External venturing in the Dutch aviation industry

External venturing in the Dutch aviation industry

Bolomey, Bas (TU Delft Technology, Policy and Management)

Hartmann, Dap (mentor)
Curran, Richard (graduation committee)
Willems, M.E. (graduation committee)
Bosgraaf, R. (graduation committee)
van Geenhuizen, Marina (graduation committee)

Delft University of Technology

2017-10-13

Startups are a major source of innovation and are capable of doing things where larger firms are not capable of. Many corporates are therefore looking at opportunities to collaborate with startups, also called external venturing, and to capture their value. Although working with startups has many benefits and great opportunities for corporates, it is currently not part of Fokker Services’ innovation strategy, and therefore the objective of this study was to determine the first steps for Fokker Services to start with external venturing. However, Fokker Services is mainly active in the commercial aviation industry, and this industry differs from non-aviation industries in many ways. Therefore it has been decided that it was required first to determine how external venturing should be done in the (Dutch) aviation industry specifically. The answer to this question, which has also been the answer to the main research question, has been found in the formof a normative framework. This framework describes success factors and pitfalls for external venturing in the Dutch aviation industry and exists out of five different levels. These levels are found during the literature study and describe prerequisites to do external venturing in the right way. The normative framework has been the foundation on which the first steps for Fokker Service, to start with external venturing, relied on and has been presented in the form of an implementation plan. This plan describes four short-term stage, a mid-long term stage and a long-term stage with accompanying steps at the five levels relevant for external venturing. The normative framework is, in its turn, has been build based on a two-fold approach. First by translating key learnings from other organisations and external venturing experts about the execution of external venturing (combined with a literature study) into a list of success factors and pitfalls. Secondly by translating solutions to overcome industry specific startup challenges into success factors and pitfalls. The research strategy to answer the first part of this two-fold approach is chosen to be a literature study combined with a qualitative, multiple case study strategy. The research strategy to answer the second part of the two-fold approach has also been chosen to be a qualitative, multiple case study strategy. Unstructured interviews served as main data collection method for the case studies, and as a result, one of the most important solutions to overcome startup challenges is to grow and improve the Dutch aviation startup ecosystem. Another important solution is to clearly define the opportunities for entrepreneurs in the Dutch aviation industry. Both solutions aim at increasing the likelihood of entrepreneurs to enter the Dutch aviation industry. To overcome the remainder of the startup challenges, four external venturing ingredients have been found which should at least be present in each external venturing program aimed at the aviation industry. These four elements are business services, financing instruments, network and people connectivity and opportunities to use the corporate image. All these solutions have been translated into success factors for external venturing in theDutch aviation industry by saying that having a full-grown startup ecosystem, clearly defined opportunities and an external venturing program with at least containing the aforementioned four ingredients increases the chances on successful collaborations. Together with the success factors and pitfalls for external venturing in general, we now know how Fokker Services and other organisations in the Dutch aviation industry can start with external venturing in an effective way.

External venturing
Startups
Aviation
Dutch
Fokker

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Student theses

master thesis

© 2017 Bas Bolomey