PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to frame innovation as a process of co‐creation according to a practice‐based view.Design/methodology/approachThe paper focuses on the innovation practices that occurred within the web contexts of ten companies. In accordance with netnography research, data include preliminary studies of the web‐based context, naturalistic observations of the community and the activities of its members, and direct interactions with the members of the innovating community.FindingsThis work proposes the integration of innovation, practice and the emerging co‐creation research. The paper develops the five “Co‐s” model including: co‐ideation, co‐valuation, co‐design, co‐test and co‐launch. Each “Co‐“ represents a phase of the innovation process resulting from dynamic and on‐going interactions among resources, actions, and a group of actors who are interrelated via a dense network. Within each “Co‐“, the authors identify practices and elements of practices.Practical implicationsA firm's managers should influence co‐creation opportunities by contributing to script practices. These managers should be able to consider more clearly the full options of co‐creation activities and be involved in designing and responding to co‐creation initiatives. They should also understand that each phase could provide an opportunity for collaboration that enhances the value of co‐creation. In this manner, managers could orchestrate multiple resources (e.g., actors, actions tools and output language).Originality/valueThis work brings innovation into the realm of practice by moving the focus from the outcome to the process –, i.e. from innovation as a new artefact to the act of innovating. In this context, innovating is the system of on‐going co‐creation practices performed by people who merge knowledge, actions, tools, languages and artefacts to create something new and better. In this view, innovators are carriers of practices.

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to analyse innovation in the light of service‐dominant (S‐D) logic and service science as a value‐creating process occurring through a many‐to‐many network resource integration.Design/methodology/approachThe paper utilises S‐D logic and network theory to present case study research of a highly innovative Italian firm. The study investigates three innovation projects and the processes of interaction and integration that take place among the members of the networks involved in each project.FindingsThe traditional understanding of innovation, in which the supplier is the innovator and the customer is the recipient of (or perhaps the stimulus for) innovation, is replaced by an understanding of innovation based on S‐D logic in which customers and other stakeholders become real co‐innovators who exchange and integrate resources to co‐create value.Research limitations/implicationsFuture studies could examine the antecedents and implications of the interaction and integration processes of collaborative innovation.Practical implicationsInnovation should be pursued as an open process in which all of the network's actors mobilise resources to become co‐innovators who co‐create value for themselves and other stakeholders.Originality/valueThis paper offers a widened perspective of innovation by using S‐D logic to emphasise the role of the network and the many‐to‐many interaction between stakeholders in developing value‐creating innovation.

PurposeLoneliness and isolation are on the rise, globally threatening the well-being across age groups; global social distancing measures during the COVID-19 crisis have intensified this so-called “loneliness virus”. The purpose of this paper is to develop an integrative framework and research agenda on the role of companion robots in mitigating feelings of loneliness.Design/methodology/approachA netnographic analysis of 595 online visual and textual descriptions offer empirical insights about the role of the companion robot Vector during the COVID-19 pandemic.FindingsThe contributions of this study are twofold. First, it postulates that companion robots have the potential of mitigating feelings of loneliness (i.e. indicator of well-being). Second, this study contributes to transformative service by developing an integrative framework introducing the roles (personal assistant, relational peer and intimate buddy) that companion robots can fulfill to mitigate feelings of loneliness through building different types of supportive relationships.Research limitations/implicationsThe proposed research agenda encourages future service scholars to investigate 1) the role of robots in addressing loneliness, 2) design features that drive adoption of robots, 3) social support for different groups, 4) the operationalization and the measurement of loneliness and 5) an impact analysis of companion robots.Practical implicationsService providers and policy makers can leverage the insights about how companion robots can help reduce a sense of loneliness.Originality/valueThe integrative framework on loneliness reduction, based on 595 unprompted online contributions issued during the COVID-19 pandemic, offers initial evidence for the impact of companion robots in reducing people's feelings of loneliness.

Purpose -The purpose of this paper is to focus on Temporary Shops, a recent communication and distribution innovation used by firms in order to improve interaction with customers and to reinforce brand loyalty and equity. The main aim of the study is to frame the Temporary Shops phenomenon in Italy and to analyze its value co-creation potential. Design/methodology/approach -The DART model proposed by Prahalad and Ramaswamy has been chosen as the theoretical framework for understanding the Temporary Shops phenomenon. The authors investigate the process of value co-creation inside the Temporary Shops through its four key building blocks, namely, dialogue, access, risk/benefits and transparency. Through a multiple-case study, the authors study in-depth evidence from five leading firms that represent the main Temporary Shops in Italy over the last two years. Findings -Temporary Shops provide a locus of value co-creation in which the interactive and experiential relationship between the firm and the customer is engaged and value co-creation emerges.Research limitations/implications -There are two main limitations: this study is exploratory and analyzes co-creation only from the company perspective. Further studies may widen the unit of analysis from firm to customer's network and thus provide further insights about antecedents and implications of the interaction in a multi-sensory context. Originality/value -The work contributes to understanding the role of experiential environment in value co-creation processes, as well as analyzing the contribution of a new distribution phenomenon with respect to co-creation through the application of the DART model.

This work focuses on corporate social responsibility (CSR) disclosure practices of multinational corporations.\ud Based on a longitudinal study of CSR reports of companies operating in the automotive industry, the paper\ud offers a detailed study of how disclosure practices are changing and which principles and approaches influence\ud and drive the development of such disclosure. Based on a four-year report-based study, the findings enable us to\ud identify three main trends in the CSR disclosure strategy of automotive firms. First, in line with the mainstream CSR\ud literature, the present study confirms the trend towards the increasing environmental and social accountability. Second, it adds evidence to the emerging debate regarding the harmonization and standardization of reporting and discusses this aspect by mentioning the standards as exerting some normative pressures within the sector. Finally, it\ud provides evidence on specific links emerging between issues and actors. The implications of this evidence contribute\ud to opening up the debate on CSR disclosure to the possibility of combining the institutional lens with a strategic approach that captures the materiality considerations of CSR disclosure