The effect of competition amongst student organisations on the generation of innovative offerings and services : an explorative study

Abstract

The relationship between innovation and competition has long been discussed, but very limited attention has been given to these two factors in relation to not-for-profit organisations. This research study explored the effect of competition on the innovative activity amongst not-forprofit student organisations at the University of Malta, with the aim of answering the following research questions: 1. How do student organisations generate innovative offerings? 2. To what extent do elements of competition drive student organisations to be more active in the generation of innovative offerings and services? The sample identified for this research study was selected by means of purposive sampling and was composed of the organisations that submitted a Room Allocation Report (RAR) to the University Students Council in 2017. The top two, middle two and bottom two organisations were forwarded an information letter in order to be recruited to participate. The data was collected through the means of twelve interviews, six observations and the analysis of the RARs of each participating organisation. Before the commencement of the data collection methods, this research study, together with the interview questions had to be accepted by the Research Ethics Committee. Following this, the data collected was analysed through the use of a thematic analysis were themes and similar findings were grouped and presented in a clear manner. Findings emerging from the study indicated the way the associations generate innovative offerings is through the informal use of a type of Innovation Process Model similar to that of Tidd and Bessant (2009). This model is composed of four phases that cover the steps from the generation of an idea to the implementation and evaluation of that same idea. When unfolding the elements of competition amongst these associations, the findings suggested that five factors encourage innovative activity. These factors are lack of resources, fear of substitute initiatives, competition towards the same goal, fear of being overpowered by others, and finally, internal competition. All but one of these factors fall within the forces of Porter’s Five Forces Model (1979). Through the methodology that was adopted during this study, the research questions were adequately addressed and answered fully. This study indicated that competition does in fact encourage innovative activity amongst student organisations in a number of ways.