The dissertation consists of three articles which explore the phenomenon of business ecosystems through the lens of the field of strategy. Broadly speaking, an ecosystem is a diverse community of actors which, through formal and informal ties, work together to create more than any one actor could individually. The dissertation explores the ecosystem phenomenon and the confusion surrounding the terminology in the first article, the motivations underlying ecosystem formation and growth in the second article, and the mechanisms underlying ecosystem formation and growth in the third and final article.

The first article, “Head-on collision or sideswipe? The cluster and ecosystem constructs in strategy” takes as a starting point the significant confusion existing around the term ‘ecosystem’ in the field of strategy, specifically focusing on the points of distinction between ‘ecosystem’ and ‘cluster.’ Clusters and ecosystems are both present in strategy, though they originate in different fields and became popular at different times. This has contributed to a semantic collision between the two terms, which is the focus of this article. The essay concludes that a new typology of the systems currently covered by ‘cluster’ and ‘ecosystem’ could lend clarity to the terms, but until it is adopted, concludes that the primary differences between the two are geography and output: Clusters typically include a geographic element and that ecosystems do not; clusters typically focus on innovation for innovation’s sake, whereas ecosystems produce something.

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In the second article, Gibney looks at the formation and expansion of Vipps, an ecosystem in the Norwegian payments industry, to explore motivations underlying ecosystem formation through the lens of resource dependence theory. After justifying the choice of resource dependence theory, the article examines each stage of Vipps’ life cycle to identify key dependencies and dependency-management strategies and how these shifted power in the ecosystem. The article concludes that resource dependence theory can be used in conjunction with other theories to explain the formation and growth of ecosystems.

Article 3, “The process of business ecosystem development: Lock-ins and path-breaking activities,” uses the lens of path dependency and path-breaking to examine how ecosystems form ang grow, again using the example of Vipps. Here, the authors find that, in contrast to established theory, path-breaking can be used to spark the formation of an ecosystem, creating new value in contrast to the notion that path-breaking typically restricts value creation. They also find that as lock-ins shift in the ecosystem, the balance of power shifts with them.

Prescribed topic for the trial lecture:

"Do we need new theories to understand business ecosystems? Assessing the boundaries of existing frameworks."

Trial lecture:

Aud N, NHH, 10:15

Title of the thesis:

"Essays on Ecosystems in Strategy"

Defense:

Aud N, NHH, 12:15

Members of the evaluation committee:

Professor Bram Timmermans (leader of the committee), Department of Strategy and Management, NHH

Professor Heidi Wiig, BI

Professor Henri Hagala, LUT University

Supervisors:

Professor Lasse Lien (main supervisor) Department of Strategy and Management, NHH

Professor Martin Friesl, Otto-Friedrich-Universität Bamberg and Adjunct Professor at NHH

The trial lecture and thesis defense will be open to the public.

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