Network pictures and some environmental innovation initiatives

Anecdotal evidence available to the author suggested that whilst some apparently innovative firms launched environmental innovation initiatives, but most did not. There seemed to be something special about the enterprises that did launch such initiatives but there did not seem to be one dominant theme. It was noted that most enterprises chose to network with others having access to special knowledge or complementary assets in implementing their projects. The concept of some IMP group research of network pictures that moderate between networking and networking outcomes was adapted from a personal or organisation perspective to a project perspective, and this gave insights into influence factors in fourteen cases considered. A kind of scenario based on four factors of focus, weight, coherence and context could be enunciated drawing on four to six candidate project descriptors associated with each dimension to characterise each case. It is suggested that the enterprises studied used some kind of mental map like a network picture to decide on the relative importance of candidate projects, which combined with appropriate capabilities, delivered network outcomes. An interpretation of the nature of linkages between networking, network outcomes and network pictures is presented