Incorporating potential customers into innovation work (User Integration)

Duration: 01.03.2008 - 28.02.2011

Fostering Sustainable Consumption by Integrating Users into Sustainability Innovations (User Integration)

Background
Sustainability innovations such as passive houses or vehicles with environmentally-friendly propulsion systems generally constitute niche products in their respective markets. 'User integration' could enhance awareness of such products and increase their acceptance among a broader public. This is the starting point of and fundamental idea behind the User Integration research project.
The term 'user integration' means including future customers and users in the innovation process on a targeted basis - from the initial idea all the way to the innovation's introduction and diffusion in the marketplace. Incorporating potential customers into the planning and development of innovative, sustainable products and services offers a number of advantages: Asking future users about their needs and taking these needs and the costumer circles that will eventually use the particular innovation into consideration at an early stage increases the likelihood that the final product will be accepted and successfully spread in the marketplace. Additionally, using this approach also makes it possible to ascertain the social-ecological effects of sustainable consumption at an early point in time.

 

Project aims
The practical aim of the User Integration project is to generate know-how and, on the basis of this, develop concrete recommendations for how enterprises can productively integrate users into various phases of the sustainability innovation process (At what point? Which users? How?). These recommendations will subsequently flow into the successful development and marketing of sustainable products and services and make a contribution toward achieving sustainable consumption.

Project management
Professor Dr Frank-Martin Belz
Technical University of Munich
Chair for Business Administration, Brewery and Food Industry Management
Alte Akademie 14
85354 Freising-Weihenstephan, GERMANY
Tel: +49 (0) 8161 713279
E-Mail: Frank.Belz(at)wi.tum.de

Research partners
Technical University of Munich, Chair for Business Administration, Brewery and Food Industry Management: Professor Dr Frank-Martin Belz, Dr Marlen Arnold, Dipl.-Oec. Marc Requardt, Dipl.-Kulturwirtin Sunita Ramakrishnan
Technical University of Munich, Chair of Psychology: Professor Dr Hugo Kehr, Dr Stefan Engeser, Dipl.-Psych. Susanne Steiner
Technical University of Munich, Gender Studies in Science and Engineering: Professor Dr Susanne Ihsen, Dipl.-Päd. Sabrina Gebauer
Technical University of Munich, Chair for Raw Materials and Energy Technology: Professor Dr Martin Faulstich, PD Dr Gabriele Weber-Blaschke, Dipl.-Ing. Henriette Cornet
Technical University Berlin, Business and Employment Studies: Professor Dr Ulf Schrader, Dipl.-Psych. Benjamin Diehl
University of Oldenburg, Department of Ecological Economics: Professor Dr Bernd Siebenhüner, Dipl.-Soz. David Sichert
Munich Institute for Social and Sustainability Research: Dr Cordula Kropp, Dipl.-Soz. Gerald Beck
School of Economics, National Consumer Research Centre, Helsinki: Dr Eva Heiskanen, Dr Päivi Timonen

Field partners
81fünf high-tech & holzbau AG
Gundlach
Andechser Molkerei (Andechser Dairy)
Bernbacher
Natura Packaging
Rhein-Main-Verkehrsverbund (RMV) (Rhine-Main public transport system)
Münchner Verkehrs- und Tarifverbund GmbH (MVV) (Munich public transport system)

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