Analyzing the impact of industry sectors on the composition of business ecosystem: A combined approach using ARM and DEMATEL

Abstract The study proposes a new approach to analyze the impact of industry sectors on the composition of business ecosystems from an industry-wide perspective based on data on strategic alliances and joint ventures. In this study, ARM (association rule mining) is adopted as a basis to construct an inter-industry knowledge flow matrix that represents interactions among industry sectors involved in inter-firm relationships, and the DEMATEL (decision-making trial and evaluation laboratory) technique is used to determine the specific characteristics of the resulting inter-industry interactions, such as impact and cause-effect relationships. Moreover, centrality-based indicators are introduced to categorize the specific roles of industry sectors by means of social network analysis. The approach is a good complement to the patent-dominated methodological tools to analyzing interdisciplinary convergence trends and exploring the structure of overall business ecosystem. Additionally, it will help policy makers to develop effective policies for maintaining balanced resource flows across sectors and for developing sustainable ecosystem structure.

[1]  Hemant Merchant,et al.  Configurations of Governance Structure, Generic Strategy, and Firm Size: Opening the Black Box of Value Creation In International Joint Ventures , 2014 .

[2]  Justin Zhijun Zhan,et al.  Extracting recent weighted-based patterns from uncertain temporal databases , 2017, Eng. Appl. Artif. Intell..

[3]  Rahul C. Basole,et al.  Value Transformation in the Mobile Service Ecosystem: A Study of App Store Emergence and Growth , 2012 .

[4]  J. Hagedoorn.  Inter-firm R&D partnerships: an overview of major trends and patterns since 1960 , 2002 .

[5]  Chao Lu,et al.  Business ecosystem and stakeholders' role transformation: Evidence from Chinese emerging electric vehicle industry , 2014, Expert Syst. Appl..

[6]  E. Todeva,et al.  Strategic Alliances and Models of Collaboration , 2005 .

[7]  Yu-Cheng Lee,et al.  Analysis of adopting an integrated decision making trial and evaluation laboratory on a technology acceptance model , 2010, Expert Syst. Appl..

[8]  Maria Bengtsson,et al.  The competition–cooperation paradox in inter-firm relationships: A conceptual framework , 2016 .

[9]  Chin-Tsai Lin,et al.  Selecting the preferable bancassurance alliance strategic by using expert group decision technique , 2009, Expert Syst. Appl..

[10]  Phillip Bonacich,et al.  Some unique properties of eigenvector centrality , 2007, Soc. Networks.

[11]  P. Hertog.  KNOWLEDGE-INTENSIVE BUSINESS SERVICES AS CO-PRODUCERS OF INNOVATION , 2000 .

[12]  O. Gassmann,et al.  Open R&D and Open Innovation: Exploring the Phenomenon , 2009 .

[13]  Chinho Lin,et al.  The alliance innovation performance of R&D alliances—the absorptive capacity perspective , 2012 .

[14]  Huilong Duan,et al.  Mining association rules to support resource allocation in business process management , 2011, Expert Syst. Appl..

[15]  J. M. Geringer,et al.  Strategic Determinants of Partner Selection Criteria in International Joint Ventures , 1991 .

[16]  Brian S. Silverman,et al.  Alliance-Based Competitive Dynamics , 2002 .

[17]  J. Leker,et al.  Anticipating converging industries using publicly available data , 2010 .

[18]  T. Das,et al.  Trust, Control, and Risk in Strategic Alliances: An Integrated Framework , 2001 .

[19]  Bala Iyer,et al.  Managing in a “Small World Ecosystem”: Lessons from the Software Sector , 2006 .

[20]  Pedro López-Sáez,et al.  Directions of external knowledge search: investigating their different impact on firm performance in high-technology industries , 2014, J. Knowl. Manag..

[21]  F. Swierczek,et al.  Learning and its impact on the performance of manufacturing joint ventures in developing countries , 2004 .

[22]  Mike Wright,et al.  Creating value in ecosystems: Crossing the chasm between knowledge and business ecosystems , 2014 .

[23]  Wonjoon Kim,et al.  Identifying the structure of knowledge networks in the US mobile ecosystems: patent citation analysis , 2016, Technol. Anal. Strateg. Manag..

[24]  Rahul C. Basole,et al.  Visual decision support for business ecosystem analysis , 2016, Expert Syst. Appl..

