Value co-creation: Enablers and risks during value proposition development : A case study in the IT industry

Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this study is to advance the understanding of what enablers and risks become evident in value co-creation and how they affect value proposition development. To fulfill this research purpose, the following research questions were derived: RQ1: What are the enablers that become evident during value co-creation in an IT context?, RQ2a: What are the risks that become evident during value co-creation in an IT context?, and RQ2b: How can IT service providers mitigate these risks during value proposition development? Method – The study is an exploratory inductive single case study of a specific business environment that revolves around related services in the IT industry. In total, six organizations and one expert, all of whom have knowledge of the situation of inquiry, participated in the study. The data collection was conducted in three different waves of semi-structured interviews. In total, 27 interviews were held, and results were derived using a combination of the Gioia analysis and thematic analysis. Findings – The findings from the study is a framework illustrating the enablers, risks, and mitigating actions in value co-creation during value proposition development. The most critical antecedent enablers are transparency, goal congruence, and customer involvement. The most prominent risks are organizational transformation, measuring instruments, and juridical. The most important actions are change management and continuous evaluation. Theoretical and practical implications – The study contributes with insights into the scarce literature on value co-creation and digital servitization by empirically clarifying the key aspects that orchestrate the value co-creation process. Our framework assists practitioners to better evaluate if they have the abilities required to conduct specific value co-creation activities. Limitations and future research – The study is limited by a single case study of a specific business environment by adopting a B2B perspective. Hence, future studies are recommended to extend and validate our findings in other industrial settings.