NEW RESEARCH | Here are the mistakes suppliers make in product development – 3 tips for success
Many small and medium-sized suppliers believe that success in partnerships is about understanding the customer. But the biggest challenge is often at home.
BOOK TIP: Innovation is the solution to everything – or is it?
Why did innovation become such a central ideal, and what happens when the hallelujahs surrounding the concept fade? In his book Every American an Innovator, cultural historian Matthew Wisnioski explores how innovation culture emerged long before the tech boom.
NEW RESEARCH | How to make the metals industry more sustainable – and competitive
In many factories, cutting tools are discarded as soon as they become dull, even though they can often be reused. It’s expensive, bad for the environment and makes industry dependent on imported metals from troubled parts of the world. But there is a solution.
NEW RESEARCH | Fur industry in Tranås a heroic tale of small business – but many voices are missing
When the Tranås Fur Museum tells the story of the town’s former pride – the fur industry – it is a heroic tale of enterprising entrepreneurs that is highlighted. But far from all voices are heard.
NEW RESEARCH | How small businesses can demonstrate the benefits of nature-based interventions
For small businesses offering nature-based interventions (NBI), legitimacy is a challenge. But a tool like Social Return on Investment (SROI) is useful for demonstrating the benefits of interventions, recent research shows.
BOOK TIP: New directions for innovation policy (open access)
What does it take to make new ideas actually work? And how can policy support innovation in a wise, inclusive and sustainable way? The book Innovations in Innovation Policy brings together experts in science, technology, innovation and policy to explore the future of innovation policy.
NEW RESEARCH | How industry succeeds with collaborative projects – 5 tips along the way
Industrial companies have a lot to gain from collaborative projects with universities. But success requires the right methods.
NEW RESEARCH | Small businesses pushed sex education – despite legal ban
For most of the 20th century, the contraceptive market in Sweden was surrounded by moral and political conflicts. Yet the market grew – and it was small businesses that fueled it, according to research at Umeå University.
NEW RESEARCH | Self-employed people feel better than employees – or do they?
There is a persistent belief that self-employed people are better off than employees. That they are freer, happier and more satisfied with their jobs. But is this true?
THE VIEW: Stop surrounding yourself with yes men – bubble jump!
We live in an age where we collect likes on what we already think and feel offended by opposition. But for entrepreneurs, simply cultivating their own beliefs is deadly. Too much belief and too little friction can cause even the most celebrated business idea to collapse, says researcher Emma Stenström, who advocates bubble jumping.