[25]  Nicholas S. Vonortas,et al.  Strategic technology alliances and networks , 2015 .

[26]  L. Camarinha-Matos,et al.  Performance indicators for collaborative business ecosystems — Literature review and trends , 2017 .

[27]  Rahul C. Basole,et al.  Coopetition and convergence in the ICT ecosystem , 2015 .

[28]  Wei-Wen Wu,et al.  Choosing knowledge management strategies by using a combined ANP and DEMATEL approach , 2008, Expert Syst. Appl..

[29]  Michele Costabile,et al.  Coopetition dynamics in convergent industries: designing scope connections to combine heterogeneous resources , 2010 .

[30]  Janghyeok Yoon,et al.  Application technology opportunity discovery from technology portfolios: Use of patent classification and collaborative filtering , 2017 .

[31]  Janghyeok Yoon,et al.  Assessing coreness and intermediarity of technology sectors using patent co-classification analysis: the case of Korean national R&D , 2013, Scientometrics.

[32]  K. R. Harrigan.  Joint ventures and competitive strategy , 1988 .

[33]  James F. Moore.  The Death of Competition: Leadership and Strategy in the Age of Business Ecosystems , 1996 .

[34]  Doyeon Kim,et al.  Analyzing technology impact networks for R&D planning using patents: combined application of network approaches , 2014, Scientometrics.

[35]  Fionn Murtagh,et al.  Weighted Association Rule Mining using weighted support and significance framework , 2003, KDD '03.

[36]  Witold Pedrycz,et al.  Soft set based association rule mining , 2016, Knowl. Based Syst..

[37]  John Qi Dong,et al.  Information technology and organizational learning in knowledge alliances and networks: Evidence from U.S. pharmaceutical industry , 2015, Inf. Manag..

[38]  M. Porter,et al.  UK Competitiveness: moving to the next stage , 2003 .

[39]  Wei-Wen Wu,et al.  Developing global managers' competencies using the fuzzy DEMATEL method , 2007, Expert Syst. Appl..

[40]  Kwangsoo Kim,et al.  An analysis of property-function based patent networks for strategic R&D planning in fast-moving industries: The case of silicon-based thin film solar cells , 2012, Expert Syst. Appl..

[41]  Tzyy-Ching Yang,et al.  Comparison of product bundling strategies on different online shopping behaviors , 2006, Electron. Commer. Res. Appl..

[42]  Adil Baykasoglu,et al.  An analysis of DEMATEL approaches for criteria interaction handling within ANP , 2016, Expert Syst. Appl..

[43]  B. Kogut.  Joint ventures: Theoretical and empirical perspectives , 1988 .

[44]  Rahul C. Basole,et al.  Complexity of service value networks: Conceptualization and empirical investigation , 2008, IBM Syst. J..

[45]  Qiang Yang,et al.  Mining high utility itemsets , 2003, Third IEEE International Conference on Data Mining.

[46]  Wen-Shiung Lee,et al.  Analysis of decision making factors for equity investment by DEMATEL and Analytic Network Process , 2011, Expert Syst. Appl..

[47]  D. Teece.  Explicating dynamic capabilities: the nature and microfoundations of (sustainable) enterprise performance , 2007 .

[48]  J. Leker,et al.  Patent indicators for monitoring convergence - examples from NFF and ICT , 2011 .

[49]  J. Hagedoorn.  Understanding the rationale of strategic technology partnering: Nterorganizational modes of cooperation and sectoral differences , 1993 .

[50]  Carson Kai-Sang Leung,et al.  Constrained frequent itemset mining from uncertain data streams , 2010, 2010 IEEE 26th International Conference on Data Engineering Workshops (ICDEW 2010).

[51]  Duen-Ren Liu,et al.  Discovering competitive intelligence by mining changes in patent trends , 2010, Expert Syst. Appl..

[52]  Tzung-Pei Hong,et al.  Efficient algorithms for mining high-utility itemsets in uncertain databases , 2016, Knowl. Based Syst..

[53]  D C Torney,et al.  Discovery of association rules in medical data , 2001, Medical informatics and the Internet in medicine.

[54]  Chaoqun Ma,et al.  Knowledge complementarity, knowledge absorption effectiveness, and new product performance: The exploration of international joint ventures in China , 2013 .

[55]  Jin-Su Kang,et al.  Using DEMATEL method to explore the core competences and causal effect of the IC design service company: An empirical case study , 2011, Expert Syst. Appl..

