide range of tasks, from purchases, service access communication and information retrieval, bypassing traditional web access.

The Student

The project would suit a School of Management student with an MSc in a relevant qualitative discipline, or a mature student with industry experience.  In terms of future employability, the student would graduate with detailed knowledge and practical understandings that would support entry into the industry, or the development of their own business, trading consultancy skills either to companies or government agencies.

To apply for one of the above scholarships, please apply for a place on our PhD programme by following these instructions at: http://www.management.soton.ac.uk/StudyOpportunities/PhD Please email Phdteam@soton.ac.uk once you have applied stating your application number and which scholarship you are interested in.

All completed applications, which include all supporting documents and details of any funding already awarded, received by 31st July 2010 will be considered for the scholarships.  Students who already have significant sponsorship will not be awarded scholarships under this scheme.

I spent a really pleasant hour at the Quilts 1700 – 2010 exhibition yesterday, which showcases a wide range of quilts, some of historical significance, others more utilitarian and reflective of a more frugal past, and yet others making striking artistic statements with a strong sociological message from the present day.  The exhibition, which is part sponsored by Coats, lasts until 4 July 2010 and is well worth a visit.  This is the second time this year I’ve visited the V & A, my last visit taking in the Decode Digital Designs showcase, subject of a previous blogpost.  In many ways, the ability to host both the traditional art of quilting and  the leading edge of digital design so effectively shows the diversity of the V & A. Interestingly, though it might seem on the surface that digital design and quilting must be poles apart, there is a similarity in my eyes between them.  The aggregation of tiny pieces of material and stitching in repeating patterns to form an overall effect where we have to concentrate to home in on the building blocks, reminds me of how different pixels make up screens, where again the eye takes in the overall picture.  Take a look at this traditional pieced quilt from the American Folk Art Museum for example, or some stunning later work from Paula Nadelstern.  I do recall when I lived in New York State some years ago that quilting and crafting generally were far more to the fore in Department stores than they were in the UK at the time (mid 80s) and in many homes I visited, a sewing machine seemed to be set up and part of the living room just as a norm.  I took advantage of that and bought a fair bit of specialist equipment for doing this stuff myself one day, if I ever have time.  OK, I may not get FU money, but I certainly have an FU hobby, as you can do this stuff very cheaply using tiny pieces of leftover material [unlike the more expensive pre-cut packs in the museum shop!]

I really enjoyed presenting at Ignite Liverpool on Thursday night – to me, this was a new format, presenting 20 slides in 5 minutes with an automatic slide change every 15 seconds.  It’s best described by WimpyKing.  I took the bullet and went first – hopefully getting over some of my passion about working with creative artists in the digital economy.  My presentation is below – I just used a few words and clipart to get the message over  quickly – or try to!

Thanks to Frances Bell for organising this event yesterday for ISOS, Salford University’s Information Systems, Organisations and Society Research Centre in the very well appointed Think Lab.  I really enjoyed the discussion afterwards, thanks to the group for some food for thought.  Presentation below:

A slightly belated post, but just before Easter I participated in the Higher Education and the Creative Economy Conference held at Southampton on 23-24 March.  I’m pleased to see that we are getting more recognition at Southampton for our vibrant institutions such as the Nuffield Theatre, the John Hansard Art Gallery and the Turner Sims Concert Hall: A fantastic set of resources all within 200 yards of each other.  My research concerns the creation of  value through emerging technologies and the creative industries have a powerful role to play in that.  The presentation is below and as usual I’m happy to take any of these ideas further, or pass on the associated publications.

I wasn’t able to go to the ISBE conference this year http://www.isbe.org.uk/, so it was great to see some expert live tweeting from Kelly Smith, aka @KellyJS.  To put the cherry on the cake, I saw that my paper [co-authored with Ted Fuller and Sally-Jane Norman had been selected as best in our track – another twitter first!  Anyway the slides are below – just pleased to see that the EPSRC Creator project is starting to attract attention.

At BAM this year, I continued the work on emergence and complexity that I’ve been developing with Ted Fuller over the past few years.  It went down very well compared with last year, I think because the concepts are now being related to new projects in the creative industries that people can relate to.  Last year’s presentation was a bit conceptual and the philosophical side was perhaps a bit inaccessible.  Now though, the idea that entrepreneurship is agile, dynamic, fast-moving and takes place in reputational ecosystems is starting to come across – though I’m not sure everyone there agreed with me!  Here’s the presentation: