Innovation Culture in a Business School: A Study Inspired by Practice Theory

Ricardo Pimentel
DOI: https://doi.org/10.21529/RECADM.2019003

Abstract

The paper aims to understand the meanings of innovation and how they constitute the intelligibility of the practice(s) that supports the innovation culture in a business school. The Schatzki's practice theory was adopted as an alternative to behavioral and individualistic approaches. The research adopted phenomenology as a method, participant observation and in-depth interviews as data collection strategies, and phenomenological semiotics as a method of analysis. The results show that the innovation meanings are constantly under construction and are crossed by contradictions. The apprehension of these contradictions broadens the understanding of those senses, allowing the access to the construction of the intelligibility of the practice(s) that sustain innovation. The theoretical contributions are: to extend the understanding of innovation as a practice; to question the notion of innovation culture; and a way to study the conditions in which innovation occurs. From a practical perspective, the study points out important elements in creating favorable conditions for innovation. In the studied organization, the results impacted on the Innovation Committee, which shifted the focus from analyzing the portfolio of existing products to creating a culture of innovation.

Keywords

innovation; innovation culture; practice theory

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