Organizing (in) innovation ecosystems: a definition, new theoretical lenses and a research agenda

Purpose – This paper repositions innovation ecosystems as an organizational phenomenon rather than primarily a structural arrangement. By foregrounding ecosystem organizing, it addresses persistent definitional ambiguity and develops a processual definition of innovation ecosystems that captures how coordination is practically accomplished and recurrently renegotiated across heterogeneous actors, technologies and institutional contexts. Design/methodology/approach – This is a conceptual paper. The argument is developed through a comparative and integrative discussion of existing innovation ecosystem scholarship and relevant organizational perspectives, with particular attention to processual, sociomaterial and institutional interpretations of organizing. On this basis, the paper advances a conceptual reframing and derives a research agenda. Findings – The paper proposes a definition of innovation ecosystems as socio-technical organizing processes oriented to a shared value proposition under conditions of uncertainty and interdependence. It articulates three complementary conceptual lenses for future research: interdependence as relational and sociomaterial dynamics, orchestration as governance-in-practice and contextual boundaries as institutional embeddedness. It formalizes the integration of these lenses in two propositions and specifies the boundary conditions under which an organizing perspective adds explanatory power. It also outlines theory-informed directions for comparative and process-sensitive empirical inquiry. Originality/value – The contribution provides an integrated organizational vocabulary for innovation ecosystem research, shifts the analytical focus from structural description to dynamic organizing and offers a conceptual platform for developing sharper theoretical arguments and hypotheses in future studies.