San Francisco Seminar 2006
Day 3
Open innovation, entrepreneurship and commercialization
Introduction and context
The third day of the seminar shifted the focus from internal innovation processes to open innovation models and entrepreneurial value creation. Through the presentations of Henry Chesbrough, Jerome Engel and Erik Willums, participants gained insight into how ideas, knowledge and capital flow in the ecosystem around Silicon Valley – and how this interaction enables continuous innovation.
Where days 1 and 2 were about innovation culture, technology and customer insight, day 3 was about how innovations actually turn into businesses, and how companies must learn to share, collaborate and build partnerships to succeed.
Program overview
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Day 3 – Monday, March 15, 2006
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Henry Chesbrough – Open Innovation – Principles and Practices
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Jerome Engel – Technology Entrepreneurship – Implementing Innovation through Entrepreneurial Teams
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Panel discussion – Erik Willums and others – Venture Capital, Commercialization and Global Growth
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Main academic topics
Open innovation – a paradigm shift
Henry Chesbrough, University of California, Berkeley, introduced the concept of Open Innovation as a fundamental break with the traditional “closed” innovation model. He described how companies previously kept the entire R&D process within their own walls, while modern innovation requires an open interaction between internal and external resources.
The core of Chesbrough's message was that good ideas can come from outside, and that value creation happens in ecosystems, not just in individual companies. He also pointed to the need to manage intellectual property strategically – not just as protection, but as a currency in collaboration.
Engel presented cases of student- and researcher-initiated projects that had developed into viable businesses. The key factor was the combination of academic insight, capital and business savvy – a triad that later inspired many European innovation programs.
Technology-based entrepreneurship – from idea to market
Jerome Engel, director of the Lester Center for Entrepreneurship at UC Berkeley, presented a practical approach to how technological innovations are commercialized through interdisciplinary teams.
He showed how entrepreneurship is a social phenomenon – not just a result of the talent of individuals, but of an environment that allows for experimentation, rapid iterations, and learning through mistakes.
Engel described “entrepreneurial teams” as the most important building block of the Silicon Valley ecosystem:
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They connect technology, market and capital.
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They act quickly, but with analytical discipline.
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They look beyond the product – and build scalable business models.
Venture capital and commercialization
The following panel discussion included Erik Willums, who drew lines between the experiences from Silicon Valley and the Nordic innovation model. He emphasized the difference in the role of capital – where American investors contribute more as active partners in development and strategy, not just as financial owners.
The discussion addressed the dilemma between rapid growth and sustainable development, and how commercialization can occur without losing control of the idea.
Case studies
Open Innovation in practice
Through several examples, Chesbrough showed how companies such as IBM, Intel, and Procter & Gamble use open innovation processes to accelerate product development.
Feeva (Banga)
A concrete example of early-stage innovation, where they tried to commercialize technology in WiFi and personalization of digital communication. Feeva illustrated how business model and technology must evolve in tandem, and how market maturity is crucial for success.
Entrepreneurship at UC Berkeley
Engel presented cases of student- and researcher-initiated projects that had developed into viable businesses. The key factor was the combination of academic insight, capital and business savvy – a triad that later inspired many European innovation programs.
Reflections and discussion:
The day was marked by an open discussion about how Norway and the Nordic region can learn from Silicon Valley without losing their own culture of trust and community. Several pointed out that open innovation in the Norwegian context must be built on collaboration and knowledge sharing rather than aggressive competition.
At the same time, it became clear that Norwegian companies must become more comfortable with risk and experimentation, and that closer connections are needed between academia, business and investors.
International perspectives
The seminar showed how innovation systems vary culturally. In the US, initiative and pace are rewarded, while Europe and the Nordics value quality and process. Both approaches have value – but in the digital economy, a hybrid model is required, integrating learning, openness and access to capital.
Engel summarized this as:
"Innovation thrives where ideas meet investors and institutions that believe in change."
What did we take home with us?
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Open innovation requires trust and clear agreements about ownership and sharing.
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Entrepreneurship is a team sport, not a solo race.
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Capital must understand the idea – not just the accounting.
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Innovation policy should build bridges between research, markets and capital.
Relevance today
Two decades later, Open Innovation has become a central part of industrial policy in both the EU and Norway.
Concepts such as innovation ecosystems, co-creation, and venture collaboration still reflect Chesbrough and Engel's thoughts.
At the same time, digitalization has made open innovation both an opportunity and a challenge – where data sharing and collaboration across sectors become crucial for sustainable value creation.
Peder Inge Furseth
Peder Inge Furseth was a central academic driving force behind the San Francisco seminars and helped make the meeting with Silicon Valley relevant for Norwegian and European businesses. Through his role as professor at BI and as academic director of the program, he helped the participants put the lectures into a larger context – where technology, innovation, business development and people had to be seen in context.
In San Francisco, participants met entrepreneurs, researchers, technology leaders and investors from some of the world's most innovative environments. Furseth's strength was his ability to connect these experiences to practical challenges and opportunities in Norwegian businesses. He helped translate Silicon Valley's ideas and working methods into a Nordic context where collaboration, trust and long-term value creation are strong.
Throughout the entire seminar series, he was an important bridge builder between research, business and technology. For many participants, he therefore became more than a professional leader – he also became a mentor who inspired new thinking about innovation, digitalization and commercialization.
Read more about Peder Inge Furseth here
From studies and seminars to today's professional universe
The studies, seminars and field trips documented on this page are part of the knowledge base behind The Invisible Capital. Topics such as customers, technology, innovation, digitalization and value creation have followed developments over several decades – but the disciplines have also continued to develop.
At The Invisible Capital, we are therefore continuing to work on these questions in our own subject series. Here, we connect previous theory, research and experiences with newer knowledge, new technologies and today's challenges for people and businesses.
Innovation
Innovation is not just about new ideas. Value is created when knowledge, technology and ideas are developed into products, services, processes, organizational forms and business models that are actually used. The series on innovation goes from Schumpeter to modern innovation research and covers, among other things, incremental, radical, disruptive, open and user-driven innovation.
→ Explore the Innovation Series
The customer
The customer is not just the recipient of what the business produces. In a competitive market, the customer is a crucial determinant of whether the business actually succeeds in creating value. The series about the customer goes deeper into customer orientation, customer insight, customer experience, satisfaction, loyalty, trust and the encounter between people.
→ Read the customer series
Value creation
What does it really mean to create value – and who creates it? The series on value creation moves from economic theory and key researchers to a broader understanding of how people, expertise, institutions, businesses and the public sector contribute to value creation.
→ Read the series on value creation
Digitization
Digitalization has evolved from stand-alone technologies to a fundamental part of how businesses work and create value. The Digitalization from A–Z series follows developments through internet, web, e-commerce, search, UX, social, mobile, omnichannel, cloud, data, platforms and digital transformation – up to today’s AI First developments.
→ Read the series Digitization from A–Z
Artificial intelligence
Artificial intelligence represents the next chapter in digital evolution. In our own AI universe, we investigate how artificial intelligence works, how AI finds and uses information, how it evaluates sources and websites, and what the development can mean for people, businesses, and value creation.
→ Go to the articles about artificial intelligence
Recommended literature
How Breakthroughs Happen
Henry Chesbrough introduced the concept of “Open Innovation” and showed how modern innovation is created through collaboration, knowledge sharing and open ecosystems. The book explains why businesses must collaborate with partners, entrepreneurs, customers and research communities to succeed with continuous innovation in a digital and global economy.
