Motivations for value co-creation in higher education institutions using online platforms: case of idea bank

Abstract

The involvement of stakeholders in value creation is one of the successful marketing techniques. It helps to introduce a very clear view of understanding the stakeholder’s needs, thought and suggestions. Stakeholder engagement in value creation will highlight the fact that new ideas for developing services or products will help to meet customer’s needs and expectations. Ideation is one of the most important strategies that lead to development of such services, enhancing service quality and innovation. Motivation for generating ideas from stakeholders in Higher Educational Institutions (HEIs) through online interaction platforms is one of the challenges that needs further exploration, because of human differences in the nature of motivation and mindset. Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) idea bank online platform is adopted as a case study in this research paper. The main aim of this study is to identify the factors that encourage stakeholders in HEIs to be continuously involved in value co-creation through available online platforms. Interviews with sample of active stakeholders have been conducted using open end questions. In addition, observation on idea bank website and analyzing the archive and website history is considered. The initial results identify three areas of motivations for value co-creation in HEIs: organizational motives, online platform characteristics, individual motives. Results and implications for this case study will help HEIs such as universities achieve better global market positioning, to differentiate themselves among others, and to develop stakeholder’s competencies.