Exnovation in Manufacturing: Revealing the Hidden Agent of Change (Ex-Man)
Name of applicant
Kurt Martin Kalthaus
Title
Associate Professor
Institution
University of Southern Denmark
Amount
DKK 6,952,000
Year
2024
Type of grant
Semper Ardens: Accelerate
What?
In the wake of our current transformations, focus is usually on introducing new solutions and hardly on how to phase out existing old solutions. The Ex-Man project focuses on this exnovation process, the removal of outdated practices, technologies, or products to allow new ones to flourish. It explores the internal and external factors that allow exnovation and how exnovation influences firms.
Why?
Holding onto outdated solutions, such as communication via fax machines, is a widespread phenomenon and can hinder progress and reduce competitiveness of firms. How to manage and strategically conduct exnovation is not understood, limiting firms’ success and putting ongoing transformations at risk, since new solutions that address current issues are not or late implemented by firms.
How?
The project develops a theoretical model of exnovation and substantiates it with empirical insights. Case studies in the Danish, German, and Slovenian manufacturing sector will provide detailed insides on exnovation practice and nation-wide surveys in these countries will provide quantitative assessments and allow to analyze the influence of exnovation on firms' innovative activities and success.