The use of foresight information in small and medium-sized enterprises - the role of intermediary organisations

Abstract

In order to successfully compete in the market, firms have to keep track of the changes in the operational environment and use this information in their innovation processes. Future-oriented information is gathered by various agents, but firms still struggle to find relevant information and transform it into profitable businesses and innovations. Intermediary organisations play an important role in the interfacing of knowledge producers and knowledge exploiters. This paper studies the role of intermediary organisations in promoting the use of foresight information in small and medium-sized enterprises. A qualitative case study approach is used. The study emphasises the importance of interpreting foresight information through communicative processes and combines these ideas at the system level, providing new insights not only on the theoretical level but also for developing the innovation policy practice.