Co-Creation may is considered as a logical outcome of open innovation. It’s a strategy that emphasizes the generation and ongoing realization of mutual firm-customer value through new forms of interaction and reduce the gap between companies and customers. The Wikipedia writes that Co-creation is the practice of developing systems, products, or services through the collaborative execution of developers and stakeholders, businesses and clients, or managers and employees. Co-creation could be seen as creating great work by standing together with those for whom the project is intended.
Here is the way that C.K. Prahalad and V. Ramaswamy contrast firm- vs. customer-centric approaches in their book the Co-Creation Connection:
- The consumer is an integral part of the system for value creation;
- The consumer can influence where, when, and how value is generated;
- The consumer need not respect industry boundaries in the search for value;
- The consumer can compete with companies for value extraction;
- There are multiple points of exchange where the consumer and the company can co-create value.