Exploring inner source as a form of intra-organisational open innovation

Open Innovation, of which open source software (OSS) is a well-cited example, can be analysed at a number of levels, including the inter- and intra-organisational networking level. However, most research to date on open innovation has focussed on inter-firm level and inter-organisational networking, hence neglecting the implications that open innovation has 'within' the organisation. Inner source leverages key open source practices in order to decouple platform and products groups with respect to their release timing. Similar to open source development, inner source applies an open, concurrent model of collaboration and thus could be seen as a good exemplar of open innovation at the intra-organisational level. However there is a paucity of research exploring inner source as a form of open innovation within organisations. Additionally, there is limited research that has examined the influence of inner source development on the creation and management of internal networks. Using a case study approach, we seek to address this gap. The findings are analysed using a theoretical framework of three core open innovation processes as a lens to examine inner source as a form of open innovation inside a company.