Milan Innovation and Entrepreneurship Research Seminars (MInERS) – Second Meeting

MInERS is seminar series organized by a network of scholars located in Milan dedicated to promoting events, networking and research in the area of Innovation, Science and Entrepreneurship. As part of this initiative, we promote participation in the DEMS Economics Seminar, scheduled for 16 December 2024, 16:00, at University of Milan – Biccoca in building U6 room 29, in Piazza Ateneo Nuovo 1, 20126, Milan.

Keynote: Prof. Paola Criscuolo – Imperial College Business School, Head of the Management and Entrepreneurship Department. Paola has been an Associate Editor of Research Policy. She is currently a member of the Editorial Review Board of the Academy of Management Journal and of the Editorial Advisory Board of Industry and Innovation. She is also a member of the Aerospace Technology Institute (ATI) Markets and Economics Advisory Group.

Title: “Innovation in large organizations: the role of autonomy and bottom-up inventions”

Abstract: In this talk, Prof Criscuolo will delve into the critical role of autonomy and bottom-up inventions in driving creativity and innovation within large organizations. While existing research has shown that operational autonomy, or the freedom to determine how to approach a given problem, enhances employees’ creativity, this presentation will focus on a less-explored type of autonomy, namely strategic autonomy, or the freedom to decide which problems to tackle. Prof Criscuolo will present her prior work on “bootlegging”—the phenomenon where employees engage in unauthorized, underground, self-initiated innovation efforts. The positive spillovers effects of bootlegging on individual innovation performance found in this work will be juxtaposed with the findings from recent research examining problem formulation complexity of bottom-up inventions. Drawing on theories of creative problem-solving, Professor Criscuolo’s latest work leverages a unique dataset of invention disclosures from corporate inventors and the descriptions by inventors of the problem they try to tackle. The study hypothesizes and finds that bottom-up inventions exhibit lower problem formulation complexity than top-down inventions generated through structured R&D projects, where problems are predefined. This reduced complexity in problem formulation correlates with a lower likelihood of such inventions being considered for patent protection, underscoring potential limitations of employee-driven innovation in structured corporate settings. These two contributions advance our understanding of the nuanced role of autonomy in contributing to the innovative performance of large organizations, illuminating the advantages and trade-offs of operational and strategic autonomy.

A Q&A session is planned afterwards. Then, join us for a complimentary aperitivo organized by MInERS at at Farinami Bicocca (Piazza della Trivulziana, 5) from 18:00 post-seminar.

Please refer to our website for additional information

Who Should Participate?

We welcome expressions of interest from graduate students, postdoctoral researchers, early-career researchers, professors and professionals residing in Milan and its surrounding areas. Participants should have an interest in Science, Technology, Innovation and Entrepreneurship research.

Social Event Registration:

To express your interest in this initiative, please register in this link.

For organizational efficiency, registration is important: upon registration, you will receive an entry form to allow immediate access to the seminar premises on the day of the event. Please be aware that the complimentary aperitivo has limited space, available on a first-come, first-served basis, with registered seminar attendees receiving priority. To ensure your attendance, we highly recommend confirming your participation as early as possible. However, participation to the seminar remains possible also without registration and the aperitivo will be, in the worst case, at the participant’s cost.

For inquiries, please contact: behavior@youngscholarsinitiative.org

We look forward to your participation!

Key information:

Date: December 16th 2024

DEMS Economics Seminar Time: 16h CET, University of Milan – Biccoca, building U6 room 29. Piazza Ateneo Nuovo 1, 20126, Milan.

Social Event: 18h (post-seminar),

MInERS Commitee:

Stefano Baruffaldi – Polytechnic University of Milan
Marco Guerzoni – University of Milan – Bicocca
Gabriele Pellegrino – Catholic University of the Sacred Heart
Felix Poege – Bocconi University
Anita Quas – University of Milan – Statale
Daniel Souza – Polytechnic University of Milan