MERITS OF COLLABORATION WITH POTENTIAL AND CURRENT USERS IN CREATIVE PROBLEM-SOLVING

Identifying shifts in the needs and behavior of social systems and markets depicts promising new market opportunities for creative organizations. Potential users might be adept in reflecting those shifts and irregularities in collaboration due to their outsider perspective. This paper is a systematic inquiry into the unique contribution of potential users and its embodiment in communication in co-creation activities. Following the principles of grounded theory, contributions and strategies of potential users are contrasted with those of current users within varying dyadic compositions. Tentative propositions pertaining to the merits and limitations of collaboration with potential users and with regard to emergences in varying dyadic compositions are derived. The resulting core category "enriched compensation and improvisation" shows that potential users' contributions unintentionally pervade the collaboration with social, cultural and emotional values, which can be regarded as problem finding as opposed to problem solving creativity. Their willingness to improvise leads to a series of ad-hoc changes to initial ideas which foster transformation when combined. Collaboration with potential users therefore depicts ways to leverage technological competences and shape promising new market opportunities.