A conceptual model to design a collective intelligence system supporting technology entrepreneurship

In the last two decades, knowledge management has evolved through a number of different research fields and practitioner contexts. A recent development is represented by the concept of collective intelligence, as a new collaboration and socialization paradigm, thus including a relevant knowledge management component, aimed to find better solutions to human problems and societal challenges. Collective intelligence research aims to extend the methods and application fields of collective intelligence. The current world economic crisis is relevant socio-economic and cultural problem and it can be assumed to be an interesting field of analysis and a research context for experimenting approaches and systems leveraging collective intelligence. In such scenario, this paper presents a conceptual model of collective intelligence aimed to enhance the potential of a community to realize technology-based innovation and entrepreneurship processes, thus supporting the growth of regions and organizations. Based on a literature review and initial expert validation, a design science approach has been applied to define a new model and prototypal technology/service solutions aimed to enhance the creation and development of technology entrepreneurship initiatives. The main constituents of the model and the core services are presented along with a discussion of their role in entrepreneurship dynamics. A preliminary demonstration of the operationalization of the model is provided through illustrative scenarios focused on competence development and business development processes. The validation of the model and the service architecture has been preliminary done qualitatively based on domain experts whereas empirical validation represents the objective of future studies. The work can have implications at theory level, in terms of further development of the collective intelligence concept, and at practitioner level, with the proposal of a socio-technical system addressing a new generation of solutions and customer-driven services. The research was developed in the frame of a research project aimed to develop successful technology entrepreneurship ecosystems