TY - JOUR T1 - Innovation by Collaboration between Startups and SMEs in Switzerland JF - Technology Innovation Management Review Y1 - 2017 A1 - Fabio Mercandetti A1 - Christine Larbig A1 - Vincenzo Tuozzo A1 - Thomas Steiner KW - collaboration co-operation KW - innovation KW - matchmaking KW - SMEs KW - startups AB - Open innovation is key to the success of many companies. It is based on the intelligent use of all possible resources, including collaborations with parties outside the firm. Although it is well known that large companies foster and use startups as experiments in their innovation process, little is known about similar activities with small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The aim of this article is to report the results of research done in Switzerland on startups and SMEs. It reveals that most startups know that they must co-operate with other companies from the very beginning of their existence, and that both sides have difficulties in performing a systematic search for possible partners. Hence, to encourage the collaborative development of innovative solutions, we propose building bridges between startups and SMEs, making the identification of possible users of new technologies (SMEs) more accessible to startups, as well as making startups more identifiable by SMEs. PB - Talent First Network CY - Ottawa VL - 7 UR - http://timreview.ca/article/1125 IS - 12 U1 - Lucerne School of Engineering and Architecture Fabio Mercandetti is a Professor at the Lucerne School of Engineering and Architecture in Switzerland. He holds an MSc in Chemical Engineering from the Technical University (Politecnico) of Turin, Italy, he has held different management positions up to the Executive Committee in global companies, where he led the Operations and/or the Corporate development function. He teaches in Engineering Bachelor and Masters programmes. His applied research focuses on both operational excellence and lean manufacturing, to help companies, particularly SMEs, to improve and increase their business. This includes finding and rightly approaching co-operation opportunities. U2 - Lucerne School of Engineering and Architecture Christine Larbig is a Professor at the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts Information Technology in Switzerland. She earned her doctoral degree in Management from Cass Business School City University in London, England, and she earned her Master’s in Management from Ashridge Management College in Berkhamsted, England. At the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts, she teaches operations management and researches in the realm of service and social innovation as well as social informatics. U3 - Lucerne School of Engineering and Architecture Vincenzo Tuozzo is graduate of the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts (HSLU) in Switzerland, where he obtained a BA degree in International Management and Economics. He has been active in the area of innovation management and collaboration. With the support of Fabio Mercandetti, Professor of Operations Management at HSLU, and Prof. Dr. Christine Larbig, Professor of Social Innovation at HSLU, he has been researching the theory of open innovation and its practice between startups and SMEs in Switzerland. The focus of their current research lies in recognizing co-operation opportunities and prescribing measures on how to promote such collaborations with the aim of enhancing the innovation processes of startups and SMEs. U4 - Lucerne School of Engineering and Architecture Thomas Steiner is a business product developer who, in 2016, completed his Bachelor`s degree studies in Business Engineering Innovation at the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts (HSLU) in Switzerland. Within an industrial project at the HSLU, supported by Fabio Mercandetti, Professor of Operations Management at the HSLU, he researched the possibilities and needs for collaboration between startups and SMEs in Switzerland. His current professional activities at an SME focus on issues such as innovation management, lean product development, and business modelling. ER -