The 2nd International Conference on Innovation Studies (ICIS2017) was held at Tsinghua University School of Economics and Management (Tsinghua SEM) on June 24-26, 2017. This conference is hosted by the Research Center for Technological Innovation, Tsinghua University.

The 2nd International Conference on Innovation Studies

The first day is the Academy of Open and User Innovation, chaired by Professor Eric von Hippel from the MIT Sloan School of Management. Prof. Eric von Hippel is specializing in the nature and economics of distributed and open innovation and is best known for his work in developing the concept of user innovation. In this academy, Prof. von Hippel introduced 9 Nationally-representative household innovation surveys. It studied the free innovation by consumers’ works without compensated transactions. Prof. von Hippel emphasized that increasingly, individuals - alone or in voluntary collaborations - can create what they want for themselves - and can share or sell what they create.

Professor Eric von Hippel

In the academy, Professor CHEN Jin, Director of the Research Center for Technological Innovation, Tsinghua University, introduced user innovation in China. He summarized the characteristics of technicians as lead users: they are highly skilled, have long time on hands-on working experience, innovate usually when confronted with emergent technical problems, taking apprenticeship as the major way for innovation diffusion, and usually realize industrialization before commercialization.

Professor CHEN Jin, Director of the Research Center for Technological Innovation, Tsinghua University

Group photo

In the following days, several prominent scholars shared their opinions on innovation studies. Prof. Jonathan D. Linton, Chair for Operations and Technology Management of the University of Sheffield, defined Emerging Technology Supply Chains (ETSC) and identified key issues and questions in various fields of study that are needed to provide a fundamental understanding of ETSCs. Prof. LEE Kong-Rae introduced his findings on characteristics of convergence. Prof. Magnus Karlsson, the chairman and expert of Swedish SIS/TK 532, introduced the international standardization ISO/TC 279 “Innovation Management”.

(Source: Research Center for Technological Innovation, Tsinghua University)