Drivers and inhibitors to value creation: A case study

A value network refers to a collection of interdependent firms that contribute to the creation of holistic value by producing components and sub-systems that come together to form a holistic technological system. Over time, the value created by the network is enhanced as specialized firms continuously improve the performance of their focal technologies. In this paper, we endeavor to understand the drivers of value network change, firstly by determining the types of factors that constrain the creation of value (both endogenous and exogenous to the network). To this end, we undertake a review of the literature and in turn conduct an illustrative case study to analyze the drivers and inhibitors to value creation in such networks. Our results show that technological imbalances among systemic components form prominent endogenous drivers of change, while changing demographics and customer preferences, introduction of new government regulations, and the advent of new technological innovations in other value networks form prominent exogenous change factors. We subsequently elaborate on the managerial implications of our findings for firms which are positioned in value networks.