[56]  M. Hitt,et al.  Alliance Management as a Source of Competitive Advantage , 2002 .

[57]  J. Ledolter.  Data Mining and Business Analytics with R , 2013 .

[58]  Wonjoon Kim,et al.  Dynamic patterns of technological convergence in printed electronics technologies: patent citation network , 2013, Scientometrics.

[59]  J. Leker,et al.  The Front End of Innovation in an Era of Industry Convergence: Evidence from Nutraceuticals and Functional Foods , 2006 .

[60]  Wonchul Seo.  Analyzing Causality of Technological Knowledge Spillovers: Patent Analysis Approach☆ , 2015 .

[61]  Stanley Wasserman,et al.  Social Network Analysis: Methods and Applications , 1994 .

[62]  Marco Iansiti,et al.  The Keystone Advantage: What the New Dynamics of Business Ecosystems Mean for Strategy, Innovation, and Sustainability , 2004 .

[63]  Li Xiu,et al.  Application of data mining techniques in customer relationship management: A literature review and classification , 2009, Expert Syst. Appl..

[64]  Cynthia M. Lakon,et al.  How Correlated Are Network Centrality Measures? , 2008, Connections.

[65]  R. Narula,et al.  Innovating through strategic alliances: moving towards international partnerships and contractual agreements , 1999 .

[66]  Arvind Parkhe,et al.  Orchestrating Innovation Networks , 2006 .

[67]  L. Freeman.  Centrality in social networks conceptual clarification , 1978 .

[68]  Namuk Ko,et al.  Analyzing interdisciplinarity of technology fusion using knowledge flows of patents , 2014, Expert Syst. Appl..

[69]  Tzung-Pei Hong,et al.  An effective tree structure for mining high utility itemsets , 2011, Expert Syst. Appl..

[70]  T. Das,et al.  A Resource-Based Theory of Strategic Alliances , 2000 .

[71]  Jens Leker,et al.  Anticipation of converging technology areas — A refined approach for the identification of attractive fields of innovation , 2017 .

[72]  Sungjoo Lee,et al.  Identifying and evaluating strategic partners for collaborative R&D: Index-based approach using patents and publications , 2013 .

[73]  Eric W. K. Tsang.  Acquiring Knowledge by Foreign Partners from International Joint Ventures in a Transition Economy: Learning-by-Doing and Learning Myopia , 2002 .

[74]  Gaël Gueguen,et al.  Coopetition and business ecosystems in the information technology sector: the example of Intelligent Mobile Terminals , 2009 .

[75]  Kwang-Il Ahn,et al.  Effective product assignment based on association rule mining in retail , 2012, Expert Syst. Appl..

[76]  Gwo-Hshiung Tzeng,et al.  Evaluating intertwined effects in e-learning programs: A novel hybrid MCDM model based on factor analysis and DEMATEL , 2007, Expert Syst. Appl..

[77]  C. Ordonez,et al.  Constraining and summarizing association rules in medical data , 2006 .

[78]  Rahul C. Basole.  Visualization of interfirm relations in a converging mobile ecosystem , 2008, 2008 7th International Conference on Mobile Business.

[79]  Hakyeon Lee,et al.  An ANP-based technology network for identification of core technologies: A case of telecommunication technologies , 2009, Expert Syst. Appl..

[80]  T. Khanna,et al.  Do Firms Learn to Create Value? The Case of Alliances , 2000 .

[81]  Wann-Yih Wu,et al.  The analytic network process for partner selection criteria in strategic alliances , 2009, Expert Syst. Appl..

[82]  Kwangsoo Kim,et al.  Using function-based patent analysis to identify potential application areas of technology for technology transfer , 2013, Expert Syst. Appl..

[83]  R. Kapoor,et al.  Coordinating and competing in ecosystems: How organizational forms shape new technology investments , 2013 .

[84]  James Nga-Kwok Liu,et al.  Application of decision-making techniques in supplier selection: A systematic review of literature , 2013, Expert Syst. Appl..

[85]  Frans Coenen,et al.  A new method for mining Frequent Weighted Itemsets based on WIT-trees , 2013, Expert Syst. Appl..

[86]  Haibin Yang,et al.  Exploration or exploitation? Small firms' alliance strategies with large firms , 2014 .

[87]  Yongtae Park,et al.  Identification of technological knowledge intermediaries , 2010, Scientometrics.